The Not-Boring Tech Writer

@thenotboringtechwriter.com

787 Followers 72 Following

A podcast in which documentarians talk about all things tech writing, aiming to show the world that we are all not-boring tech writers! https://thenotboringtechwriter.com/

The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast quote graphic. Quote: "Writing knitwear patterns is technical writing!" Pictured: guest Heather Zoppetti, with the caption "Heather Zoppetti, Season 3, Episode 38."
Quote image from The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast. The quote reads: "Being experimental is not an excuse to have crappy docs." Below is a black-and-white headshot of guest Florian Lefebvre, labeled Season 3, Episode 36.
Quote tile from The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast featuring a black-and-white photo of Eric Holscher, a smiling man with a beard. The quote reads: "I would not be surprised if at the end of all of this, it becomes the reign of the writer ... The core thing is understanding how systems work and being able to explain it in words ... That's becoming more the main thing that matters." Attributed to Eric Holscher, Season 3, Episode 34.
Quote image from The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast, Season 3, Episode 32. Title: Lovability as a concept. Quote from Jacob Moses: “You can't necessarily measure lovability … [But] if you can harness that for good, you can make a legitimate impact in people's lives." A circular photo of Jacob Moses, a man with curly red hair and a beard wearing a dark button-down shirt, is centered below the quote. The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo appears at the bottom.
Dark navy slide with large white serif text reading "Working with visual & motion designers." Gold italic subtitle: "5 things to prep before you bring in a designer." A thin gold horizontal rule separates the subtitle from the guest credit "Bill Holland, Season 3, Episode 30." The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo appears at the bottom.
Quote graphic featuring a black-and-white headshot of Bill Holland, a smiling bald man with a beard and glasses. Text reads: "Advice for working with designers: 'Assume all of us know nothing about what you do, what you're trying to communicate.' — Bill Holland, Season 3, Episode 30, The Not-Boring Tech Writer."
Episode announcement graphic for The Not-Boring Tech Writer, Season 3, Episode 29: "Kate sounds off on process (and LEGO)." A light blue gradient background features a cluster of colorful 3D LEGO-style bricks on the right side, growing from smaller to larger. Host Kate Mueller appears in the bottom left corner. The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo is centered at the bottom.
Quote graphic with photo of Kelton Noyes. Text reads: "When advocating for yourself as a technical writer: Sell yourself as the person making documentation, not just that documentation matters." Below states Kelton shares how he made the transition from support to full-time tech writer in Season 3, Episode 28. The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo appears at bottom.
The original logo for The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast, which features a cartoon drawing of Jacob Moses, the podcast's original host.
Social media graphic with a theatrical curtain design in orange and red. White text at top reads "A peek behind the curtain: 2025 clips episode." Eight circular photos (of Liz Argall, Dennis Dawson, Sarah Walker, Ryan Macklin, Nick Graziade, Janine Chan, Kate Pond, and Kate Mueller) are arranged in two rows of four against a dark background. The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast logo appears at the bottom with this text: “Season 3, Episode 26”
Image with blue background and white text listing "7 things I've learned about tech writers:" followed by 7 numbered items: 1. We're really not-boring! 2. We're always learning. 3. We're always adapting. 4. We know a lot of random stuff. 5. We're generous with our knowledge. 6. Few of us took a traditional path here. 7. Care and empathy drive our work. Bottom left shows a photo of Kate Mueller smiling. Bottom right text reads "Hear more from Kate Mueller in Season 3, Episode 25" with The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo.
"Why self-documentation matters" showing four benefits in a grid layout: Remember Everything (brain emoji) - Your documentation remembers so your brain doesn't have to; Prep for Performance Reviews (chart emoji) - Specific examples ready in minutes instead of scrambling for hours; Simplify Job Interviews (briefcase emoji) - Already have examples for "tell me about a time..." questions; Streamline Recurring Tasks (circular arrows emoji) - Follow runbooks instead of starting from scratch every time. The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast logo appears at bottom as well as "with Kate Pond | S3:E24.”
