The meeting began with an observation that some tech companies, such as Amazon, are laying off employees, and fewer companies are looking for senior technical writers. A shrinking job market is a good reason to build one’s résumé by volunteering. STC Canada West Coast (CWC) has open volunteer positions for Event Coordinator, Information Interview Coordinator, Vice-President, Social Media Coordinator, and Student Outreach Coordinator. Contact the Volunteer Coordinator for more information.
As a follow-up to the 2022 STC Summit conference, the Carolina chapter allowed STC CWC to post their Summit Recap. Along with sharing knowledge gained from this year’s conference, they discussed tips about how to get the most out of Summit if you go next year.
The group exchanged some grammar pet peeves, where a favourite theme was combining words that should be separate, such as alot, thank-you, or alright. In the bigger picture, 100 years from now, today’s grammar mistakes may be normal conventions of writing.
Computer software shapes our work as technical writers, so we traded stories about that, too. One person gave a brief overview of two STC webinars on enhancing productivity with Microsoft Office products Word and PowerPoint. Other participants gave mixed ratings of Excel, but felt that using the application becomes more familiar with practice.
We also chatted about Word macros: instead of manually doing tedious tasks such as checking for extra spaces or incorrect fonts, you teach Word the steps and keystrokes so it can carry them out for you with a single command. It seems efficient, but some people think that setting up macros takes more time than doing the task manually each time. The Hemingway app someone recommended at the last Tech Comm Café can be helpful — accurate corrections, and the paid version gives live feedback while you type.
Finally, we exchanged thoughts and personal experiences from the pandemic. One person’s close relative had died, another knew about a 22-year-old stuck with long COVID, and another had been infected twice with no severe effect. We have been hearing about COVID for years now, and people have varying degrees of risk tolerance and frustration.
Looking ahead to the summer, it seems as if more people are returning to pre-pandemic levels of travel and holiday activities, so CWC has decided to skip the July Tech Comm Café. Subscribe to receive notice of the next meeting!
The Tech Comm Café provides networking opportunities, job leads, answers to work-related dilemmas, and a burst of professional energy to keep you motivated. We discuss technical writing tools and techniques, career planning, portfolios, and anything else related to working as a technical communicator.
We welcome anyone who’s interested in technical communication — contractor, in-house, student, long-time tech writer, STC member, non-member, career-changer, or recruiter. We hope to see you at the next meeting!
Next Meeting: ONLINE on Wednesday, August 17, 2022
- Subscribe to receive email announcements of future meetings.
- If you plan to attend, RSVP by 4 p.m. Wednesday, August 17, to receive login instructions.
Date: Wednesday, August 17
Time: 7:00-8:00 p.m. Pacific Time
Location: Online via Zoom
Agenda
- Introductions. Take 60 seconds to introduce yourself, your background, current activities. A good chance to try out that new elevator speech.
- Announcements and job leads. If you know of an interesting event or a job opening, or you’re looking for work, share it with the group.
- Brainstorming Q&A. Ask about a work-related problem and discuss potential solutions.
- Speed networking. Make new contacts and discuss your professional backgrounds and goals.
Ruth-Anne Klassen is a student in the Technical Writing Extension Certificate at Mount Royal University. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and currently works as a retail cashier in Calgary. In her free time, she likes to go for walks, read novels, support local restaurants, and spend time with family.