OBSERVABILITY Signal 561
Simon Willison on Technical Blogging
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Illustration only Photo by November Wong on Unsplash
Simon Willison posted a note linking to his earlier interview about technical blogging and reiterated his advice to lower publishing standards.
The note surfaces an interview where Willison explains why engineers might start a blog, what benefits they have observed, and how to overcome common writing barriers. It offers concrete, experience-based guidance for anyone considering sharing technical work publicly. For practitioners, the advice provides a low-effort way to begin publishing without getting trapped in perfectionism.
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Simon Willison says he began blogging to clarify his own thinking and continues because it creates a feedback loop with readers.
He advises writers to publish while still dissatisfied with the draft, arguing that perceived flaws are invisible to others.
The interview notes that the most surprising impact of blogging has been unexpected connections and opportunities that arise from public writing.
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What the cluster adds up to.
Simon Willison added a link to his earlier interview on his own blog, making the conversation accessible again after realizing he had not shared it before. The post frames the linked interview as a reminder of the topics discussed. This is a simple editorial update to his site, not a new tool or feature. The change is purely about surfacing existing content.
Adopting Willison’s suggestion to lower standards requires overcoming the habit of endlessly polishing drafts. It demands allocating time to write and publish despite feeling the work is incomplete. The cost is primarily psychological and temporal, with no financial expense involved. Engineers must confront internal perfectionism to reap the benefit.
If a writer refuses to publish until the piece meets an internal perfection threshold, the advice fails and the result is a growing collection of unpublished drafts. The method does not guarantee technical depth or correctness; it only addresses the barrier to releasing work. Those seeking rigorous peer review may need additional processes beyond this approach.
By treating blogging as a way to externalize thoughts, engineers can improve their own understanding and surface gaps in knowledge. Willison’s reflections on impact show that public writing can lead to collaborations and feedback that enhance personal learning. However, the material does not claim any direct effect on system observability, so the benefit remains personal and community-oriented.
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