Telling Stories: A Short Path to Writing Better Software Requirements

From System Designers to Top Management, Everyone loves a good story

Once upon a time, it was well understood that stories teach better than plain facts. Why then are most software requirements documents a baffling hodge-podge of diagrams, data dictionaries, and bullet points, held together by little more than a name and a staple? Telling Stories teaches you to combine proven standards of requirements analysis with the most ancient and effective tool for sharing information, the narrative. Telling Stories simplifies and refines the classic methods of Structured Analysis, providing organization, design, and old-fashioned writing advice. Whether you’re just getting started or an experienced requirements writer, Telling Stories can help you turn dull, detailed material into an engaging, logical, and readable story, a story that can make the difference for your project and your career.

• Learn why readers believe and remember what they learn from stories
• Work with team members to gather content, tell their stories, and win their support
• Use stories to find every requirement
• Create diagrams that almost tell the story on their own (while looking clear and professional)
• Explain everything important about a process
• Use precise language to remove the ambiguity from requirements
• Write a forceful executive summary that stands on its own and sells a project to senior management
• Summarize often to keep the reader focused on key issues
• Structure the document so every part has a clear place and purpose

About the Author

Ben Rinzler has been both writing about technology and managing writers and analysts for over 20 years. He began his career in technology at firms including Apple and Macromedia (now Adobe) as a technical writer and manager. He later moved to financial services and spent eight years at Morgan Stanley, where he managed a group of over 20 technical writers and business analysts. During this period, he began teaching courses to writers, analysts, developers, and managers in writing software requirements and explaining complex systems. Ben has a history degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a certification in Analysis and Design of Information Systems from Columbia University. He now works in IT Operational Risk at Mizuho Securities USA