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Ginny (Virginia Kathleen Eaton) asked:
> Now that I am the "one and only" responsible for all QA and
> technical writing for all the company projects, I am feeling
> a little overwhelmed. Its not the type or the size of the
> workload that worries me, its the responsibility.
>
> What things have you done to keep multiple projects with
> multiple needs running smoothly? What pitfalls
> await me?
My 'top of the head' replies:
1. Stay close to your manager. Keep that line of
communication open and flowing both ways. Don't be
dependent, though, be proactive. (Head 'em off at the
pass every chance you get.)
2. Work hard to align your project priorities with the
company's priorities. This should be obvious to all of us,
but it's easy to get drawn off on tangents (for examples
of tangents, check the archives of this list).
3. Get comfortable working in interrupt mode. Lone writers
have no buffers to keep people away.
4. Get comfortable saying "No". Get comfortable saying
"Yes, if you can wait until I complete this other task."
5. Stay "plugged in". Be part of Engineering's e-mail
list. Attend meetings. Interact with those non-writers.
6. Get used to negotiating. Lots of negotiating.
7. Use resources like TECHWR-L but avoid listserv addiction.
When nobody else in your organization talks tech writing,
it's tempting to spend your time studying these e-mails.
8. The STC (Society for Technical Communication) has a SIG
(Special Interest Group) for Lone Writers. The SIG has its
own Web site and listserv. The STC homepage (www.stc.org)
has links to SIG information.
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