Write for Us
As of March 6th, 2023, we’ve added a note regarding AI-generated content.
We’re always looking for great content to help programmers get better at what we do every day.
Ideas
Here are a few ideas to get the creative juices flowing:
- Tutorials on how to do something interesting, hard or complex with your favorite language or framework.
- Actionable advice for other engineers on non-code-related aspects of the job (negotiation, dealing with imposter syndrome, how to be a good manager, remote work, etc.)
- Deep dives into the inner workings of things we take for granted every day, like Express, how CSS renders, or the SwiftUI runtime.
Styleguide
Instructions before you submit:
Read The Better Programming Style Guide and Suggestions before reading the following tips below:
- Your Medium account should have your name, a bio, and a picture of you.
- Your article should have a title and a subtitle.
- If you include code snippets, use Medium code blocks with syntax highlighting.
- Please add a nice cover image that you have the rights to use or are Creative Commons. We recommend sites like Unsplash. Please give the photographer credit. See the top of this post for an example. We might change images if the source isn’t clearly stated — as copyright infringement is serious.
- We highly recommend keeping the use of emojis in the text to a bare minimum as it distracts the reader and isn’t accessible.
- At the bottom of your article, please include a Resources section with any links you mentioned in your post for quick reference by the reader. GitHub repos, Playgrounds, JSFiddles, and Gists are highly recommended.
- You may include a short one-sentence call-to-action (CTA) at the end of your article, such as a personal newsletter subscription link, a link to one social media account, or (for republished work) a link to your originally published article. We recommend using the Medium code blocks for CTAs. We also encourage informing the readers that the next section is a CTA. Something like this:
Want to Connect?<Insert your CTA here>
- We do not allow affiliate links in articles, even if they are disclosed. We also do not allow bio paragraphs or multiple CTA links between the sections — as it degrades the reading experience.
- If the story is already behind the paywall, we’d highly encourage you to avoid adding referred membership links — as Medium already shows a default popup of your membership page. For more, read this story.
- Make sure the article read time is longer than three minutes.
Diversity and Inclusion
Better Programming strives to be an inclusive place where everyone feels welcome to read, write, and teach others.
If you represent an under-represented group in startups, tech, or STEM, we highly encourage you to submit an article and contribute to Better Programming.
We seek clear, helpful advice and believe everyone has something to teach.
A Note on AI-Generated Content
We’re neutral about ChatGPT and Generative AI assistance, promoting responsible use. This means treating it as a reference, not a direct resource, and avoiding uncredited content incorporation or padding.
As we continue to learn more about the technology from each other and its potential impact, we strive to approach it with an open mindset.
For those with language barriers, we suggest using ChatGPT as a tool while preserving and improving one’s own personal writing skills.
How To Submit
Before you submit, please use our checklist to make your writing stand out.
If you have already published a piece with Better Programming, there’s no need to use this form again. Just click the … menu in the top right of Medium, click “Add to Publication” on your article, and we’ll get the notification and respond usually within 24 hours.
Otherwise, when your post is ready, submit a draft via our submission form. If you don’t hear back from us within three to five business days, please assume that we kindly passed on your submission.
We look forward to your submissions!
