Re: "content" vs "tools" - help!

[Chris <cud -at- telecable -dot- es>]

I can say the following about telecommuting.  I have been telecommuting 
from Spain now for 3 years.  I am fundamentally a tech writer, and 
consider myself very good at the content side of things.  I have come 
into projects that were very demanding, short-term, and even baffled 
others.  I learned what I needed, got up to speed, and did the job 
long-distance with no problems.

That was then (1.5 -3 years ago), this is now.  I also happen to be a 
good tools guy, and can write plugins for FrameMaker.  These days, it 
turns out that's most of the work I get.  There are fewer FDK 
programmers than writers, and the nature of the work is a bit more 
isolated than writing, per se.  I don't mind - I think it's great fun. 
But I have found that departments want to *see* the person who is 
creating content.

More to the point, they want that person to *see* their subject-matter 
experts (read "engineers" in my line of work).  Mind you, I don't think 
the engineers care one way or the other.  At least they don't have me 
pestering them in their cubes...  They can email me when they like.  But 
I find it very difficult these days to convince the hiring mgr that I 
can perform from here when there's a line of people ready to perform 
from there.

Also, I have never gotten a *cold* writing job.  Writing jobs have all 
come from people I knew before I left the States, or from agencies.  And 
finding an agency that wants to handle a telecommuter isn't easy, 
either...  To date, those have all been personal contacts as well. 
However, most of my programming work as been cold...  Somehow word has 
gotten around.

Telecommute contracting is like fishing.  If they aint biting on one 
lure, you gotta switch lures.

Not sure whether this adds anything to the discussion, but there it is.

Cheers          cud


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