Re: Versatility - how much is a good thing?

[Ed Gregory <edgregory -at- HOME -dot- NET>]

When John Paul Getty was asked how much money was enough, he replied: "Just
a little bit more."

At 10:32 AM 8/17/99 -0500, LDurway -at- PAV -dot- COM wrote, in part:
>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.
>

My personal reaction differs greatly.  I believe that if you are a
professional technical writer, your customer is described by the person who
signs your paycheck.

We all have clients internal and external to the company from whence our
income flows. These clients might read our work via internal communications
or external communications. External might mean external to your client's
corporation, or simply external to your department.

If I am writing about software (which I do), my products might run the
gamut from a project plan describing the documentation I plan to provide to
a technical reference manual to end-user quick reference cards. My audience
ranges from the programmers and SMEs to the end-users and executives who
supervise those end-users.

I suppose one could take a very narrow view if, for example, your job title
is something like Product Documentationist and your job description
excludes writing anything that is not "product documentation."

I am a writer. I am a technical person. I have a broad set of skills that I
bring to bear wherever my team and my employer needs them.

Does that mean I am a "glorified secretary " who is asked to write somebody
else's letters and memos? Not at my rates! Would I review a "non-technical"
document written by a supervisor or teammate? You betcha.  Would I help the
team lead with a Microsoft Word technical question? All the time.

Ed Gregory
http://www.members.home.net/edgregory/search1.htm

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