content development (&) management

Dick Kronick is a writer, editor, and musician who lives in Minneapolis and regularly contributes to a Society for Technical Communication Consulting and Independent Contracting discussion forum in which I participate. There was a conversation recently about the difficulty some technical writers, especially consultants and independent contractors, are having finding work in the current economic environment. Someone asked about the viability of turning toward instructional design (ID) as a solution. Dick was compelled to write the following, which I found so motivational I asked for permission to reprint it here:

I guess I’ll run the risk of looking like a guy who’s just stroking his ego with this: I think the answer for everyone who’s struggling to find work is to diversify — and not just toward instructional design, which might be difficult since that field has become highly professionalized in the last couple of decades. You’ll be competing with people with one or two degrees plus experience in ID.

But there’s so much more out there! I have been a full-time freelance since 1985. For the first few years, I did mostly user documentation through job shops. I still do the occasional user manual, but I figured from the beginning that broadening my horizons would be the key to financial success and happiness. So, with just a plain-old vanilla B.A. in English I boot-strapped myself into other fields and genres.

Because I have a strong interest in architecture and engineering, I showed my early tech writing stuff to architecture and engineering companies. For them, I’ve written reports, proposals, white papers, web pages, brochures, newsletters, project descriptions, competition entries, and one book.

With nothing more in my portfolio than a couple of sophomoric music reviews written for college newspapers, I boot-strapped myself into magazine writing and have published more than 100 articles about architecture and engineering. And the articles look great in the portfolio when I’m trying to convince architects and engineers to hire me.

With just two art history courses in college, I’ve educated myself in architectural history by reading tons of books and attending lectures and conferences. I’ve established a pretty solid reputation in that field, which I turn into cash by being a historical consultant to architects and by organizing, advertising, and leading tours of historic architecture.

With a life-long interest in education, a previous writing job at a public agency that helps schools develop gifted education, and a couple of night school courses from a local university’s gifted ed program, I bootstrapped myself into instructional design — and have written plans, workbooks, and other training materials.

Because I’ve always thought visually, I figured I could write for video. So I whipped up a couple of fake video scripts and showed them to video production companies.  It took a while to crack into that field, but I’ve now written scripts for more than 50 training or marketing videos.

When an opportunity to do stand-up tech writing seminars appeared, I grabbed it; now I’ve taught more than 1,000 business writing and technical writing seminars.

OK, I’ll stop with the self-aggrandizement!

The point is that you can stay busy if you realize that there are many genres of communication for which no formal credentials have been defined. All you need are some self-confidence and a free spirit — and you already have these or you wouldn’t be self-employed. So use your gifts. Find people who need good communication but can’t do it themselves; use your portfolio to show them you can do it for them.

Dick is a member of the Society for Technical Communication, and a member and past president of the Minnesota Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians. You can read more about him and his projects on his website, http://www.richardlkronick.com.

In the spirit of some great blogging I just read over at Grant Writing Confidential, which I JUST found this morning, I’m finally going to publish this list. It’s been in draft form for some time, but out of respect for my colleagues in the grant community, most of whom are exceptional, I’ve been holding off. But Jake had me cracking up this morning, and I couldn’t wait any longer…

10. Not submitting the grant in the right format. No, seriously, when the app says “double-spaced, double-sided pages”, it matters. Don’t learn to read directions the hard way. Format FAIL.

9. Requesting a total amount not commensurate with the funder’s stated amounts, much less your previous request/funding, or previous trends for your NP’s type of relationship (new, ongoing, sustaining). Mathmatics FAIL.

8. Working on a commission basis, for a percentage of the grant. Go here. Ethics FAIL.

7. We understand that the problem ISN’T that you don’t understand the answers… it’s that you don’t want to hear them. No, really, we understand. The board tightened up the definitions of the funding categories this year, and even though you qualified last year, you don’t this year, and you’re frustrated. Stop asking if you qualify. You don’t. You know you don’t. It says you don’t, and you’ve been told three times now. Hearing FAIL.

6. Attaching a $10 to the back of the application. If you’re going to get your organization blacklisted from this particular Foundation FOR LIFE, the least you could have done was have some class about it. Seriously, Hamilton? That’s all I’m going to say. Bribery FAIL (see #8 if you have further questions).

5. Starting your grant 2 days before it’s due. That’s inviting Murphy to move into your copy machine, into the building water heater, and into your car’s alternator. We can’t believe you finished in time, and if you GET the grant, you should be ashamed of yourself for all of the cutting/pasting you did (though we respect your efficiency). You know me who you are. Procrastinator FAIL.

4. Planning to submit your grant through Grants.gov on the day it’s due. Just like the previous FAIL, you’re asking for trouble. Isaac warned you about this a year ago. Trusting [Government] Technology FAIL.

3. Writing everything from scratch. What, are you crazy? You applied for this grant last year! And even worse, your program director has copies of each of the grants that received funding last year! You started 3 weeks ago, and totally reinvented the wheel. Your agency can’t afford your methods! Take an efficiency lesson from the writer in #5, and think about ROI, Dr. Who. Time Lord FAIL.

2. The funding opportunity is a round hole. What your agency does is a square peg [you see where this is going]. But, your Executive Director says, we could do that. And besides, donations are down, so we need to chase whatever funding we can! So while the team designs a whole new program, you are completing a grant application in a short time-frame. Do you really think that the foundation is going to see your mission statement on GivingMatters.com, note that it doesn’t match what you said on the app (because you “updated” it on-the-fly), and look the other way? Not really a grant writer’s fail, but the buck did at least cross your desk on the way through the office. Mission Creep FAIL.

1. Missing the deadline. It was in the original Funding Announcement, the Invitation to Bid, and on page one of the application. Yes, there was a tornado in the next county. No, parking was not readily available for convenient hand delivery. One word… Mimeo.com. Deadline FAIL.

As I fail at more discover more of these, I’ll update the list. Continuous improvement!

Be free (of FAILS!),

Jeff