Writing About Python

~10:00 Sat AM -- check the board for updates and location

The Python writing community has never been stronger. From blogs to magazines to a slew of recent releases from O'Reilly, Packt, Manning, Apress, and other publishers there a more opportunities than ever before for anyone wanting to write about Python in some form.

Of course, authoring is only one aspect of producing high quality professional writing. As an editor, it's no surprise that I think all authors can benefit from having someone else read their work. Even an informal review can help identify gaps in an explanation or problems with flow, not to mention typos.

Writers, reviewers, and editors can all benefit from sharing tips, offering advice on tricky problem passages, or just chatting about ongoing projects. That list sounds just like the sorts of things we talk about when discussing programming, doesn't it?

I'd like to bring people together in person for a group discussion and a chance to network. To kick things off, I'm working on organizing a "meetup" as an open space session at PyCon in March. If you are a blogger, published writer, reviewer, or editor -- or aspire to be -- I want you to come and participate. No prior experience is necessary, everyone is welcome.

Let's connect people interested in doing technical reviews with authors and editors. Let's introduce potential writers to the editors and publishers. Let's learn from one another and improve our prose, the same way we improve our code.

We'll have to wait to schedule a precise time until the conference, but right now I'm thinking about late Saturday morning or early afternoon. If you are interested in attending, please post a comment so I can gauge the size of the room we'll need. If you have a preference for the time, make sure to include that information. And if you have ideas for things we should talk about, let's hear them.

Contact me at doug dot hellmann at gmail dot com with questions or comments.

Update: Although I was thinking of "print" writing, other forms of publishing like podcasting are welcome, too. We need more good Python podcasts!