From museum educator to technical writer

education, writing View Comments
Jun 302006

For several years, I enjoyed being a museum educator. I led tours. I taught classes and workshops. I created flyers and brochures.

My favorite part of teaching in museums, though, was being allowed to develop programs and teaching guides. I love doing the research, distilling the information, and putting everything together into a nice, neat, little package! It’s so much fun to be able to hold something you poured so much of yourself into, especially when it combines so many of your natural talents and passions.

My career as a museum educator ended much sooner than it should have, and I’ve had a hard time dealing with that. I’ve felt completely lost trying to figure out where to go next. Part of the problem is that I have this unusual diverse background that needed to be put into something marketable to other fields. How do you explain to a potential employer that you’re great because you create and teach educational programming?

Earlier this year, I made the decision to pursue a graduate degree in instructional design. I’d jump at the chance to be developing learning units in various media. One of my concerns, though, has been a wish for some sort of background in technical writing, in the ability o create process documents and user manual-type projects.

Last week, I was pulling together some articles on various writing topics, one of which was a guide to technical writing. It was quite the eye-opening read. I had once been told that because of my rather vast experience creating curriculum and resource guides I should be looking for work as a technical writer. I didn’t believe them. How could what I had done as a museum educator be considered technical writing?

I was wrong. They are, in fact, completely within the scope of technical writing. I’ve been sitting here worrying about gaining technical writing experience, and I’ve been sitting on nine years of it all along. Somehow, along the way, I’ve developed technical writing s

For several years, I enjoyed being a museum educator. I led tours. I taught classes and workshops. I created flyers and brochures.

My favorite part of teaching in museums, though, was being allowed to develop programs and teaching guides. I love doing the research, distilling the information, and putting everything together into a nice, neat, little package! It’s so much fun to be able to hold something you poured so much of yourself into, especially when it combines so many of your natural talents and passions.

My career as a museum educator ended much sooner than it should have, and I’ve had a hard time dealing with that. I’ve felt completely lost trying to figure out where to go next. Part of the problem is that I have this unusual diverse background that needed to be put into something marketable to other fields. How do you explain to a potential employer that you’re great because you create and teach educational programming?

Earlier this year, I made the decision to pursue a graduate degree in instructional design. I’d jump at the chance to be developing learning units in various media. One of my concerns, though, has been a wish for some sort of background in technical writing, in the ability o create process documents and user manual-type projects.

Last week, I was pulling together some articles on various writing topics, one of which was a guide to technical writing. It was quite the eye-opening read. I had once been told that because of my rather vast experience creating curriculum and resource guides I should be looking for work as a technical writer. I didn’t believe them. How could what I had done as a museum educator be considered technical writing?

I was wrong. They are, in fact, completely within the scope of technical writing. I’ve been sitting here worrying about gaining technical writing experience, and I’ve been sitting on nine years of it all along. Somehow, along the way, I’ve developed technical writing sk

For several years, I enjoyed being a museum educator. I led tours. I taught classes and workshops. I created flyers and brochures.

My favorite part of teaching in museums, though, was being allowed to develop programs and teaching guides. I love doing the research, distilling the information, and putting everything together into a nice, neat, little package! It’s so much fun to be able to hold something you poured so much of yourself into, especially when it combines so many of your natural talents and passions.

My career as a museum educator ended much sooner than it should have, and I’ve had a hard time dealing with that. I’ve felt completely lost trying to figure out where to go next. Part of the problem is that I have this unusual diverse background that needed to be put into something marketable to other fields. How do you explain to a potential employer that you’re great because you create and teach educational programming?

Earlier this year, I made the decision to pursue a graduate degree in instructional design. I’d jump at the chance to be developing learning units in various media. One of my concerns, though, has been a wish for some sort of background in technical writing, in the ability o create process documents and user manual-type projects.

Last week, I was pulling together some articles on various writing topics, one of which was a guide to technical writing. It was quite the eye-opening read. I had once been told that because of my rather vast experience creating curriculum and resource guides I should be looking for work as a technical writer. I didn’t believe them. How could what I had done as a museum educator be considered technical writing?

