About Me, Tom Johnson

This Blog’s Focus

In this blog I write about topics related to technical writing. Technical writing refers to any kind of user guides, design documentation, audiovisual tutorials, Visio drawings, or other explanatory content that is of a technical nature. For example, technical writers often write software help files that explain how to use an application.

This may sound a bit boring, but really technical communication touches many areas, such as usability, marketing, information architecture, content management, XML, Web 2.0., management, graphic design, web design, and of course just plain writing. Technical writers are often learning and working with the latest technologies. I touch upon many of these topics in my blog.

By the way, this is me below, with my three rugrat princesses and cool blogger wife.

Where I Live and Work

I recently moved from Florida to Utah and work as a senior technical writer for the User Education team at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. I’m a versatile writer and like most tech writers, I stumbled into technical writing after working in other fields. I previously taught composition at the university level, and then worked as a copywriter.

Whatever job I worked at, I always pursued some technical accompaniment to make it interesting. I’ve found that technical writing combines my love for writing, my drive to create, and my fascination with technology.

I’m Also a Podcaster

I also publish podcasts on this site. My podcast, “Tech Writer Voices,” used to live at a different domain, but I recently merged it here to idratherbewriting.com, consolidating the sites. In the podcast I interview tech writing luminaries. If you’re a tech writer of any sort, be sure to subscribe to the podcast. I usually listen to podcasts while I’m riding to work or working out. You can fit several hours of enjoyable podcast audio into your week, without making any extra time for it.

My Personal Life

I’ve been married almost ten years to my wife, Shannon, whom I met at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Utah. We have three girls — Avery (7), Callie (3), and Lucy (1). Both my wife and I graduated in English from BYU. We later moved to New York, where I earned an MFA in literary nonfiction at Columbia University’s School of the Arts.

Contact Me

If you have a question for me, or just want to drop me a line, send your feedback to the e-mail address below.

Tom Johnson
tomjohnson1492@gmail.com
801-822-2241
Utah, USA