You may be wondering how and what you can contribute to the book. If you are seeing this, you know you have the experience and knowledge that newcomers to our profession would find fascinating, interesting, and something to learn.
- Those answers you've given to newbie questions on forums such as LinkedIn groups or Yahoo groups or other media.
- Those answers you've given to questions you hear when you attend professional conferences.
- Those answers you wish you had when you first started on your career as a professional communicator.
(You probably have already written much of the info suggested here on many of the forums you belong to -- if this is the case and if the material is yours, you may need only to copy and paste the information into a notepad or MS-Word file.)
So, break out your notepad (or MS-Word) and maybe fill in the blanks:
How long have you been a professional (business, technical, scientific, marketing, other) writer?
If you work as an employee, what is your job title?
Are you an independent contractor, outside contractor, or staff member?
What did you study in school? And how did it help or hurt your career in professional communication?
How did you break into the field of professional writing? Did you come into the profession straight out of school? Or did you pass through other career fields before coming into the profession?
Are you particular about your tools? Any favorites? What tools do you use at your job (software, hardware, other tools)?
How do you spend your time at work? Meetings, planning, research, writing, editing, peer review, interviews, photography, illustration, anything else?
Do you ever go to professional conferences and seminars? Attend classes for new tools or advances in your field (or the topics of your writing)?
What suggestions would you give to a newbie wanting to get started in a career involving professional writing?
What are your pet-peeves about professional, business, technical, or scientific writing?
Or, if you'd prefer, you may like to pick out one or more of the sections/chapters from those listed below (still not solidified yet, but this will fill out as folks join the project).
Preface
Business, Technical, and Scientific Documentation: What it Really Is
Writing—Good Writing Is Essential
Problems and skills to fix:
Grammar
Usage
Wordiness
Deadwood
Redundancy
Style
Style Guides and Other Resources
The Process
Planning and Logistics—The Part Most Don’t Tell You About
Metrics
Scoping Out Your Documentation Project
Audience Analysis
Schedule
Budget
Deadlines
The Documentation Plan
The Reality
Research
Subject Matter Experts
Pre-Existing Documents and References
The Material Being Documented
Miscellaneous Extras
Design-Formatting-Templates-Layout
Illustrations
Photography
Indexing
Writing the First Draft
Editing
Review
Final Draft
Production
Print plant
WebWorks Publisher Professional
PDFs
Online Help
Types of Technical and Scientific Writing
Computer Industry
Software
GUI—graphic user interface
CLI—command line interface
Hardware
Networking
Medical and Biotech
Pharmaceutical
Chemical
Agricultural
Environmental
Government
Military
Aeronautics
Automotive
Industrial
Manufacturing
Construction
Consumer
Miscellaneous
Electrical
Financial Services
Trade Magazines—Journalism
Tools
The Heritage of Our Past—the Tools Used
Typewriters
Typesetting
Healing Tables
Layout Tables
Waxers
Bluelines
Kroy
LeRoy
Note Cards
Our Current Tools
Computers
UNIX
PC
Apple
Word Processing Software
Microsoft Word
WordPerfect
OpenOffice
Desktop Publishing Software
FrameMaker
InDesign
PageMaker
Illustration Software
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
Corel Draw
Visio
Microsoft Paint Utility
Review and Publication Software
Adobe Acrobat Professional
Quadralay Webworks Publisher Professional
RoboHelp
The Future Tools
Embedded Video
DITA and XML
How Do You Break Into Business, Technical, and Scientific Documentation—How Some Did It
Developing Your Portfolio
Education
Biographies of the Collaborating/Contributing Authors
References and Recommended Reading
Bly, Bob. “Elements of Technical Writing”
Hackos, JoAnn.
Strunk & White’s “Elements of Style”
Rudolf Flesh. “The Art of Readable Writing”
Zinsser, William. “On Writing Well”
Zinsser, William. “Writing to Learn”
CBE Style Manual
Chicago Manual of Style
APA Style Manual
The only requirement for the book is that whatever you contribute must be yours -- you must own the rights for whatever you contribute. When I get this document copyrighted, the copyright will be reassigned to you after the document is published.
Remember, all contributors/collaborating authors will get a free PDF copy of the book.
