Power of a Story

Everyone has stories to tell, and knowing how to tell them well is what we do as professional communicators. In this presentation, Mary R. Wise shares her thinking about the power of story and storytelling, and how it can apply to our jobs as technical communicators. Maybe the first rule of technical communication is not "Know your audience," but "What's the story?"

Mary R. Wise is a Senior Communications Manager at Fannie Mae, where she designs and develops e-learning courses for mortgage professionals. Before moving to her current position, Mary was Senior Manager of Technical Communication at Manugistics, Inc., where she directed the development of documentation for the company's supply chain management software products. She has over 20 years experience in technical communication and is an accomplished facilitator and speaker. Mary is a Fellow and Past President of the Society for Technical Communication, a worldwide organization of technical writers, editors, web designers, and illustrators. Although she has a B.A. from the University of Maryland, Mary feels her background as a circus clown prepared her well for both her corporate jobs.