I was wrong. They are, in fact, completely within the scope of technical writing. I’ve been sitting here worrying about gaining technical writing experience, and I’ve been sitting on nine years of it all along. Somehow, along the way, I’ve developed technical writing skills. I’m in shock!

Wouldn’t you know? I’m now headed off to work on a project of process/training documents for my current job because I’ve become the accidental trainer!

ils. I’m in shock!

Wouldn’t you know? I’m now headed off to work on a project of process/training documents for my current job because I’ve become the accidental trainer!

kils. I’m in shock!

Wouldn’t you know? I’m now headed off to work on a project of process/training documents for my current job because I’ve become the accidental trainer!

Posted by Rebecca at 11:02 pm

The mythology of friends

finding my path View Comments
Jun 302006

I participate in sites that have social networking aspects to them. Personally, I don’t network with many people on these sites, sticking to the people I already know in real life. I’ve actually recently considered purging one of my sites of people I’m no longer close to.

These sites define those you choose to connect with, or choose to connect with you, as “friends”. They’re trying to make the place seem friendlier, but honestly, I don’t think of all these people as friends. Some are. The vast majority are acquaintances. A few are nothing more than social contacts. For me, these designations are largely about trust and emotional involvement.

Some people pride themselves on how many “friends” they have without considering the actual emotional involvement they have with these people. They think they look cool or popular because they have two thousand friends, when in fact, they’re just as empty and alone online as they are offline. Without any sort of nurturing or contact, these “friendships” mean nothing, as I fear the term “friend” may actually be losing its value.

More studies are being conducted to consider the effect of these “friend” connections on those of us who enjoy spending time on social networking sites. The Washington Post recently shared an article on this sense of reverse isolation with this little nugget of wisdom, “We’re not saying people are completely isolated. They may have 600 friends on Facebook.com [a popular networking Web site] and e-mail 25 people a day, but they are not discussing matters that are personally important.” (Lynn Smith-Lovin)

It’s those daily issues, those personal matters, that help define where a person stands in relation to us. What do we know about them? What do they know about us? Do we feel comfortable sharing personal information with them? Do we feel comfortable when they decide to share personal information with us?

What is a “friend”? Is it better to have thousands of “friends”, or to have a handful of people you genuinely consider a friend?

Posted by Rebecca at 9:17 am Tagged with:

John Hewitt’s Guide to Technical Writing

writing View Comments
Jun 292006

People keep trying to tell me that I actually have technical writing experience.

In my past (and present), I have developed curriculum units to be presented by others, teaching and resource guides, procedural documentation, and training materials. I love creating these types of materials. The research and writing that go into developing them are a great use of my talents and my creativity, and I take any opportunity I can get to work on these types of projects! To my credit, a number of the projects I develop are then spread throughout the company or organization I’m part of at the time. (If you are in need of a freelance writer who specializes in the above projects, please feel free to contact me at rebecca[at]rebeccathomasdesigns[dot]com.)

In fact, I’m currently working on an extensive book of everything I know about my current job that will likely be used to train the next few people who follow me.

I’m a total fan of John Hewitt’s website, and last week he generously shared links to his guide to technical writing. I’m trying to read it in my spare time, but I’m hoping it will help answer this question about whether or not I actually have several years of experience in technical writing.

John Hewitt’s Guide to Technical Writing

Posted by Rebecca at 11:07 am Tagged with:

Thwarting plagiarism

writing View Comments
Jun 282006

I spent the past school year grading for a local high school, and one of their major concerns was teaching the students not to plagiarize from their sources. When I was in school, we were told to cite every single quote and paraphrase. Somehow, that bit of wisdom has not been passed on to younger generations.

In an age where file sharing and internet research abound, somehow we’re failing students by not introducing them to the concept of plagiarism. Those who figure it out when they’re hit with a copyright infringement complaint then get themselves into further trouble by misapplying what they’ve learned.

