Re: Tech writer who can't write a resume

Subject: Re: Tech writer who can't write a resume
From: TRACY BOYINGTON <trlyboyi -at- GENESIS -dot- ODVTE -dot- STATE -dot- OK -dot- US>
Date: Thu, 7 Dec 1995 08:13:59 +0000

> Sanford Carr wrote:
> I've commented on this thread before, but comments like these make me
> want to say a little more.

Ditto

> All writing is not the same!

Ditto

> Would you assume that tech writiers could produce outstanding
> advertising copy? How about video scripts? Fiction? Poetry?

Of course not. I would rather get poked in the eye with a stick than try
to write poetry for a living.

However...as a technical writer, I need the ability to:
- write for a specific audience -- find out what they need and give it to them
- format information in a way that my reader can easily find what
they want
- accurately describe what I'm writing about...whether it's software,
hardware, or my work experience
- use correct spelling and grammar
- write clearly
- write consisely and winnow out anything that my audience does not need

All of the skills are also needed to produce a good resume. I wouldn't
refuse to hire someone who didn't do their own resume. When you've
seen a cover letter scribbled on the back of the big pink envelope
that a candidate's writing samples were stuffed into, a "farmed-out"
resume can be a welcome relief. But I still think it's something that
I, as a technical writer, should be able to do on my own.


==========================================================
Tracy Boyington
Technical Communication Specialist
Oklahoma Department of Vocational & Technical Education
Stillwater, Oklahoma

I never express opinions, but if one slips out, it belongs
to me and not ODVTE.
==========================================================


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