About my book

I’m excited to tell you that I’ve written a book. It’s about developing documentation on a wiki. It’s also about technical communicators. And chocolate.

Details of the book

Title:  Confluence, Tech Comm, Chocolate: A wiki as platform extraordinaire for technical communication

Online purchase:  Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble

Publisher: XML Press

Join the fun at the book’s wiki site: Confluence, Tech Comm, Chocolate wiki

What’s in the book?

The book is primarily a guide to developing technical documentation on Confluence. But that’s not all. There are ideas and philosophies, tips and tricks, and special notes for technical writers about why a wiki is the tool we dream of. Many of the ideas apply to wikis in general, although the book focuses on Confluence because that’s the one I know best.

It’s a book for technical communicators, from someone who knows and loves them. It’s also for product owners, CEOs, developers and anyone else who is considering a wiki as a platform for technical communication.

The first part of the book introduces wikis and Confluence. Part 2 is an in-depth guide to developing technical documentation on Confluence. It starts with planning and design, moves on to developing content, through workflow all the way to release management. The more esoteric concepts are there too, such as content reuse, structure, style and online help. In part 3 we see what it’s like to work on a wiki. The book finishes with a section crammed with ideas. It’s all about making the most of the unique features that a wiki provides, to turn your documentation into technical communication extraordinaire.

Just in case you’re wondering: This isn’t an Atlassian project. It’s all my own, though of course Atlassian management and my closest colleagues know about it. It will be fun to see what other Atlassians have to say when they see the book. And when they see this post.

By the end of the book you will know everything I’ve learned in the past four years of working on a wiki. Oh, and chocolate plays a part too.

I’ve posted a detailed outline of the book, including a list of all parts and chapters, and the sections within each chapter.

Who is the girl on the cover?

I love the illustrations in the book, and especially the picture on the cover. They are the work of a talented artist named Ryan Maddox.

The girl on the cover is called Ganache. She is the hero of the book. She is a technical communicator extraordinaire. When you read the book, you will follow Ganache as she sets up a Confluence wiki and adds a technical documentation space. Learn from her expertise with the wiki editor and macros. Share her adventures in agile development and search engine optimisation. Grow wings, as Ganache does, and make your wiki documentation fly. Discover why Ganache says we need a “kiss my wiki” attitude.