Re: Who's Job is it to Layout a Book?

[Jan Stanley <janron -at- CONCENTRIC -dot- NET>]

Dave Hickey asks "Out in the real world (any place where I'm not,
it seems), who's job is it to design the layout of the
documentation? Does the technical writer design this or is it the
Graphic Design department's job?"

Dave,

The short answer:  It depends. (Is there an echo in here?)  In
other words, Your Real World May Vary.

I've worked at places where I was the Lone Tech Writer and did
*everything* -- including designing the layout.  I've also been
one writer in a group that had writer-editors *and* desktop
publishers (who were not designers).  The desktop publishers had
a pretty free hand making design choices; other group members
might make suggestions, but it was made clear to the
writer-editors that our focus was on, well, writing and editing.
(Things were set up so that I couldn't even do my own screen
captures for a while, which felt very odd.)   I found that
frustrating, because I've got a visual sense and like to use it.
Not to mention the whole control-freak thing...<g>

I haven't worked at such places, but I'm sure there are many
where design is an entirely separate step, done by a specialist,
and where writers are expected to *write* -- not design, not do
desktop publishing, not edit, not create style guidelines, not do
screen captures, not help decide whether docs will be 7 by 9 or
8-1/2 by 11...you get the picture.  If your client is one of
these, and you otherwise like/need/want the work, it might be
worth it to you to *just* write.  If it's important to you to be
involved in layout design -- and just too frustrating if you
can't be -- well, you might want to give up the client.

Regards,
Jan
janron -at- concentric -dot- net


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