John Paz

5 rules to ensure your UI copy doesn't suck

No matter how great your design is, you'll likely need words in your UI. That's ok! Here are some tips to take to your next feature kickoff or UI copy review to make sure your UI copy won't embarrass you or distract from your awesome new app or feature.

If you want to learn, embrace your ignorance

I'm a Technical Writer. My organization relies on me to know words - lots of them - and to know how to deploy them with professional precision. To be caught using the dictionary feature of my MacBook, which I do every day, felt like admitting ignorance implicitly.

Use my favorite family tradition to make a kid in your life feel special on their birthday

Some people get older and start to dread their birthdays. I don't think I'll ever get that way. Because when I was growing up every birthday I would wake up to balloons sprinkled about my room. I lived with my parents until I was 19.

Quora: A great way to get some Technical Writing experience

Two ways Quora can primarily help you become a Tech Writer. First and most obvious is my content under the Technical Writing topic. My arrogance is in jest, because I don't feel I contribute enough to be considered an authority on the topic there.

The death of XXXTentacion is a tragedy

Jahseh Onfroy, the artist known as XXXTentacion, was murdered in broad daylight in Deerfield Beach, FL, in what is initially suspected to be a robbery. As he sat slumped in his sports car on a hot summer day in Florida, onlookers filmed what was probably his last moments on Earth as someone checked him for a pulse.

Tech companies should more hire non-techies, and techies should start looking for jobs in politics

Tech companies are at risk of becoming (more) out of touch with their users because of their (typically) affluent homogenous workforce of rotating familiar faces and referrals. But I'm not talking about how the industry is mostly straight white middle-class men, that story is already being told (🙌🏾).

Re-introduce yourself to Shel Silverstein

As a child, I was drawn to weird characters, and for weirder reasons: I loved Donald Duck, not becaue he was Mickey's sidekick but because despite the cruelness of his world he never gave up. I also had a fondness for Tom & Jerry. Well, I had a fondness for Tom, at least.

"What are you?"

It's the question every brown-skinned American dreads to be asked because, well, the answer is so obvious to us. Our coffee skin with varying degrees of added cream leaves most folks unable to label us. Our un-identifiable hair texture leads to mislabeling and relabeling.

Pronouncing My Name: You're (probably) doing it wrong...

This was originally published in June 2011 . I've since relocated to another country where my surname is even less common, and I've eased up quite a bit about correcting people on how to pronounce "Paz." To my new friends and colleagues who might find their way of pronouncing my surname in this post, fear not, I still adore you.

Where the Jobs Are in Technical Writing

Technical writing is a broad practice and most technical writing positions vary greatly in functionality. While for some the choice to become a technical writer is obvious, the industry one chooses to work in is just as important as the initial decision to become a technical writer.