# 28: A Lot of Wish Fulfillment

- Show: [Embedded.fm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm)
- Published: 2013-11-20
- Length: 48m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment
- Listen: https://makingembeddedsystems.libsyn.com/mes-ep28-mp3

## Summary

Laura Lemay, a technical writer and author of the 'Teach Yourself ... in 21 Days' series (including HTML and Java), discusses the evolution of technical writing, the challenges of documenting APIs, and the importance of clear code. She explains how developer-focused technical writers must understand source code to effectively interview engineers and push back on inconsistent APIs. Lemay also shares her experience with NaNoWriMo, her struggles with perfectionism in science fiction writing, and the value of Edward Tufte’s work on information design for engineers.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=6) Introduction and Background
- [1:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=64) Writing the Teach Yourself Series
- [5:24](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=324) Technical Writing vs. Head First Books
- [13:11](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=791) Interviewing Engineers and API Documentation
- [19:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=1163) Code Clarity and Sample Code Pitfalls
- [27:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=1641) NaNoWriMo and Overcoming Perfectionism
- [35:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment#t=2103) Science Fiction and Information Design

## Topics

- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Founder wellbeing](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/founder-wellbeing)
- [Creator business](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/creator-business)

## Most relevant to

established companies

## Mentioned

- Teach Yourself Java in 21 Days (product)
- Edward Tufte (other)
- Envisioning Information (product)
- Neal Stephenson (other)
- Diamond Age (product)
- Patrick Ness (other)
- The Knife of Never Letting Go (product)
- Kathy Sierra (other)
- Head First Java (product)
- O'Reilly (company)
- NaNoWriMo (other)
- Stack Overflow (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [S4E42 Pam Hurley | Technical Writing, Presentations, & Communications](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2023-11-03-s4e42-pam-hurley-technical-writing-presentations-communications) (Being an Engineer)
- [Technical Blogging](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2024-11-21-technical-blogging) (Oxide and Friends)
- [Marketing to a Technical Audience with Wendy Covey](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2020-09-01-marketing-to-a-technical-audience-with-wendy-covey) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [Living Documentation with Philip Markgraf](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2024-01-30-living-documentation-with-philip-markgraf) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [Documentation as Code: A chat with Alasdair Allan from Raspberry Pi](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-electromaker-show/2022-07-21-documentation-as-code-a-chat-with-alasdair-allan-from-raspberry-pi) (The Electromaker Show)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2013-11-20-28-a-lot-of-wish-fulfillment. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Embedded.fm.