It doesn’t help when we have opposite forces at work in this country: those who want to see their work derived from, and those who are afraid their meal ticket will vanish or want to make money off the derivative works (let’s face it, that’s what this debate largely comes down to). Thank goodness for organizations like Creative Commons, right?

Somehow, I’ve fallen off-track. The point is that students need to be taught how to credit properly when they borrow someone else’s words to make their point. They need to understand that this is both respectful to the original source, and it gives them a way to find what they used should they need to. In a sense, it’s not entirely unlike creating a link back to an original article in a web post.

Posted by Rebecca at 11:00 pm Tagged with:

Goodbye, Biosphere 2

designs I like View Comments
Jun 282006

When I was in eighth or ninth grade, I was utterly fascinated by the BIosphere 2 project. Originally proposed as an experiment in creating a mini-Earth for those living on worlds we colonize, the project quickly became something of a joke.

The idea was a good one- create an enclosed version of many of the biomes of the Earth. The rather large greenhouse contained seven biomes and a handful of what were referred to as Bionauts. It was the size of one or two football fields. I did a presentation for my ninth-grade biology class that I ended presenting to most of the school and the parents on the project, its design, and its goals, which included a floorplan of how the bioshpere was laid out. It was a pretty fun project.

The problems began shortly after the Bionauts took up residence. I actually stopped listening to a radio station becasue they were making fun of the strict rules the Bionauts were given. They were supposed to be completely self-sufficient, no contact with the outside world, so some of the rules reflected that. (The radio station was particularly harsh on not allowing the female members of the crew to become pregnant. The facilities weren’t designed for familes, nor for delivering a baby, so this was a fairly reasonable expectation.)

Then one of the crew member was injured. The medical facilites inside the project weren’t. Somehow, they hadn’t actually planned for serious injuries when they designed it. The injured crew member had to exit the project, thereby breaking the whole point of it being self-sufficient. Biosphere 2 was considered a failed project at that point, and nearly abandoned.

It eventually became a science museum run by one of Arizona’s universities, but is now scheduled to be demolished to become housing.

It was an interesting idea, but poorly executed. How i will miss it!

Posted by Rebecca at 10:19 am

Writing fiction with fandom characters

writing View Comments
Jun 262006

I spend part of my free time writing fan fictions and editing them for others. My efforts concentrate on a single fandom, but my reading has now branched out to three or four different fandoms. I’m slowly deciding that this branching out was probably a mistake.  It’s only reinforced something that hasn’t set well with me within my original fandom.

In my fandom, it’s very difficult to find stories that involve only the characters and settings from the manga/anime. Even harder is to find a story where the characters behave in character. Many of those who write in this fandom are younger, and tend to place themself within the fandom. That’s fine. They’re young; they’re learning to write and it’s often easier to work with pre-made characters and settings. I get that.

What I don’t get is when they have an established character doing something completely out of character, and then scream at the top of their lungs about how they’re right. Again, they’re young, they should learn to defend their decisions. They take characters and give the subculture that the fandom does not have. They give these characters issues that the writer faces in their own life that the characters don’t have to face.

When you completely change the nature of the fandom and its characters, are you truly still writing fan fiction? Haven’t you actually crossed the line and developed your own fiction? Wouldn’t it make more sense to present these stories independently from the fandom work. to actually give them their own names and recognize them as your own creations?

It’s one thing to create “what-if”s. Those are fun to create because you can explore different combinations, but you should still keep everything in tune with the fandom. It’s something entirely different to put character names on characters who aren’t anything like those characters (unless the what-if you’re exploring involves something changing or not changing the character’s personality).

Looking at two of the other fandoms that I enjoy reading, I never see this kind of behavior. Stories are kept true to the characters, to the setting. Original characters don’t pop out of the woodwork to draw characters off-character. I just wish that would happen with the one I write for.

