STC CWC Member Forum

Information Mapping

2010-03-09T15:28:28-08:00

Information Mapping is hosting a two-day workshop in Vancouver, and STC CWC members get 25% off the registration fee. More information here: http://www.stcwestcoast.ca/index.php/site/events_related/849/

Win a complimentary ticket to the MadCap 2010 Roadshow - March 12, 2010

2010-02-03T12:56:05-08:00

The MadCap 2010 Roadshow will be in Vancouver, BC on March 12th!

Mike Hamilton, VP of Product Management, will be hosting the intensive one-day technical writing seminar. The seminar will provide you with valuable information on how to gain the most out of your technical writing & publishing tools in a challenging market environment.

For more details, please visit: http://www.madcapsoftware.com/company/roadshow.aspx

The all-day event costs only $149 per attendee, and $99 of that can be applied to your next MadCap new software purchase or $50 towards any maintenance or training package.

Group rates are available for groups of 5 or more. If you’re interested in attending, please leave a comment below. It would be great to have an STC CWC contingent there.

UPDATE, February 19, 2010
STC CWC has one complimentary ticket to the MadCap 2010 Roadshow. Our one condition is that you write a quick blurb about the event for the chapter newsletter Coast Lines. Leave a comment if you’d like to be entered into the draw. We’ll pick one name at random at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, February 26.

If you don’t want to take your chances, contact Joe Stopa at 888.623.2271 x207 or email him at jstopa at madcapsoftware dot com. Please contact Joe soon because seats are limited.

West End Writers 2010 Contest

2010-03-01T18:15:48-08:00

The West End Writers Workshop is happy to announce its 2010 Writing Contest.
This year, the contest will offer three prizes in each of two separate categories - Prose and Poetry - which means more chances to win $100 First Prize, $75 Second Prize and $50 Third Prize.

In another first this year, entries may be submitted online at http://www.wewriters.org. More details below.

Every year, the West End Writers Workshop sponsors a writing contest to showcase the talent of writers around the world. In June, the winners are announced and celebrated at a ceremony in the stately Barclay Manor in Vancouver’s West End. This event is free and open to the public.

Entry Submission Start - April 1, 2010
Submission Deadline - May 15, 2010
Finalists announcement - late May, 2010
Awards Announcement and Ceremony at Barclay Manor - Tuesday, June 14, 2010
All entries must be in the English language.
Prose word count is limited to 1000 words.
Poetry is limited to two poems, one-page each.
Fees are $10 Canadian per prose entry or $10 for up to two poems.
Contest entries may cover any topic as there is no official theme.
Emailed entries must adhere to formatting requirements that will be posted at wewriters.org, with payments to made through Pay Pal.
Via regular mail, entries should be sent to West End Writers Contest, c/o. #301, 1535 Nelson Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6G 1M2 – but no sooner than April 1.
Cheques or money orders for the fee(s) should be made payable to West End Writers. Please do not send cash.
Pay Pal payment details and entry formatting requirements will be posted at http://www.wewriters.org/contest on April 1, 2010.
Contest results will be emailed to the WEWW membership and contest entrants, and will be posted at: wewriters.org/contestwinners.html and at westendwriters.blogspot.com/
All questions may be directed to WEWW through http://www.wewriters.org

Happy writing and good luck!

Canadian Membership Benefits from STC International - What would you like to see?

2010-02-21T11:28:21-08:00

STC IO has put together a Community Funding and Support task force. The goal of the task force is to come up with an STC community “bill of expectations” within two months. These expectations will be vetted by the STC Board as we go along. Early conversations have focused on financial issues.

Local CWC Vice President Catherine and Secretary Tracey Martinsen have agreed to speak for local chapter members, and in fact for all of Canada. Well, it may turn out we’re speaking for the rest of the world, I guess, as I didn’t notice non-USA regions represented in the list.

What support would YOU like to see the STC International body offer to local chapters like ours? What are your expectations for membership benefits that may not have been met so far? What do you already have that you would like to protect?

The task force wants to make clear to the Board what communities need in the way of programs and activities that benefit you, the members. We have a blank slate here (though not a blank cheque, naturally). Support can be educational, financial, logistical … anything that helps communities serve members.

When we were debating offering finanical support to the STC IO, I heard many good suggestions about what they should be providing for us. Let’s accumulate those thoughts so that Catherine and I can present them in these meetings, please.

If you would prefer to respond privately, I can be reached via tmartinsen[at]shaw[dot]ca.

Thanks,
Tracey.

What can we do to help you?

2010-02-15T00:08:45-08:00

STC CWC is an entirely volunteer-run organization, and we do our best to bring value to your membership. We organize program meetings for education and networking purposes, and contractors’ meetings to provide support for the self-employed. This year, we also organized professional development sessions to provide skills that benefit you and your employer. We have new members in the contractors’ directory, and—as the economy seems to be picking up—new listings in the job bank.

We do our best to provide thoughtful programming and membership benefits, but we’re not mind readers. What can we do to bring more value to your membership? Is there a particular topic that you’d like us to focus on? An area of professional development that we should highlight?

On the flip side—do you have a skill that you’d like to share in a program meeting or professional development session? We have a wealth of talent in our membership and we’re always eager to put a spotlight on it.

Leave a message below to start a conversation. If you prefer to share your comments privately, please email me at president (at) stcwestcoast (dot) ca.

Canadian salary survey

2010-01-05T18:20:42-08:00

As a contractor, I always find it strange to set my rates. Am I charging too much? Too little?

STC has, for many years, produced a salary survey. The results are available here: http://www.stc.org/stcmembers/salary-database.asp?SSOToken=XXLA6uFnXAYCabUtnFAB3ghB3cY=. You need to log into your STC.org account in order to access it - one of the many perks of being an STC member!

Alas, the “survey” is U.S.-only. This is because the data are pulled from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment Statistics (OES), which classifies technical writers as a separate profession from other types of writers. A similar distinction is not made in Canada, so it makes an equivalent survey difficult to do. Regardless, the salary surveys are still worth looking at.

The Canadian chapters are working on a Canadian salary survey. We’re fine-tuning the questions and hope to unleash it in a few months. Yes, the survey will be self-reported, but I sincerely hope that it will give us a glimpse into salaries across the country.

Discuss: Have you updated your graphic skills lately?

2010-02-04T20:18:26-08:00

Steve Bain teaches the Technical Documentation Graphics course, among others, at BCIT. We invited him to write a brief article on the topic of technical illustration. Talk about it here!

STC Summit - and discounts on transportation

2010-01-27T00:57:43-08:00

Registration for the STC Summit (May 2-5 in Dallas, TX) is open, and STC International Office has secured some discounts on transportation costs. This includes discounted travel on American Airlines, rental cars through Avis, and SuperShuttle transportation from the airport to your hotel.

More information here: http://conference.stc.org/hotel-travel/transportation/

If you’re planning on going to Summit, register soon to get the early bird rate. If you’re not sure about your schedule, note that the registrations are transferrable (subject to a $50.00 administration charge) but not refundable.

More information about Summit here: http://conference.stc.org/

And, pssst…we’re working on a chapter scholarship to cover registration costs for one lucky member. We’re still working out the details, so keep your eyes and ears peeled for the announcement.

job referrals?

2008-11-16T16:06:57-08:00

Anyone have surplus work or client queries that they’d like to pass on to someone else?
I’m available. See http://www.sxa-porfolio.com

—Stephen

Professional Liability Insurance?

2009-12-06T09:41:17-08:00

The question of professional liability insurance has just come up with a client of mine. I’m wondering, do you all carry insurance, how much does it cost (if you don’t mind me asking), and where do you buy it?