I have a newsletter. You could subscribe, maybe.

TL;DR: I’ve started a weekly[ish] email newsletter. I’m calling it SIGAVDI. You can subscribe now. Or, read on for more info.

What can I expect to find in this newsletter?

Topic-wise, like this blog it is broadly programmer-oriented, but not rigidly so. I plan on more or less sticking to the format you can see in the first issue. An update on what’s been happening in my neck of the woods. Followed by some notes and commentary on stuff I’ve been reading, watching, enjoying, and thinking about. Excerpts from books I’m reading, links to papers and blog articles, the odd music or bourbon recommendation. That sort of thing.

I’ll also include updates on what I’ve been working on: a summary of the latest RubyTapas episodes, news about the book(s) I’m writing; new blog posts; podcast appearances; talks I’ve given; changes to my open-source libraries.  There will probably also be exclusive freebies or reader discounts on my products, from time to time.

Basically, if you read my blog or follow me on Twitter, there’s a good chance you’ll like what you find in SIGAVDI.

Why a newsletter? What’s wrong with your blog and Twitter?

For a while now I’ve been looking for a good way to share thoughts, links, and notes that are too long for Twitter, but too short for a full blog post.

In addition, after years of using email mainly for business purposes, I recently rediscovered the pleasure of using email as an avenue for extended, thoughtful one-on-one conversations. I’ve really been enjoying these discussions, and they’ve made me realize that there’s something missing from the interactions I have on social media, forums, and IRC.

I’ve configured this newsletter so that replies go straight to me. Anyone who receives the mailings can reply and start a conversation. One reason I’m starting this newsletter is as what I hope to be a jumping-off point for a thousand fruitful dialogs.

Finally, I’ve decided that I want to be less dependent on Twitter for getting the word out about my products and services. Educating programmers is my livelihood, and I’d rather not be beholden to a single social media company in order to keep my readers and customers in the loop.

So, this is just a thinly-veiled marketing scheme?

I dunno about the “thinly-veiled” part. I want to share my thoughts and start personal conversations. I also want a more direct way to get the word out about my projects and products. A newsletter seems like a good way to accomplish all of those goals at once.

What makes this better than other curated link newsletters?

Nothing. It really isn’t a “curated link” letter. I can’t promise you “all the most important programming links of the week” or anything like that; that’s an area that’s already ably handled by others, and I couldn’t compete even if I wanted to.

SIGAVDI is more of a personal letter. I’ll be talking about my life. I’ll be sharing links that were meaningful to me, along with commentary and further musings.

If you’re looking for weekly summaries of the best in programming-related reading, I can recommend a few:

So, that’s the pitch. I hope you’ll subscribe. And then I hope you’ll reply, and we can have a conversation.

 

1 comment

  1. Hi Advi,
    I am interested in your newsletter and would love to share with you some of my content that you may like to share yourself. I focus a lot in programming related content like javascript and functional programming and I would love for you to check it out. Feel free to send me an email of your thoughts.

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