There was an urgent requirement for a senior technical writer's position in my company a few months back. The first criteria when selecting a suitable candidate for this post was to check out the look-and-feel of the resume. It gives the interviewer a fair idea of how well-versed is the writer with styles, formatting etc.
When we started receiving the resumes, we were in for a rude shock. The resumes were ridiculous to say the least. It was terrifying to see that most 'experienced' technical writers did not even use auto-numbering. :O
It was then that I came up with post on how to create a resume / CV when applying for the post of a technical writer.
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- Remember that the purpose of your resume is to guarantee you an interview and not the job. Keep the resume short, up to 2-pages maximum.
- Check the page settings and page layouts. It is recommended that you do not have an even / odd page layout. Specify the margins as required.
- Insert a header and footer.
- Your resume needs to impress the interviewer quickly to land you an interview call. Hence, it is important that you create a resume that is tailor-made for the job you are applying. Your career objective must relate to the job you are applying for.
- Structure your resume effectively. Make a list of headings to be included. Then, organize the content according to priority. You need not include myriad details of all the extra-curricular activities in which you participated at school.
- Format the resume properly. Create a template in Word and use the styles appropriately. Apply these styles to the headings that you have already structured.
- Check the line spacing for all the styles throughout the document. The text in the resume must look uniform throughout. Remove extra white spaces from the document.
A handy tip: When you format any document or work with styles, select the Show / Hide toggle button option. You will be able to view spaces, tab spaces and line breaks in your document.
- Highlight your core skills upfront such as expertise in using technical writing tools like FrameMaker, RoboHelp and MS-Office.
- Use bullet points when explaining your previous work experience. You may leave out details of jobs that are not relevant to the current job you are applying.
- List your academic qualifications in tabular format. Ensure that you include details such as the university you graduated from, year of passing and the pass percentage.
- Add basic personal information such as DOB, passport details and marital status.
- Finally, proof-read your resume to ensure that there are no typos.
Once you are done with your resume, draft a cover letter for the job. In the cover letter, you need to mention the reason for applying the job and your interest in the organization.
If possible, attach a writing sample with your resume and cover letter.
You can refer these sites for more information:
And about how we found a technical writer is a completely different story. It would probably take another post or two to describe the harrowing experience. :|
A friend recommended the book Memoirs of a Geisha, which according to her was the most fascinating Japanese tale she had ever read. The thought of reading a Japanese tale fascinated me and I went ahead and read the book, twice! Here's the review...Memoirs of a Geisha is a part-fiction, part-real novel written by American author Arthur Golden. Set against the backdrop of World War II, the story is about a Geisha called Chiyo chan, born to an old fisherman in Japan who also had an elder daughter, Satsu. Poverty, old age and illness forces the fisherman to sell off both his daughters to a certain Mr. Tanaka, who brings the girls to the Gion district of Kyoto city. In Gion, the girls are separated from each other. Satsu is sold off to a brothel for not being attractive enough whereas Chiyo is sold to an okiya. An okiya is a lodging house for geisha, which is run by a mistress known as okiya-san. Life in the okiya is difficult for Chiyo in the initial years. She is made to work as a maid and help out in the household chores. The okiya also houses another inmate, Hatsumomo, a famous Geisha in Gion who views Chiyo as a rival and is forever seeking to settle scores with her. Chiyo falls prey to Hatsumomo's wicked ways and her debts to the okiya increase many-fold, thanks to Hatsumomo. After a couple of months of surviving in the okiya, Chiyo is sent to a training school where scores of young girls like her are taught various arts such as dancing, playing the shamisen (an instrument resembling a guitar), singing and so on.
The story takes a turn when Chiyo discovers her sister and they both decide to run away from Kyoto. Chiyo, however, is unfortunate at her attempt and is caught by the mistress of another okiya. Chiyo is stopped from attending classes any further and is confined to the okiya, much to Hatsumomo's delight. Chiyo returns to tending the household chores and is determined to find her sister one day. Her dreams are shattered when she learns that her parents have left for their heavenly abode and her sister has run away with a boy. Chiyo realizes that life has nothing in store for her. Just when she immerses herself in pain and cries on the bank of a river, a Chairman of an electric company, happens to pass by and consoles little Chiyo. Chiyo is motivated by the Chairman's words and decides to take on life as it comes. Back in the okiya, help arrives from an unexpected corner. Mameha, a successful Geisha in Gion proposes to take on Chiyo as her younger sister and train her as a Geisha. Under Mameha's watchful eyes, Chiyo transforms in to a beautiful and enterprising Geisha and takes on the name Sayuri. Sayuri starts entertaining her patrons in teahouses. Secretly, she starts loving the Chairman and wishes to become his mistress one day. However, Nobu, the Chairman's friend and business partner takes a liking for Sayuri and proposes to become her danna or patron. As a danna, Nobu would take care of all of Sayuri's expenses. The story then concludes with how Sayuri resolves her dilemma over whether to accept Nobu's proposal or nourish her feelings for the Chairman, who is not even aware about how she feels for him.The novel is beautifully written and the essence of Japanese culture is well-described. Geisha were often confused with prostitutes. However, they are neither prostitutes nor courtesans. They are artists. In fact, the meaning of the word Geisha is an artist. It is a world in which beauty rules. Geisha dress up elaborately with heavy make up, expensive kimonos and intricate hairstyles. Their lifestyle is also very expensive. Hence, all the money spent on them when they are trained is added to their debts at the okiya. Once a Geisha starts earning, most of her earnings go to the okiya. In most cases, the debts are so huge that the Geisha is bound to the okiya forever. However, if the Geisha manages to find a patron who is willing to become her danna then she is freed from her debts. Her danna not only takes care of her expenditure but also settles her debts to the okiya.Golden's attempt was a runaway success. The book was also adapted into a movie and was produced by Steven Spielberg. Zhang Zyi (who is from Chinese origin) played Sayuri. However, the movie is not as entertaining as the book.The book was marred by controversy as a case was filed against against Arthur Golden Mineko Iwasaki. Mineko alleged that Arthur betrayed her by specifying her name in the book as an acknowledgment. Mineko was one of the many Geisha interviewed by Arthur and according to her, it was decided that she would reveal everything about her life provided he does not mention her name anywhere in the book. Mineko sued Arthur for breach of contract and defamation of character in 2001. However, they reached an out of court settlement in 2003. Later, Mineko came out with her own version of Geisha life in a book called Life of a Geisha. She allegedly felt that she could do a better job than Arthur as she herself was a Geisha. However, the book was not acclaimed as much as Memoirs.I would recommend the book to those who have a penchant for reading and a desire to know something about the amazing Japanese culture.