Dennis Dawson on scripting videos with Slack
A collage of 13 headshot photos arranged in rows: Lorna Mitchell, Janine Chan, Kenzie Woodbridge, Marcia Riefer Johnston, Sue Brandt, Nick Graziade, Liz Argall, Manny Silva, Ryan Macklin, Sarah Walker, Fabrizio Ferri-Benedetti, Dennis Dawson, and Kate Pond. Center text reads "Thank you, 2025 guests!" with The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast logo below.
Quote image featuring Kate Mueller with a background pattern of checkboxes (mostly checked off). Text reads: “Give your docs some care this month and recognize that care might not be a big something, but a hundred small things.” Attribution shows Kate Mueller, S3:E23, with The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo.
Dennis Dawson explaining the science behind focused vs. diffuse modes of thinking
A collage featuring Dennis Dawson's sketchnotes from Write the Docs conferences (2023-2025) in the background, with a circular photo of Dennis in the center giving his Lightning Talk “Sketchnoting: Engaging both brains” at Write the Docs Portland 2023. Text overlay reads “Dennis Dawson's Sketchnotes.” The sketchnotes show colorful hand-drawn illustrations, diagrams, and text capturing various conference talks.
Front covers of four books recommended by Dennis Dawson in S3:E22 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: Multimedia Learning by Richard E. Mayer Learning How to Learn by Barbara Oakley, Terrence Sejnowski, Alistair McConville A Mind for Numbers by Barbara Oakley Uncommon Sense Teaching by Barbara Oakley, Beth Rogowsky, Terrence J. Sejnowski
Hand-drawn sketch of Dennis Dawson (by Dennis Dawson) wearing glasses and a hat. Dennis is sitting next to a microphone and speaking into it. This text is to the left of the sketch of Dennis Dawson: ON SCAFFOLDING: "You build the concepts gradually and give people the space to understand it. It's the same thing with writing in the Hemingway style, where you use shorter sentences that complete a thought, and then people have this breath of air at the period where they can let the information soak in before they move on to the next one… If you write in short, concise chunks, people read it. It flows easily into their brain. And what they're thinking is, ‘Wow, I'm really smart, I understand this.’ That's what I want people to experience." – Dennis Dawson, S3:E22. The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo appears at the bottom left of the image.
Hand-drawn sketch of Dennis Dawson (by Dennis Dawson) wearing glasses and a hat. Dennis is sitting next to a microphone and speaking into it. This text is to the right of the sketch of Dennis Dawson: ON BEING AN ARTIST: “Get over yourself. Get over your reticence. Realize that if you draw a picture, you're doing better than 7 billion people who did not sit down and draw a picture today. So that makes you an artist. And I believe everyone is an artist. It's not a question of talent, it's just a question of time." – Dennis Dawson, S3:E22. The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo appears at the bottom of the image.
Hand-drawn sketch of Dennis Dawson (by Dennis Dawson) wearing glasses and a hat. Dennis is sitting next to a microphone and speaking into it. The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo appears at the top of the image with this text underneath it: "featuring Dennis Dawson."
Quote image from The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast, Season 3, Episode 21. Heading reads "ON DOCUMENTATION FRAMEWORKS" in light blue. Kate Mueller's quote in white text on dark navy background: “The true value of [documentation] frameworks or models … isn't that they tell us what to do, but that they help us interrogate ourselves to uncover, to refine, maybe even to better express the internal model we're already using." Photo of Kate Mueller smiling in bottom right corner. Podcast logo in bottom left.
Quote image with beige diagonal striped background. Text reads: "Professional growth isn't a steady climb—it's a ladder. You need periods of stability to recharge, then sudden leaps where your skills jump to the next level." Attribution shows Fabrizio Ferri-Benedetti's concept of "dynamic seniority" with "Read more at passo.uno." A blue and navy ladder graphic on the right shows alternating "Stability" (blue horizontal platforms) and "Growth" (brown dashed vertical lines) sections, extending beyond the frame. Bottom shows "From S3:E20 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer.”
Quote image with beige diagonal striped background. Text reads: "There's always a bit of shape-shifting when it comes to technical writing... We have to take on the shape that best suits the situation at any given moment." Attribution: Fabrizio Ferri-Benedetti, passo.uno. Bottom shows "From S3:E20 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer" and a circular headshot photo of Fabrizio.
