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As most of you already know, I'm a writer. I've noticed the similarities between writing and programming:

1. Tabs vs spaces.

2. Both typically spend all their time with a single project.

3. Coffee... (Unless you're a tea lover like me.)

4. Both typically have no life.

5. Debugging is hell for programmers and editing/revising is hell for writers.

6. Strict clients for programming and strict editors for writing.

7. Semicolons... They're useful but everyone despises them.

8: Emotions. Programmers are angry at their code. (Why won't you work?) and writers feel depressed about their writing. (Why did you die?)

9. War of the programs. For programmers: Vim vs VScode vs Atom vs Sublime and etc. For writers: MS word vs Google docs vs Libre office and etc.

10. Online forums. Stack overflow and Writer's digest.

11. Typing... Typing... All day long.

These are only a few similarities. I've noticed a lot more than this.

Comments
  • 3
  • 4
    Have you tried distraction free writer apps? Ohm Writer and Write Monkey. There are more. Might like them over MS office word and Libre Writer ✌️
  • 3
    @CurseMeSlowly
    I write my manuscripts on my laptop and edit + revise on my phone, so I need something on tbe cloud that will back up to both. That's why I use google docs.

    Tho, I use other editors like libre office for personal, non manuscript things.

    Those are the only two I like so I don't use other stuff. However, I do use things like clear lock to block the distracting stuff.
  • 5
    Always on Tea ❀️
  • 4
    @htlr
    Me too. I kind of hate coffee :)
  • 2
    For writing I would also recommend Typora. It's a really nice, minimal and easy-to-use markdown editor with live preview. It can also export to HTML, formatted DOCX and PDF... I used it to write my english paper for my final english certificate (I also have Cambridge, but this one is obligatory in Romania), and it was really helpful. πŸ™‚
  • 5
    @Condor tabs using space Instead of actual tabsπŸ˜‚πŸ˜Ž
  • 2
    I'm angry at my code AND my characters. πŸ˜‚
  • 3
    @Michelle Are writers not using LaTeX? I thought they did. Maybe I just got too influenced by The Pragmatic Programmer πŸ˜‚
  • 1
    @aaxa
    LaTeX isn't very common in the writing community.
  • 2
    @Michelle Well, it's probably not the writers responsibility to make it look nice anyway, so it kind of makes sense
  • 1
    @aaxa
    Actually we do. Our manuscripts must be formatted correctly with proper page breaks, asterisks after end of scenes, proper tabs, short paragraphs, italics, and etc.

    If not, then the publisher or editor will get angry and might end in an automatic rejection. After all, rejections are their favorite things to do.
  • 1
    @Condor It's awesome. I've read it twice during this year :)
  • 1
    Latex ftw :D
    really it does a lot of the formatting and for distributed working you can use git as it is a plaintext-format
  • 1
    @moars42
    Yeah, but most publishers don't use LaTeX.
    It's important to use the same word processor as them.
  • 1
    Tech writing is even more similar. We write in xml, have contracts and deliverables with timetables.
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