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Subject:Re: let us test From:Robert Plamondon <robert -at- PLAMONDON -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 10 Sep 1996 21:32:36 PDT
>As part of a re-organization recently I had an interview
>with our new division head. He asked me to tell him verbally,
>on the spot, how I would write a manual on eating pasta. He
>wanted details on how many sections and chapters there would be,
>how many kinds of pasta there are, etc. Well, first I would
>interview the pasta engineers...
>It was not fun. or relevant.
All stupid writing assignments should be met by a question of the
form of:
"Who is my audience, and how is it that they don't know how to eat
pasta already?"
(For "eat pasta," replace "use a toaster," or "use a pencil," or
whatever.)
You should beware of managers with a weak sense of audience; a
weak awareness of the requirements of the readers is a grave
deficiency in a technical writer, and a tragic flaw in a
tech writing manager.
-- Robert
--
Robert Plamondon, President/Managing Editor, High-Tech Technical Writing, Inc.
36475 Norton Creek Road * Blodgett * Oregon * 97326
robert -at- plamondon -dot- com * (541) 453-5841 * Fax: (541) 453-4139
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