Quote image designed as a folded document icon with blue accents. Text in the middle of the doc icon reads: “Creating great docs is an act of giving great service.” The words “great docs” and “great service” are highlighted in blue. The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo appears in a blue banner near the top left of the doc icon.
Quote image with hand-drawn Earth illustration on left, showing Kate Mueller on right. Quote reads: “I want to live in a world where humans thoughtfully do things for other humans, and one of the ways that I can create and participate in that world is through documentation.” Attribution: Kate Mueller, S3:19. The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo below the quote.
Quote from Sarah Walker on a dark blue background: “One of my mentors would say, ’Remember, it's a practice, not a perfect’ … You don't strive for perfection because perfection is pointless ... Just aim for clear, concise, [and] actionable in your writing of documentation. Serve the reader. That's your practice.” Attribution shows “Sarah Walker, S3:E18,” with her photo and The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast’s logo.
Blue social media graphic for The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast inviting listeners to reach out with questions or feedback. Text reads: “We invite all listeners to reach out with any questions or feedback! Kate may respond in a future episode.” Contact information includes email (tnbtw@knowledgeowl.com), LinkedIn (/the-not-boring-tech-writer), and Bluesky (@thenotboringtechwriter.com). The podcast logo appears at the bottom.
The image shows the homepage of "Garbl's Writing Center," a website offering free writing resources. The layout features a green sidebar on the left with an Earth photo, contact information for Gary B. Larson (garbltoo@gmail.com), and the main content area displaying the site's navigation menu and welcome message. The site offers writing tools including a style manual, plain-language guide, concise writing guide, and a bookshelf of writing references. At the bottom is a (partially cut-off) quote about politics and the English language.
Quote image with a light blue background and dark blue text. The main quote reads: "I hope [my] docs help the readers learn what they need to learn, do what they need to do, and get on with their day with less stress, tension, and frustration... It's a small thing, but maybe I'm making someone else's life a little bit better." Attribution shows "– Sarah Walker, a.k.a. the Raccoon Overlord Lady". Bottom section displays The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast’s logo in blue lettering; “Season 3, Episode 18" text; and a photo of a raccoon overlord with raised arms standing at a podium.
Light gray background with blue heading "5 ways to make docs easier to digest:" followed by a numbered list in dark blue text: "1. Provide a summary, synopsis, TL;DR, or 1-2 context-setting sentences at the start of a doc or each section. 2. Use strong page titles and headings, avoiding general catch-alls like 'Frequently Asked Questions.' 3. Format your content consistently using semantic elements like sequential headings. 4. Use callouts, warnings, or admonitions sparingly but in consistent ways. 5. Practice screenshot restraint." Bottom attribution reads "From Season 3, Episode 17 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer.”
Light blue/green and purple spot gradient background with lightbulb emoji at top. Main heading reads "Advice from Kate:" followed by a quote: "Give yourself some explicit time to learn about one area you've been meaning to learn more about and haven't been able to prioritize. And if anyone gives you crap about prioritizing that over other tasks, just blame it on me. It's what I'm here for." Attribution reads "– Kate Mueller, S3:17". Bottom left shows "The Not-Boring Tech Writer" logo. Bottom right shows photo of Kate Mueller, the host of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast.
Information Architecture Master Class Taught by Kate Mueller of knowledge with sass and The Not-Boring Tech Writer Sign up at thenotboringtechwriter.com/learning
Wall art related to The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast that says: 4 web accessibility best practices* 1. Use semantic headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.) Screen readers rely on proper heading structure to navigate content and create an outline for users with visual impairments. 2. Maintain heading hierarchy (don't skip levels) For example, jumping from H1 to H3 confuses assistive technologies and makes content harder to understand. 3. Write descriptive link text For example, "Learn about accessibility standards" is more helpful than "click here" for people using screen readers who may navigate by scanning links. 4. Provide meaningful alt text for images Alt text ensures people who can't see images can still understand their content and purpose. *These accessibility suggestions were shared by Kenzie Woodbridge in Season 3, Episode 6 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast and mentioned again by Kate Mueller in Season 3, Episode 7.
