

Ask HN: How to get started writing as a programmer? - Nib

Hi, I&#x27;m a programmer. Like most of us are.<p>There are a number of people, programmers, if not very good programmers, but yeah, programmers who are great writers, like for example Pual Graham, Aaron Swartz, Quinn Norton and others in the line.<p>But my simple question is, how and where do I get started writing ? I mean, how do I &quot;get&quot; to my audience ? And how do I tell people I write ?
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techjuice
The best way to get started is to do it. It is just like moving up the
developer ladder from journeyman (not knowing anything about it and working
with junior or above developers to learn the ropes) to becoming a senior or
master developer. Starting small is the best way to get started, just as with
everything in life so you gain experience with each project without being
overwhelmed and have time to do things the write way. You can start by writing
a nice 150 page book on going over your workflow on creating an app, from no
code to fully functional code, encourage no copy and pasting and include
pictures of the finished product at the end of each code section. Spend some
time working on a theme, front and back cover and insure you have the copy
proofread by professionals.

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brudgers
Writers write because that's what they do. Paul Graham has been at for more
than 20 years...there was a PhD dissertation and then two books on Lisp before
all the essays. Joel Spolsky and Dave Weiner developed a following because
they wrote something interesting...regularly without worrying about audience.
What they focused on was writing.

There's no such thing as writing in your head. If it's not written its not
writing. So start a journal for yourself. Start a blog. Write. Everyday. If
it's reasonably good, a few people may care.

Good luck.

