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Subject:RE: on technical writers From:"Sean O'Donoghue-Hayes (EAA)" <Sean.O'Donoghue-Hayes -at- ericsson -dot- com -dot- au> To:"TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com> Date:Tue, 19 Mar 2002 10:05:52 +1100
Ed said:
"I have to challenge the basic assumption that people move From creative
writing TO technical writing.
Good technical writing requires all the creativity one can muster. I'm not
advocating the introduction of flowery language to describe process,
procedure, principle, or other technical content.
All writing, when done well, is creative writing."
-Ed Gregory
My reply.....
Well Ed I regret if my email implied that technical writers don't need, or
are not creative.
Having lived through the "great "dot.com" rush (...In ten years time I
expect to be chewing ta-bacca, and gurgling down moonshine as I tell those
young varmints about the good old days when a man/woman could go out and
stake a claim, and the Venture Capitalists would pour money over you.....) I
know you have to be JUST as creative when technical writing as when writing
novels or fiction...
...the word "vapour-ware" only ever carried any weight if there was a
"great" piece of documentation telling the users/buyers what it
did.....("yep the user documentation is complete, the client has brought the
product,.....we expect to start hiring the developers next Tuesday...").
Thanks for your feedback folks - as to being employed or unemployed as a
Technical writer I suspect it is up to the individual - more than one author
was working fulltime and writing fiction.....artist garrets and malnutrition
are not mandatory for a writer's lifestyle....
have a good day, y'all,
Sean
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