Social media graphic with blue gradient background featuring a document icon with a heart inside it. Text reads: “Ever feel like you're a “Docs Nursemaid”? Ryan Macklin gets it! Listen to S3:E16 to learn about designing docs for all emotional states.” Includes a circular photo of Ryan Macklin and four emoji (😬😖🥱🧐) representing different emotional states. The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo appears at bottom.
Linus (KnowledgeOwl’s owl mascot) standing in front of a chalkboard while holding a teacher’s pointing stick.
A white t-shirt with Linus (KnowledgeOwl’s owl mascot) in the center next to a podcast studio microphone. The link to The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s merch store is at the bottom of the image: teepublic.com/user/the-not-boring-tech-writer
Podcast episode graphic for The Not-Boring Tech Writer. Title: "Kate sounds off on 'good' documentation" - Season 3, Episode 15. Features a headshot of Kate Mueller and her quote: "In tech writing, care and attention underlie so much of the work we do... Sometimes just showing up and working with care can produce 80% of what you need."
Information Architecture Master Class Taught by Kate Mueller of knowledge with sass and The Not-Boring Tech Writer Sign up at thenotboringtechwriter.com/learning
An image that features a picture of Manny Silva and this quote that Manny said on Season 3, Episode 14 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: "Docs as Tests is a strategy to keep your documentation resilient to product changes… and not have to rely on customer feedback to let you know when things are broken." The image also includes The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo in the top right corner, and the logo for “Docs as Tests” (Manny’s book) in the bottom left corner. “docsastests.com” is underneath the Docs as Tests logo.
A quote from Liz Argall that she shared in Season 3, Episode 13 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: “The best fertilizer is the gardener's shadow.” The left of the image features a black and white line drawing by Liz Argall of a person kneeling and tending to small flowers in a garden. The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast logo is near the bottom right corner of the image.
A person in a red shirt kneeling in a garden and tending to rows of green seedlings growing in organized plots separated by wooden barriers. The following text is overlayed on the photo: Receiving 1000 seedlings. 🌱 Photo credit: Ngombor Community Development Alliance (https://ngombor.org)
This image shows a merchandise collection on TeePublic for The Not-Boring Tech Writer. The top row displays 8 different apparel items including a hoodie, tank top, crewneck sweatshirt, long sleeve t-shirt, baseball t-shirt, kids t-shirt, hat, and sticker, all featuring The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo. The center shows two large t-shirt designs. The left shirt features The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo. The right shirt displays a "I'm a Not-Boring Tech Writer" design in blue and dark text. The bottom row shows 8 additional merchandise items including a phone case, tote bag, pin, magnet, mug, wall art, pillow, and tapestry, all featuring The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo. All items are presented on a dark background in a grid layout typical of online merchandise stores.
A picture of Nick Graziade in a pondering posture with this quote from him from Season 3, Episode 12 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: "[Acknowledging and accepting] impermanence helps my documentation because I'm not so married to it that I can't change it."
6 things Kate loves most about Write the Docs: 1. You get to choose your own conference adventure 2. The talk selections 3. WTD's support for first time attendees 4. WTD's inclusive mindset 5. You don't have to be an expert to give a talk 6. The power of community [The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast logo] Listen to Season 3, Episode 11 to hear Kate's thoughts on the above!
An image showing three accessibility conference logos: Digital Collegium Accessibility Summit 2025, axe-con, and DigitalA11Y (“Your Accessibility Partner”).
A picture of Sue Brandt with this quote from her from season 3, episode 10 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: “The most important thing when I'm hiring someone is enthusiasm. I would weigh that every time above experience. So if you can get that to come through in your application somehow, I think that's one thing that will help you stand out."
Screenshot of Perplexity’s response to this question: “How can you create a feed that includes posts from specfic [sic] accounts on Bluesky?”. Perplexity’s response includes instructions for creating a custom feed on Bluesky with posts from specific accounts. The guide includes three main steps: 1) Create a list of specific accounts on Bluesky by going to the Lists page and adding users, 2) Use a feed builder tool like Skyfeed by logging in with Bluesky credentials and setting the input source to your curated list, and 3) Publish and share your custom feed. The image shows a clean, text-based tutorial with numbered steps and bullet points.
