Re: To start a new thread...

[Anne Halseytechwriter <ach -at- TOMICHI -dot- STORTEK -dot- COM>]

I concur with Caryn's suggestions on volunteering to do some
tech writing where you are.  My department recently accepted
a similar offer from an employee; ended up hiring her within
about six months as an entry-level tech writer.

The catch-22 situation is a common one.  In the companies
I've worked at in the past ten years, personnel reqs were
only opened when it could be demonstrated to management that
there was a screaming need.  Consequently, we rarely hired
true entry-level personnel, since no one had the time to
hand-hold a newbie through the first three months and
train on every detail of the pubs process.

Where I work now, we have what we call an 'entry-level'
writer, but we require a minimum of one year of directly
applicable experience.

Back to suggestions.  I concur on the volunteering.  I also
suggest checking into a local community college to see if there
is an associate's or certificate program in tech comm.  You'll
get exposed to the various disciplines, and should get the
chance to build at least a couple of pieces suitable for a
portfolio.

I'm also a *fervent* advocate of internships.

Send me an email and tell me a little more about your current
situation (interests, what you're currently doing, why you want
to get into the industry, how flexible you are on compensation ...).
Maybe I can provide some more concrete suggestions.

Good luck.  [Is this the part where I should question your
mental stability in *choosing* this for a potential career??  ;-)]


Anne Halsey
Senior Tech Writer (though I prefer 'information developer')
anne_halsey -at- stortek -dot- com