Re: What makes a good tech writer

[Wally Glassett <wallyg1 -at- PACBELL -dot- NET>]

At the risk of flirting with the "Big C" subject, I sometimes wonder if a
lot of the message traffic on this issue could be reduced if we would
remember that a "Technical Writer" is TECHNICAL first, and a writer, second.
And, just like a degree in Computer Science does not, necessarily, make one
a good programmer, neither does a degree in Technical Communication (or
whatever) automatically make anyone a good technical writer.

Wally Glassett
Tech Doc-It, Inc.
wallyg1 -at- pacbell -dot- net


-----Original Message-----
From: Technical Writers List; for all Technical Communication issues
[mailto:TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU]On Behalf Of Joe Schrengohst
Sent: Wednesday, April 28, 1999 10:43 AM
To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
Subject: Re: What makes a good tech writer


At 05:03 AM 4/28/1999 -0700, you wrote:
>Apparently, from what I've seen on this list recently, a desire to be a
>technical writer makes a technical writer.  No one seems to mind if
>he/she has proper training, education, etc.  If the junior high school
>English teacher gave you a B, that's good enough!!  How many threads
>have been the intellectual equivalent of "I used to specialize in flame
>broiling down at the BK, but I really want to be a tech writer.  How
>should I market myself?"  It is perhaps the desire to be tech writers
>by people who are clearly unprepared that makes the job environment
>difficult for those of us who are.  But, hey, anyone can write, right?
****************************************************************************
****

I'm sure I've been "writing tech" since before Shannon was born, but
I have no idea what the "proper training, education, etc." is for this
profession since it covers virtually every type of endeavor known to
man (and/or woman).

The problem with the technical writing field is that, in recent decades,
it's
been inundated with people who have no "desire to be a technical writer,"
but they can't make a decent living with their English and/or Journalism
degrees and they probably couldn/t handle "flame broiling down at the BK,"
so they decided to become technical writers as a last resort.

I would much prefer to have one person who really has the "desire to be
a technical writer," regardless of their background (I flunked Sr. English),
than a dozen who think they are eminently prepared by virtue of their
"proper training, education, etc." Give me someone who has the desire,
and I guarantee they'll make "the job environment difficult for those of
[you] who are .... properly trained, educated, etc."

Joe Schrengohst
Contract Technical Writer
Cisco Systems
Network-to-Users BU
170 West Tasman Drive
San Jose, CA 95134
E-Mail:  jschreng -at- cisco -dot- com
Cisco Phone:  (408) 527-9844
Cisco Fax:        (408) 527-1488
Home Phone:  (775) 782-4129
Home Fax:        (775) 782-5585


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