Posted by Rebecca at 10:59 pm Tagged with:

A neat use for storyboarding!

animation View Comments
Jun 262006

I’ve been trying to catch up on my cartoons from the weekend, and just watched the Avatar episodes from Saturday. One of the things I love about how Nickelodeon presents Avatar is the way they include special features. Sometimes, they have a behind the scenes break where an animator will show how to draw one of the characters from the show. Other times, they’ll have kids act out various scenes from the show.

The best may be what I saw with these two episodes, though. They took some of the fan art that has been sent in for the show, and created a story from them. It was entirely clever, and a great, authentic way to show off these talented young artists!

Posted by Rebecca at 10:57 pm Tagged with:

Create a relaxing work environment

motivation, productivity View Comments
Jun 252006

One of the benefits of working at home is that you have a lot of control over your workspace. You can establish the space you need, and then design it consciously to suit your work style.

For example, I need a soothing, flexible workspace. My desk sits in a corner next to bookshelf that has a place for burning incense or oil. The books I need most often while sitting at my computer are at my fingertips, and I can change the scent to evoke the mood I need to get through a project. I also have my music loaded onto my computer and sorted into categories so I can choose the right playlist to help me get through my work.

For any non-computer work, I have a plush sitting area with access to a lot of natural light. Here I can work on my writing (I tend to handwrite first, and type second because I find it soothing.) and my jewelry designs. I keep telling myself I’m going to appropriate a baker’s rack and turn it into a jewelry design station, but I find I really enjoy stretching out, spreading my components around me and keeping the tray I work in on my lap.

I’ve created my space with relaxation and motivation in mind becasue those are what keep me moving. Consider what keeps you moving and design your work space around that.

Posted by Rebecca at 11:04 am

Low self-esteem leads to success

character development, finding my path View Comments
Jun 242006

It sounds weird, but it’s amazingly true. Low self-esteem leads to success.

There are many reasons for this, I’m discovering, but a lot of it seems to be tied up in the person’s need to prove that they aren’t as worthless as they feel. So they work hard to achieve more in order to prove to the source of their self-esteem issues (be it internal or external) that they can be successful, they can be worthwhile, productive members of society (or at least their interpretation of that term).

This is actually being proven more and more, but what concerns me is that no one is looking at the potential downsides. The person suffering from low self-esteem often is unaware of a success ceiling, so they keep achieving. This is a good thing, right up until it becomes this obsession that turns into workaholism as the person tries to achieve more to keep proving themselves. Sometimes, the person starts building these successes under them, and then falls apart when they find themselves not successful at something. The results on this one can be utterly devastating and destroy the person’s self-esteem even more. The person can push themselves to always be on top, to the point of ignoring their well-being, just becasue they’re afraid of letting down those around them.

While I don’t think people should have their self-esteem stroked or inflated, I do think those around someone with low self-esteem should work to help build the person’s self-esteem (let’s face it- raising self-esteem is not something easily done on one’s own) sincerely to keep them safe and healthy.

I’ve been known for being just a bit crazy, though.

Posted by Rebecca at 9:27 am

The tiara on my head says I'm a techical writer!

writing View Comments
Jun 232006

Not long after I arrived in Seattle, I got on with a temporary agency who promptly sent me off to do data entry and reception work for a very nice company on Lake Union.

The people there liked me and often engaged me in conversation, trying to figure out if they could find projects to keep me around.

One man, a crazy guy, and I were talking and discussing wiki one day. After asking me about my background, he commented that I needed to look into becoming a technical writer because I clearly had the experience. He wasn’t one himself, so I just smiled politely, thanked him for the opinion and carried on with my day.

Since then, I’ve wondered more than once if I needed to consider taking a course or something, just to see if it was anything I could do. I’ve never actually acted on it, though, for various reasons.

Today, I was working on next week’s blogging and read through a series of articles by John Hewitt. I started laughing. It was a guide to technical writing, explaining what they do, their skill set, education, and such. I blinked and reread parts of it a couple of times.

It turns out the guy was right. I have several years of technical writing experience. I should do something about that…other than wear this cute little garnet tiara.

Posted by Rebecca at 10:54 pm
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