Last week, Ryan Hoover and team from ProductHunt invited me for their newly launched “asked me anything” platform. A few hundred folks joined and many asked questions. I have highlighted some of my favorite questions (and my answers) from the session. I hope you get a chance to read them.
Could you tell me what is the most important in technology writing?
You have to focus on the reader and make sure that you write in a simple, clean manner that even a layperson can understand. Technology is confusing to people. A writer’s job is to simplify it.
What would you do if you were 25 in 2015? AND what life advice would you give your 25 year old self?
I think as every 25 year old, I though I knew the answers. The problem was I didn’t how how to ask the right questions. I think my one piece of advise to my 25-year-old self would have been: respect those with experience, ask more questions and be more open to learn from them.
As a writer – mostly published online – what kind of feedback did you value most (or least) after putting your words out into the world?
Honest feedback. Not everything I write is good, or makes sense. Not everything that is put out there by me is well done. I appreciate when people share their feedback, politely of course and state the reasons why they disagree. I think I learn from other people’s disagreements.
What originally got you hooked on writing, and what are some of the internal motivators that continue to keep you innovating in the writing/media space?
It is a tough question to answer in such a short time frame: but let me try, I love writing. Period. I was surprised that I got paid for it for so long. I would do it for free. It is the only thing I do which makes me complete. I don’t know why, but that is god’s honest truth.
What does your writing process typically look like, and what are your favorite tools?
Mostly paper and pen. I think process is basically days of conversations, many articles read and then suddenly everything clicks into place and I start drafting it out. Once I am done writing, I type it up in either Quip or SimpleNote and share it with a few friends to get their opinions. Nothing very complicated. I do love writing with my fountain pens!
Answers to other topics are here on ProductHunt page. I will try and plough through the unanswered questions in the near future. [Link]