Re: Versatility - how much is a good thing?

[LDurway -at- PAV -dot- COM]

My personal reaction to your situation is very negative.  Your ambivalence
about your responsibilities is justified.  In my opinion you're being used
as a glorified typist.  A technical writer produces customer-oriented
documentation that is integral to the product. Period.

A technical writer does not produce all those internal documents you listed.
Internal documents are the responsibility of the people who use them.  For
over 14 years I've had to fend off internal docs, and it insults me every
time.  You're a professional writer, not a typist!  Tell them that!  They're
wasting your skills on memos & crap simply because they're too lazy or
incompetent to write it up themselves.  If your company doesn't have enough
product documentation to keep you busy, I can see why you might accept these
other tasks to fill up your time; nevertheless, I recommend against it.  Do
something, anything, related to customer docs to fill up your time.
Never let the engineers and the bureaucrats forget that you are a
professional writer contributing significantly to the product, not just some
medium-wage grunt who knows how to use publishing software.  If you do not
insist on respect, you will not get it.  You are every bit as much an expert
in your field as the programmers that make more money.  Work at it & insist
on it.

Think about it: if I need to hire someone to write a 400-page user's guide
for a $70,000 piece of software expected to bring in $10 million in sales,
will I hire someone whose resume boasts HR policies, network diagrams, &
business plans?  Nope, that sounds like a darn good admin assistant, not a
professional writer.

Admittedly, it's almost impossible to avoid some internal writing jobs
because tech writers rarely operate from a position of power.  Let your boss
know that you'd be worth more to the company if you spent more time on
customer & product docs.  When you can't wriggle out of an internal doc job,
make it inconvenient for them.  Ask too many questions.  Misunderstand their
requests.  Ask them to send ideas over email, thus requiring them to do the
writing that they deplore.  Claim that you're horrible with PowerPoint or
whatever it is they want you to use.  And keep your current projects
sufficiently vague (from everyone except your boss) that you can always say
that you don't have time.  Being swamped is a great way to avoid crap jobs.

Lindsey

> -----Original Message-----
> Hello all,
>
> As I face yet another radically different writing assignment from my
> company, I'm wondering how many different types of writing tasks other
> companies expect from their writers. I am expected to produce, on very
> short notice, HR policies, user manuals, training documentation, network
> diagrams of all shapes and sizes, system documentation, business process
> flowcharts,  internal IT reference materials, project plans & scope
> documents, Y2k testing methodology, architecture documents, and audit
> responses, as well as serve as an IS project manager, contact person for
> outside departments, and general department "duct tape" for whatever
> needs fixing.  I'm usually expected to make recommendations and
> contribute content to the material that I research and document, as
> well.
>
> I know tech writers often wear a number of different hats, but is this
> usual? I enjoyed having lots of varied work, but I'm not always
> satisfied with the results.  It's not that I couldn't handle any one
> aspect given at least minimal prep time, but like most assignments in
> the waning days of the twentieth centry, they're already weeks overdue
> by the time I receive them. Will "jack of all trades, master of none"
> experience be a help or a hindrance at future positions? Am I correct in
> thinking most writers are more specialized? The company is extremely
> unstable, it's definitely time for me to investigate future
> possibilities.
>
> T
>

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