Where Do I Look?

Posted on 31. Mar, 2011 by John K in Prima Communications Blog, Writing & Marketing

Ok, you’re still reading, so if your passion is to become a writer, find work with a company that respects and understands that talent. A technical communications company is a great place to start—at least they will know what a technical writer is and they will hopefully have an established client base that understands the unique set of skills a technical writer can provide. Other companies could include publishing, copywriting, marketing, maybe public relations, and website developers (programmers/designers are not always the best communicators!).

Another approach is a large corporation whose industry requires a communications-related department or a strong need for documentation. One of the best such industries is pharmaceutical manufacturing and packaging. Highly regulated industries, such as pharmaceuticals, have an inherent need for good documentation. There is an old axiom in this industry that “if it isn’t documented, it doesn’t exist.” These companies understand that not only is documentation needed to do the job safely and correctly; it is also necessary to keep the FDA happy and the doors open.

Strike out on your own? Sure, but it is tough and you had better be ready for work load fluctuations. Freelancers can often command a very good rate, but that rate can be deceiving. During the good times when you are locked in with one (or a number of) client(s), all is good. But during the slow times you had better be comfortable with marketing and being able to sell the fact that the skills you have to offer will have a positive effect on the bottom line of their product.

Also, remember whatever rate you are using needs to cover all your benefits, including vacation—often freelancers handcuff themselves to the idea that they need to work all the time because no work means no pay. Build time off into your model.

Are Skills Enough?

Posted on 14. Mar, 2011 by John K in Documentation & Training, Prima Communications Blog, Writing & Marketing

Our last blog discussed the training and experience that are beneficial for a technical writing candidate, but there is more.

Along with the degree and/or experience come the intangibles or perhaps the attitude. Our best writers are inquisitive by nature and have a passion for clear writing. In general, technical writers are in positions helping very bright people who have little patience for explaining their concepts. We need to enter their world and care enough to ask good questions to lay the groundwork for communicating their ideas. We don’t have to become engineers or programmers, but we need to get involved in their processes to gather the necessary information to communicate their message.

And hone your listening skills. Our most effective communicators are the best listeners. This may sound trite, but if you aren’t listening, you will not understand the needs of your client.

Finally, writers/communicators have to be open to new and emerging technologies for communicating the information. My career started when cut and paste literally meant to cut and paste an article on a board for production. Now we have a variety of vehicles for communicating—various software packages are available to support traditional hardcopy items (SOPs, Work Instructions, Newsletters), as well as electronic delivery via blogs, websites, and video.

So, in a nutshell, a strong candidate will have solid communication fundamentals (grammar, sentence structure, writing concepts), a passion for writing, and a very open and inquisitive mind!

What Skills Do I Look for When Hiring a Technical Writer/Communicator?

Posted on 24. Feb, 2011 by John K in Documentation & Training, Prima Communications Blog, Writing & Marketing

My last blog noted that dinosaurs (such as me) generally entered the field without formal technical writing training or degrees. That was then; now, many colleges and universities offer degrees in technical communications or a very closely related field, so the expectation of a degree or at least some solid college course work in the field is much more common and anticipated.

That being said, experience is still a strong factor in the decision making process when hiring a new member of our staff. I love it when a recent grad can display writing experience, whether it is from writing stories for the college paper or an internship with an engineering firm. Any type of experience shines over great grades and working in fast food or some other unrelated field. You’ve got to find a way to develop a portfolio or at least verifiable experience. If you can’t find work in the field find a way to hone the skills. Freelance an article—anything.

As for degrees, clearly a technical writing (or related) degree is the best place to start. English and Creative Writing are also good to build from. Engineering can also work, but whether it’s a left brain/right brain thing or whatever—many engineers lack the passion for writing. Their passion is often focused on creating the device or program, not explaining the need for it. To them, the need (and the logic behind it) is as clear as the nose on your face! There are exceptions; Prima Communications, Inc. was founded by an engineer whose passion was in writing—a powerful combination.

A Sponge, Prod, Something Else?

Posted on 14. Dec, 2010 by John K in Prima Communications Blog, Writing & Marketing

Even after all these years technical writers are still often asked, “What is it you do?” With the many programs offered at colleges and universities and the fame Dilbert brought to the profession through Tina¹; the picture should be quite clear; but apparently that is not the case.

A few recent situations had me comparing the technical writer’s job to inanimate objects in an effort to clarify the role. This was new territory, as we usually save that comparison for IT professionals.

One of our technical writers, after a bit of an exasperating day, shared, “You know, technical writers really need to be sponges!” She went on to explain that we are often tossed into a role where we need to absorb a great deal of information with which we may or may not have expertise, digest the information, and then put it into an understandable format.

I almost added that sponges are often used to clean up messes, much like technical writers, but felt her analogy was perhaps a bit more pleasant!

This picture of our writers as sponges stayed with me for a day or two until we had a meeting with a totally different client.

This client was upset because we weren’t poking him enough to get the information we needed. I was sitting in on the meeting with the writer/designer who worked directly with the client and we were both a bit stunned. We thought it had been pretty clear that we were waiting for the client to make some decisions and get back to us.

In the meantime we had been working on a number of small issues with the client, so it wasn’t as if there had been no communication. But the client was unhappy, stating, “I need you guys to poke me, like a cattle prod, if you need information!”

After the call I talked more with the writer and shared how we often get placed into the role of poking, prodding, and bugging our clients because although they wanted their communications needs met, all too often the task was low on their list due to production concerns.

A sponge, a prod—just a few of the many objects that may represent our duties. Are there other objects that also represent our role? I am sure there are. Feel free to share some of your experiences and the objects (or perhaps roles) you have had to represent or assume to get the job done.

¹Dilbert, a comic strip written by Scott Adams, United Feature Syndicate, Inc.

5 Proofreading Tips You May Not Have Learned in Pubic School

Posted on 22. Sep, 2010 by Jeremy in Documentation & Training, Prima Communications Blog, Writing & Marketing

It will be very embarrassing if there is a spelling error in this pot post.

But not as embarrassing as the “Pubic Schools” billboard touting the 15 best things about South Bend, Indiana’s public schools. Credit to Blue Waters Group for taking responsibility for the typo, admitting four people looked at it and didn’t see the error.

Photo by Lee MacMillan

I didn’t catch it the first time I read the sign, and spell check certainly wouldn’t help. So how can you make sure your content is correct?

5 Proofreading Tips You May Not Have Learned in Pubic School

1. Let virgin eyes read it.

If you helped write it, chances are you’ve seen it at least a dozen times. You’re probably sick of it. This increases the chance of skimming. Let fresh eyes take a look and ask them to:

2. Read it out loud.

Slowly. Someone saying “pubic” out loud in an office is going to get attention. And when that’s done, ask your proofer to:

3. Read it out loud backwards.

This will help prevent the aforementioned filling of blanks. It’s much easier to skim “pubic schools” than “schools pubic.”

4. Change Case

Depending on the letters, misspellings and missing letters can be harder to spot if your text is ALL CAPS or lowercase. Observe:

PUBIC SCHOOLS

pubic schools

The missing L is more obvious in all caps.
Change it up for review.

5. Go big.

While you’re changing the case, bump the size up. Keep going, get to one word per page. If you’re scrolling through the pages and come to one with

PUBIC

sprawled across it, you’ll probably stop the presses.