RE: breaking out in technical communications

["Justin Cascio" <justin-paul -dot- geo -at- yahoo -dot- com>]

Joan Wagner asked:

> I was wondering if anyone
> had any suggestions for someone just starting out.

The way I broke into tech writing after graduating university with a BA in
English was to get recruited by a big company that traditionally hires
promising newbies, pays them in tea and cookies, and works them into the
ground. I'm sure there are other companies out there that will underpay and
overwork you, but for this to be worth your while, the company has to also
give you priceless experience using the tools, working under house styles
and 'best practices,' and working with developers and SMEs. I stayed for a
couple years, then went into contracting. I'm now earning about three times
my starting pay at that big company.

This list is also a priceless resource. It's a lot of work (keeping up with
more than 100 posts a day), and of course the pay's terrible <g>, but you'll
find out what kind of issues you'll run into in the workplace, so you can
research some of them in advance, or at least know what to expect.

What kind of education are you receiving? Do you have some ideas of what
weaknesses your education has, in preparing you for a career in tech
writing?

Justin Cascio



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