Attending Technical Writing Conferences — the benefits and pitfalls

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By Colin Ramsden, May 2008.

I am a professional Technical Writer. At different times over the past decade, I've worked:

• in locations both remotely (at home), and on-site (office, factory, warehouse, project site);
• by contract—both short and long terms, and in full-time salaried employment;
• in situations as the sole writer (isolated from most everyone), and in small groups, in teams of engineers, in teams of writers, and in teams with software developers;
• in teams containing usability experts, industrial designers, subject matter experts (SME), and in teams without those specialists;
• on equipment (both hardware and software) provided by myself, and that provided by others (most often without any prior consultation with me);
• in premises enforcing rigid work hours, or providing semi-flexible, and fully-flexible work hours;
• under scrutiny of clock-watching team-leaders and micro-managers, and those that left me to my own devices.

This wide range of experience provides the opportunity to evaluate and compare working conditions. Some I liked, some I tolerated, some I hated. Some were conducive to productivity, and some were not. Some paid well, and some didn't. Some were performance-based, and others were not. I've been both the sheep and the shepherd. Learning to avoid the pitfalls encountered along the way, provides the benefits.

However, many technical writers have not—had the opportunity, or have chosen to—work as I have done, and may have remained in the same job for an extended period of time (several years). If you, perhaps, haven't experienced (the afore-mentioned) diverse working conditions as a technical writer, how would you be able to compare and contrast? Would you be able to recognise a potential pitfall or benefit if you saw one? On your own, without experience, you probably wouldn't—but you aren't on your own. That's what a technical writer's conference is for—allowing you to join a group of like-minded individuals, in differing roles, to share experiences—and more. That's a benefit.

There's always more to a tech writer conference than meets the eye. You might think that conferences are places where many people have to sit still and listen to a few people speak. Yes, that occurs, but that's not the end of it. That's not the sole purpose of attending a technical writer conference, and that's not the function of a professionally-minded participant. There is so much more available to those that look for it and seek it out!

"Networking" may be a buzz (fad) word, and for that reason I would normally avoid using it, however, there is no other suitable adjective for this activity at conferences. Networking is not just shaking hands and swapping business cards—it's getting to know:

• the other attendees,
• where they work (business, city, state, country)
• what type of technical writing they're doing,
• how many writers, if any, they work with,
• what writing and document management tools they use,
• how they got to the position they're currently in.

You don't just stand in a circle and recite your history, you sit around a table, and share your experiences. Some prefer to stand in a bar, some like to lecture, and a few like to lurk and observe, but on the most part, everyone at a technical writing conference has something to learn, even it's just confirming that they're doing their thing the right way. That's a benefit.

Personally, I gain as much from the social and professional networking and after-hours activities as I do from the presentations. I've met a few people I like to call my friends, and not just acquaintances. That's another benefit.

 

Lunchtime is great for networking with your peers
(that's me holding down the table) [AODC 2008]

flock together

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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