I have been a Technical Writer for 15 years. And while I find this work rather rewarding and broad in opportunities, tech writing is subject to a set of rules that can place constraints upon one’s creativity. I have felt these limitations myself, and after some soul searching, I’ve found some creative outlets that make me happy. Writing articles like this is one of them!
As the saying goes, “Everything has its proper time and place.”
If you are a technical writer now, and you feel an overwhelming need to express your creativity, I admonish you to be careful in how you express your special sense-of-self in your work. You are indeed special. But find a place where your creativity has an appropriate outlet, and if needed, find an audience that will appreciate you.
I recall one such time when working with a tech writer, Jeff, who was going through a soul-searching phase in his life. We all go through phases in life eventually, don’t we?
Jeff began insisting on placing snippets of his poetry into a medical device user manual. Luckily, his teammates caught this content before it went out for publication, and removed it. When asked why he did this, Jeff stated, “The stuff we make here is so condensed and dry, it needs to be spiced up.” When our team manager Paula spoke with Jeff, she reasserted a basic tenet of minimalism in technical writing: The user guides we published were purposed to provide exactly the information the user needs to complete the task at-hand – no more, and no less. Furthermore, Paula stated, most users don’t have time to read poetry while on the job. And not all users like poetry.
As time went on, our aspiring poet became more and more frustrated with the constraints of his daytime work, and he insisted that we find a way to express greater creativity in what he considered such humdrum work. Jeff was not a newcomer. He had already been in the tech writing trade for five years, and our manager Paula thankfully was very patient. Paula employed some creativity in working with Jeff’s special need by asking some senior colleagues who had already gone through similar growth pains to mentor him.
Eventually, we all ended up meeting informally to talk about how we could be creative in how we do our work without actually having it show up within the work itself. Surprisingly, a few other work colleagues chimed in, saying they understood Jeff’s conundrum, and also expressed the need to be creative. So, what started off as a somewhat confrontational issue (coming from one person) ended up being medicine for the many –both for sell-seasoned mentors and for the newcomers.
The ongoing meeting evolved into several informal get-togethers. One group met for a while to share creative writing such as poetry or short stories, but it was so small that it eventually fizzled out. Afterwards, this group’s former members all found clubs and groups where they could share their creativity outside of our limited work environment. With the advent of online clubs and groups providing access to a global audience, doing this is easier than ever.
Aside from groups and clubs elsewhere, the tech writing team reorganized the way it did its work, and implemented a rotating system of roles for those who wanted to take part. While still work-related, it did stir up the juices of creativity. Every few weeks certain people shifted from one role (such as proofreader or content creator) and swapped their jobs with others on the team. In the end, most writers were cross-trained in each other’s work. And some took this cross-training as a creative method of career exploration, finding pleasure in a new role they had never considered before.
There’s a lesson here. While technical writing can help someone work up great confidence about their writing skills, creative outlets have their appropriate time, place, and audience.
For more creative types like Jeff, who still insisted on incorporating creativity into the actual work he did, we found a solution for him. It turns out the poet in Jeff was also a great storyteller, and so Jeff ended up using his storytelling skills as a marketing writer. Jeff eventually transferred to the marketing and sales team, who greatly benefited from his enthusiasm and his creative skills. Needless to say, Jeff was pretty happy, too!
Have you worked in an environment that puts a damper on your creativity? How have you reconciled your creativity with such restriction? Leave a comment below.