TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Wellll, "famous" is a relative term, and on this list there's been some
discussion as to what constitutes a "technical writer," too, so I'm going
out on a limb with this one.
If fame means recognition by your peers, try the STC Fellows, Associate
Fellows, and Honorary Fellows lists. You'll find names like Bill Horton,
Marty Shelton, Edward Tufte, Ginny Reddish, and S. I. Hayakawa, just to
mention a few. BTW, there's a guy named Eric Ray who's pretty well known
around these parts, too.
If fame means public recognition outside the tech writing profession, then
how about Isaac Asimov, Don Norman, James Burke, Martha Stewart (yes, THAT
Martha Stewart, and a bunch of other people who do "how-to" television) and
Buckminster Fuller? Oh yeah, take a look at Herman Melville's description of
"The Try Works" in Moby Dick.
And as for autographs, my creditors ask for it faithfully, every month, on
checks.
OK, THAT should kick off a new thread! No, I don't mean about what "really"
constitutes tech writing, but about "famous" tech writers. I was getting
rather tired of PB&J, grammar, and writing tests.
-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Hartzer [mailto:BHartzer -at- cha-systems -dot- com]
Sent: Monday, November 15, 1999 12:59 PM
To: TECHWR-L
Subject: Famous Technical Writers?
Hi all,
A recent discussion among technical writers at my company brought up the
following topic:
Are there any famous technical writers?
Has anyone ever become famous by being a technical writer?
Right now, the only "famous" technical writer I can think of would be
Joanne Hackos, who, in my book, has become "famous" by writing great
technical writing books. But that's only my opinion.
The technical writing industry has been around for a while, but is still
considered
by some to be "new." I know there are famous scientists, famous
pediatricians,
and famous football players, but is the technical writing industry 'big"
enough yet
so that we've created famous technical writers? Has our industry created any
famous people?
If you're subscribed to this list, and you ARE a famous technical writer,
has anyone
ever asked you for your autograph?
Cordially,
Bill Hartzer
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Sponsored by Weisner Associates Inc., Online Information Services
Training & consulting for RoboHELP, Dreamweaver, HTML, and HTML-Based Help.
More info at http://www.weisner.com/train/ or mailto:training -at- weisner -dot- com -dot-
Sponsored by Rose Hill, Your Business and Career Coach.
"Assume Success! Live Your Passion!" Get the gist at
www.coachrose.com then call 503.629.4804 for details!
---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as: krupp_marguerite -at- emc -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to $subst('Email.Unsub')
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot- Visit http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.
