My Git Book Writing Blog

Speaking versus Writing

I’ve spoken about Git at a few local conferences these past few years. Once at the Northeast PHP (August 2012), and once at a Boston PHP meetup (October 2013). Both went relatively well, and both whet my appetite to get my thoughts in book form. Prior to those events, I’ve spoken at smaller venues (once at a company’s lunch hour).

As I churn away at this book, I’m coming to the conclusion: speaking is easier than writing. With speaking, there’s only so much time: eventually we have to leave the venue. With speaking, I can ‘hand wave’ certain details. With speaking, I can add some dazzle and sizzle with live demos.

Writing is different. The text is going to be a permanent record. The text has to have as much of the details as needed to convey my points. The text has only a limited range for dazzle and sizzle.

That said, I’m embracing the opportunity to write this book. I hope it shows!