Hello dear readers! Today I am introducing something new to this blog: an invitation for all programmers, of all skills and backgrounds, who haven't yet got their own blog, to write for this one!
TL;DR
You write a blog post, I'll help edit it and assist with finding your "writing voice", and I'll host it on Exception Not Found!
Background
I have long felt that every technical professional should have their own blog, whether it is read by anyone or not. The primary purpose of blogging is not to share ideas (though this is a useful feature), the primary purpose to help the writer figure out how to communicate effectively through writing, something that is an absolutely essential skill for all programmers.
But, of course, blogging costs money (in terms of hosting) and takes time. Not everyone has those. Hence, I want to make it easier for those who are just starting out to write their own blog posts, to get their name and ideas out into the wilds of the Internet.
Your Post is Your Story. I'll Help Edit It.
I'll make this part simple: your post is yours. I will not be credited as an "author" on your post, you will.
I will, however, be very glad to act as an editor on your story, suggesting changes, selecting more descriptive words, helping with syntax, that sort of thing. I won't be able to write it for you (due to time constraints) but I am very happy to help you form ideas and words that you can use. We will go through as many changes as it takes, until you are satisfied with the quality of your post.
Then, when your post is published, I'll announce it just like I do for all of my regular posts, on Twitter and LinkedIn, and credit you as the author. You can then feel free to link to it on your resume, or personal site, or whatever you wish.
Why Do This?
You might be wondering: why should I bother to write for your blog, when sites like Medium exist? This is a perfectly valid question.
First of all, the reason to use this program is not to write a blog post, it's to get help developing your writing skills. After five years of blogging I feel that my writing skills and voice are well defined, and while I can still improve, I am confident enough to be able to help others develop their own voice. Sites like Medium feed you to the wolves, expecting you to get help writing elsewhere; they are nothing more than a hosting platform in a different skin.
Again, the point of this program is not to host blog posts; anyone can do that. The point is to get help learning how to communicate in written word to a technical audience. I can help you with this.
Rules
There are some rules as to what kinds of posts I can publish on Exception Not Found.
- The post must be related in some way to programming. It doesn't need to be in the .NET or Microsoft ecosystem, but it must be programming related. I'll help you generate appropriate tags for your post.
- I will not accept opinion pieces at this time. Your post can contain your opinions, but they should not be the main focus of the post.
- The post must be in English; at the moment I do not have the capacity to host blog posts in other languages.
- Posts published through this program will be treated like all other posts, in that they will be subscriber-exclusive for two weeks before being opened to the general public.
What I am looking for is posts that describe how to do a cool thing, or a better way to roll a burrito (programmatically speaking), or a interesting tidbit of code. They could be 500 words, or 5,000. Show me what you know! Remember that everything you know is something someone else doesn't, so don't be afraid to submit post ideas that have already been written somewhere else.
One last thing: anyone who writes and publishes a guest post on Exception Not Found will receive a complimentary subscription!
I am open to any suggestions my dear readers might have!
Get Writing!
The Guest Writer Program is now open! Use the comments below to get in touch with me, or email me at exceptionnotfound1 at gmail dot com. I am looking forward to hearing your post ideas!
Happy Writing!
