In this episode, I talk with Eric Holscher, co-founder of Read the Docs and Write the Docs, about building and sustaining a community for people who care about documentation. We discuss the origin story of Write the Docs, how the conference and community have evolved over 13 years, the value of Lightning Talks and Unconference sessions for fostering organic connection, how AI is reshaping the role of technical writers and developers, and why supporting the institutions you care about matters now more than ever.

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Eric and I discuss his path into caring about documentation, which started as a computer science student reading the Django documentation on a family vacation and discovering how well-written docs could transform his understanding. This experience, combined with his deep roots in the Python and Django open source communities, eventually led him to co-found Read the Docs in 2010 and Write the Docs in 2013. We talk about how Write the Docs was originally conceived as a conference for Read the Docs users but quickly took on a life of its own and eventually became a global community for anyone who cares about documentation. We also discuss the origin of the term "documentarian" as an identity for people who are passionate about docs regardless of their job title, and the value that comes from having a single word to describe that identity.

We explore the conference elements that make Write the Docs feel different from other events, including Lightning Talks as an on-ramp for first-time speakers, Unconference sessions that let attendees organize discussions around what they're excited about, and Writing Day as a hands-on collaborative experience. I share how Writing Day is evolving this year to include skill-based tracks like Git workshops and resume/portfolio reviews to address the community's changing needs. We also discuss how the community's makeup has shifted over the years from a more developer-heavy audience to one that's primarily tech writers, and the intentional work that goes into keeping the conference broadly welcoming.

We dig into Eric's values-driven approach to conference organizing, including keeping sponsors off the main stage, avoiding tool-specific talks that can feel like sales pitches, and defaulting to openness with resources like talk recordings and the Write the Docs topic index. We also touch on AI's impact on the tech writing profession, where Eric offers an optimistic perspective: because writing quality is harder to objectively test than code, the depth of understanding and explainability that writers bring may become even more valuable. The episode wraps up with a discussion of supporting the institutions you care about and the challenges of building sustainable community organizations.

About Eric Holscher:

Eric Holscher is the co-founder of Read the Docs, Write the Docs, and EthicalAds. While studying computer science at the University of Mary Washington, Eric's passion for documentation was sparked by reading the Django documentation on a family vacation and discovering how transformative well-written docs could be. He co-founded Read the Docs in 2010 as an open source documentation hosting platform, which has grown into his full-time work for over a decade. In 2013, he co-founded Write the Docs, which began as a conference for Read the Docs users but quickly evolved into a global community for anyone who cares about documentation, with conferences on multiple continents, a thriving Slack community, and local meetups worldwide. He also co-founded EthicalAds, a privacy-focused ad network, and helped start PyCascades, a Pacific Northwest Python conference. Eric lives in Bend, Oregon, and spends as much time as possible exploring the outdoors on foot or by bike. If you run into him at an event, remember the Pac-Man Rule: always leave room for someone else to join the circle.

In this episode:

• [00:01:20]: Eric's origin story: discovering the power of documentation through Django docs on a family vacation
• [00:04:11]: Read the Docs, Write the Docs, and the confusing naming story
• [00:05:26]: The Write the Docs elevator pitch: a community for anyone who cares about documentation
• [00:09:20]: The origin and meaning of "documentarian" as a professional identity
• [00:12:09]: How Write the Docs got started in 2013
• [00:15:02]: The power of community in professional life and finding your people
• [00:20:49]: Conference structures that foster connection: Lightning Talks, Unconference sessions, and Writing Day
• [00:24:29]: Lightning Talks as a gateway to public speaking
• [00:29:03]: How the conference and community have evolved since 2013
• [00:33:14]: Navigating AI and the future of technical writing
• [00:34:36]: Why writers may be less at risk from AI than developers
• [00:38:48]: Writing Day's evolution: adding skill-based tracks like Git workshops and resume reviews
• [00:44:22]: Sponsor relationships and creating value without being extractive
• [00:47:41]: Lessons learned from building a values-driven community
• [00:52:27]: Finding product-market fit and letting the community shape itself
• [00:55:23]: Eric's advice: you need the cloudy days to appreciate the sunny ones
• [00:58:12]: Resource recommendation: the Write the Docs topic index
• [01:01:11]: Supporting the institutions you want to see exist

Resources discussed in this episode:

• Write the Docs topic index
• Write the Docs Slack
• Write the Docs Portland 2026
• Write the Docs Berlin 2026
• Definition of "documentarian" from Write the Docs
• The Pac-Man Rule at Conferences by Eric Holscher
• Read the Docs
• PyCascades
• PyCon US
• DjangoCon US
• Related TNBTW episodes:
  • S1:E5: Getting involved in a community with Eric Holscher
  • S3:E14: Docs as Tests: Keeping documentation resilient to product changes with Manny Silva
• Kate Mueller's Write the Docs Portland 2022 talk: Beating the Virginia Blues: Thru-hiking strategies for your next big project

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