New Section: Hiring–Part 1

After a long break spent in various other pursuits, I now have a new section to post. This is the first part of a chapter on hiring technical writers. I expect this will be a section in 3, possibly 4 parts.

Here’s a link: Hiring: Part 1

Part of my time away was spent editing previous sections, which I’ll update on line as I get the chance, and part of it was spent working on new sections that I’ll begin posting over the next few weeks.

As always, comments are welcome.

Draft Section: Adventures in Coin Collecting

I’ve just posted a new section titled, “Adventures in Coin Collecting.”

I’m not sure where this one belongs, if it belongs at all. Right now it’s under “Motivation,” but it may need to go somewhere else. Mostly, it’s an excuse to tell the story about my adventures in coin collecting, but I hope it makes a useful point.

As always, your comments are welcome.

New Section: Managing Change

I’ve just posted a new chapter titled: Managing Change. Here’s a link:

New chapter: Managing Change

This chapter is not part of the original outline, but that was an oversight. Clearly managing change is an important part of any manager’s job.

As always, comments are welcome.

A Few Updates

I’ve updated the site to use the latest chapter/section names for the HR, Power and Influence, and Using XML sections. The content of these three sections has not otherwise changed.

I also updated the outline to add two new chapters: Using the Web and Content Re-Use, Single-Sourcing, and Modular Documentation. These chapters will be part of Managing Technology.

Outline Updated

I just posted an updated outline. This update organizes the book into 4 Parts: Getting Started, Managing People, Managing Projects, and Managing Technology, plus a preface and appendices. I also ditched the cutesy names (like, “Everything you wanted to know about HR, …”), and for the most part made the titles consistently gerunds (”Becoming a Manager,” “Managing People,” etc.).

I’m also contemplating a title change to something like: Managing Documentation People, Projects, and Technology, which would shadow the Part structure.

If you have thoughts about the title or the outline, drop me a line in the comment section.