Back in November, I met with Claire Giordano, host of the Talking Postgres podcast, who asked a ton of great questions about my experience writing a Postgres book aimed at Ruby on Rails web developers.

Some questions

Claire had a lot of thoughtful questions. Here’s a few:

  • Why write a technical book? Was there some moment or spark?
  • Why write a book about Postgres?
  • Why Ruby on Rails?

Fun topics

Claire also brought up a lot of fun points and reactions. Here’s a sample:

  • The importance planting seeds and encouraging others with ambitious projects
  • Would I consider writing a book for Django and Python for Postgres?
  • Where does the book fit in the landscape?
  • How long did it take to write this book?
  • Did I ever want to quit writing, even for a moment?
  • Did I have a party when the book was fully complete?
  • I talked about “little parties” with Rails developer communities at events like Rails World and Sin City Ruby
  • What was my experience like in working with other publishers
  • I shared my deep appreciation for the efforts of the technical reviewers of the book!
  • We talked about cheese! 🧀 (stories and connections with Postgres icons David Rowley and Melanie Plageman)
  • What was my favorite chapter?
  • Is there a frequently asked question I get about databases from Rails developers?
  • For my consulting services, do clients hire me for my Rails expertise or my Postgres expertise?

Quote mentioned by Claire:

Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly. That’s why it’s so hard.
—David McCullough

It was a real honor to be a guest on this prestigious podcast. I’m lucky to call Claire a friend as well! Thank you for the opportunity Claire, Aaron, and team!

Check out more episodes of Talking Postgres!