A chat conversation in a blue-themed interface from Transistor.fm. The chat includes messages between a user named Chad and two support representatives, Helen and Michael. Chad asks about ensuring links in podcast show notes open in new tabs, noting inconsistent behavior. Helen responds that link behavior depends on where listeners access the podcast (app vs. web), explaining that they don't currently set target parameters on feed links. Chad thanks Helen for the thorough explanation. Later, Michael provides an update that developers have released a fix to ensure show notes links open in new tabs when accessed from podcast websites and share pages, suggesting Chad try in a new browser to avoid caching issues.
Global Accessibility Awareness Day logo
A picture of Chad Timblin (on the left) and Kate Mueller (on the right) standing next to each other on the roof of Revolution Hall in Portland, Oregon in the afternoon on May 6, 2025. They are both smiling at the camera and wearing t-shirts with black Write the Docs Portland 2025 name tag lanyards around their necks. They are both wearing glasses. Behind them is a view of Portland, Oregon with houses, trees, and a blue sky.
Global Accessibility Awareness Day logo
The image shows a social media post with a teal green background featuring a quote about tech writers as gardeners. At the top is a decorative illustration of an open book with flowers growing out of it. The quote reads: "Tech writers are a bit like gardeners. We gather the seeds of knowledge and we try to plant, nourish, and water them so they can grow into full, useful knowledge. And when they're not useful anymore, we rip them out and begin that process again." The quote is attributed to Kate Mueller, Season 3, Episode 9. At the bottom of the image is a smartphone screen showing the podcast artwork for “The Not-Boring Tech Writer", with a "Latest Episode" button and a partial description about technical writing. A pair of white wireless earbuds appears beside the phone.
An image with this quote from Marcia Riefer Johnston from Season 3, Episode 8 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: “You never know what great things will come of sharing what you know. Consider how I came to be a guest on this podcast. A year ago, I shared a simple idea with half a dozen people at a Write the Docs unconference table. From that, Marybeth Alexander at KnowledgeOwl asked me to write a blog post. From that, Kate Mueller invited me to talk with her on The Not-Boring Tech Writer. From that, who knows? Magical.” The image also includes a link to Marcia’s website, https://writing.rocks/, a picture of Marcia, and The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo.
A picture of Janine Chan and a quote of something she said on Season 3, Episode 4 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer: “The people I know who are the most successful or happiest in tech writing are the ones who... don't tell themselves 'I am not technical'... They just go, 'I don't know how to do this yet, but I will!'... If you're comfortable with that feeling, then I think it's a lot easier to move past it and figure out what you need to do."
A drawing of a brown owl standing on a tree stump with this text: “Calculating the ROI of documentation and knowledge bases - by Ayomide Yissa”
An image that features the following quote from Kenzie Woodbridge, who appeared Season 3, Episode 6 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast: In 2014, my friends said to me, “I heard about this conference called Write the Docs. It's [for] people who do some of the stuff that you do.” And I was like, “There are people who do the stuff that I do?!”… Honestly, [Write the Docs] changed my life. [end quote] The image also includes The Not-Boring Tech Writer’s logo.
4 web accessibility best practices* 1. Use semantic headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.) Screen readers rely on proper heading structure to navigate content and create an outline for users with visual impairments. 2. Maintain heading hierarchy (don't skip levels) For example, jumping from H1 to H3 confuses assistive technologies and makes content harder to understand. 3. Write descriptive link text For example, "Learn about accessibility standards" is more helpful than "click here" for people using screen readers who may navigate by scanning links. 4. Provide meaningful alt text for images Alt text ensures people who can't see images can still understand their content and purpose. [The Not-Boring Tech Writer logo is included here.] *These accessibility suggestions were shared by Kenzie Woodbridge in Season 3, Episode 6 of The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast and mentioned again by Kate Mueller in Season 3, Episode 7.
An image featuring a quote from Kenzie Woodbridge that they shared on The Not-Boring Tech Writer podcast (Season 3, Episode 6): “The most respectful way to approach your coworkers about anything is to have the expectation that they want to do their job.” Kenzie heard this insight at a Write the Docs conference.
Two cats sitting next to a cat wheel with 400 The Not-Boring Tech Writer stickers sitting on the cat wheel.