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Subject:Re: Techie or Writer? From:Angela Howard <angela -at- NAVISOFT -dot- COM> Date:Mon, 19 Feb 1996 10:49:51 -0800
>Hence, what's the scoop? Are you engineers-turned-writers or writers
>with a technical bent/experience/talent-for-learning-a-new-piece-of-
>software-on-a-familiar-platform-in-no-time-at-all (has to be a word
>for this somewhere :)?
Everyone's been responding to this question with "the latter", so I thought
I'd throw in my response of "the former" to try to show the other side of
things. I'm an engineer turned writer. Yes, it is possible. Really, it is!
I know a lot of us have had bad experiences with engineers who think they
can do our jobs just because they have the technical knowledge. But please
remember that it is just as possible for an engineer to have a writing bent
as it is for a writer to have a technical bent. No, I did not think I
could be a technical writer just because I had the technical knowledge and
training. I've always loved writing, so when I discovered that there was an
actual profession called technical writing, I took technical writing courses
and practiced on my own and worked my way in. I now have almost 10 years of
experience as a technical writer, and I think this is a great profession.
So, please, next time you come across a resume from an engineer, take the
time to look at their writing samples. Maybe they really can write!
