Re: Humor in writing -- AGAIN?

[Bill Burns <BillDB -at- ILE -dot- COM>]

Given the last discussion we had on this topic, I'm probably going to seem
like an ogre.

I think humor has its place in tech docs--the Dummies and Idiot guides being
good examples (at least for American audiences). However, imagine adding
humorous references to a technical manual for a production line. It goes to
the floor and an employee loses a few fingers in a lead-trimming tool. Now
imagine your legal team going to court for an injury liability suit. Whether
the content is accurate or not, will a manual with humorous references and a
cute one-liners give the impression that the company is serious about safe
operation of machinery? Are you willing to give this matter over to a jury
to decide?

When I was still in teaching, one of the professors who did my faculty
evaluation (a pretty well-know author of tech comm texts) commented on the
use of humor in my syllabus. He asked if I'd considered how it would reflect
on me professionally if I ever had to defend my teaching practices in a
legal setting. I can't say I removed every humorous reference, but I
reconsidered how I use humor, and his comment definitely affected how I view
humor in various contexts.

If you use humor, use it as you do any other tool--within the right context
and for the appropriate reason.


Bill Burns
Senior Technical Writer/Technology Consultant
ILE Communications
billdb -at- ile -dot- com