Of course you can write a Python tutorial 🐍

You have an idea for a blog post. You know it’s been done before. Hundreds of times. But you still want to write it.

That’s fine.

A recent article by Michael Lynch suggests that bloggers shouldn’t write beginner Python tutorials, because they can’t compete with the top results on Google or Hacker News. He says:

The answer is that you don’t write a beginner’s Python tutorial.

I disagree.

Michael’s post, How to Write Blog Posts that Developers Read, is full of solid advice. I follow his blog, and his book-in-progress Refactoring English about writing well for developers.

I understand that he’s writing for the blogger who wants to become successful and get many readers. (And to be honest, everyone who blogs secretly wants that.) But I would want to expand on his answer. Not every blog post needs to rank. Not every blog post needs to be unique. There are still good reasons to write that tutorial.

There are perfectly valid reasons for why you would write something even if you don’t expect it to become a top result on Google.

• First and foremost, you can write whatever you like. It is your blog. If you feel like writing a Python tutorial, go ahead! You don’t need anyones permission.¹
• So people have written Python tutorials before? It is refreshing to reinvent some wheels every now and then!
• You may want to write the tutorial for yourself. Not because you expect to learn things when you read it, but because you expect to learn things when you write it. Having to explain something is an excellent way of ensuring you understand it yourself.²
• While you may not reach the top of Hacker News, maybe someone will read it. Even if just one person find your tutorial helpful, it has fulfilled a purpose and made the effort worthwhile. Perhaps you have a unique angle? Perhaps you will write a Python tutorial for left handed Cobol developers? None of the existing ones will fit that audience just as well as yours.
• Writing a Python tutorial also helps you practice writing interesting technical documentation. That is a skill you will have lots of use for in everyday life, and particularly as a developer.

In the end, I’m not really arguing against the advice given by Michael. It is solid. I just want to highlight that there are many reasons to blog, and not all of them even require a reader. 🙃