atw: Re: Request advice on transition to Tech Writing
- From: "Christine Kent" <c.bkent@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 11:48:44 +1000
Hi Don
Don't be put off - the market is very buoyant, and half the employed tech
writers out there are either illiterate or brain dead. So design yourself a
stunning CV, beautifully formatted using a word template and styles - you
would be surprised how many TWs have shocking CVS. I have turned down every
applicant for roles I have advertised because the CV was so bad. So it's
your first chance to prove you can write - so use it.
Then apply for EVERY SINGLE job you see advertised on SEEK, JobNet, Career
One, My Career etc. Apply for the same job through numerous agencies till
you get one who will talk to you. Insist that the agency DOES NOT reformat
your CV - which means they will wreck it. When the people doing the
recruiting have ploughed through all the imaginably bad CVs, and get to
yours - they will be desperate to find anyone who is both literate and
stable - and you are clearly both.
Information Mapping is the best course you could have done - even without
the actual IM template, the way they teach you to structure a document still
stands. As long as you can work with heading levels, and know what a
sentence is, you have enough skills to get started as a TW.
But - why oh why do you want to be a TW? There is very little in the way of
career path in TW either. Business Analysis work would be far better and
offer more options. BAs tend to be recruited from IT backgrounds and are
barely literate, so you will star.
All the best, CK
-----Original Message-----
From: austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Don Burch
Sent: Saturday, 28 April 2007 08:41
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Request advice on transition to Tech Writing
Hi austechwriters,
I've had a read through the last few months archives of this list, and
looked at several websites related to TW, but not found much advice for
people transitioning into Technical Writing. I'm sure the same question is
raised often, and any suggestions will depend a lot on individual background
and goals.
I was a commercial programmer 25 years including 7 website development, but
my technical skills have gone down a dead end. I'm currently doing Tech
Support (phone, email, website FAQs) and my current employer offered me a
job as Technical Writer - which got me thinking about TW as a better career
direction. Certainly the manuals for some of the products I currently
support are a complete waste of money and paper, and I'm sure any 10-year
old would do better ! I have always tried to look at systems from a user
perspective, and wrote several User Manuals which were well received, but
many years ago. The TW job fell through, but my boss has got me writing and
editing Press Releases and brochures - very different style from
documentation ... but still I'm finding writing much easier than it would
have been 20 years ago.
In particular I'm looking for advice on :
(1) which professional organisation (if any) is worth joining in NSW (I live
on Sydney's North Shore), Australia and/or international. Ones I've looked
at don't seem to provide much in the way of resources for members.
(2) which tools and/or methodologies are common requirements. I'm pretty
familiar with MS Word (i.e. regularly use Styles and have done a few small
Master/slave documents), and did an Information Mapping course several years
back.
(3) other than the obvious (cold calling every business in the phone book),
any recommended strategies for getting into full-time TW ?
(4) business aspects of finding work, charge rates, negotiating contracts,
etc. There is a fair amount on this for creative writers, though that's
commonly a freelance basis.
I anticipate that writing User and Technical Manuals would be best career
option (leverages my background and interest in helping users, plus stable
income) but I don't have any examples of my work (they were many years ago).
I have considered writing articles for IT magazines, thinking that I can
submit to websites if not accepted by paying publications - but it's a
different style of writing, how relevant would it be ? The current Press
Releases I'm doing are even further removed from a documentation writing
style.
Thanks very much for taking the time to even read this long posting - I'm
sure you must get quite a lot of newbies asking the same questions. I
certainly will appreciate any advice and suggestions you care to make.
Cheers,
Don Burch
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