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Hello DevTalk Community!

Once again, The Pragmatic Programmers are looking for developers who’d like to help shape the future of our book lineup. Our Proposals Committee is a group that reviews incoming book proposals and offers recommendations. While this is an unpaid role, we recognize contributors on our About Us page.

Our goal is to provide constructive feedback to prospective authors. Even if a proposal isn’t the right fit for PragProg, we want to ensure the author walks away with valuable insights—whether that means refining their pitch for another publisher or strengthening their approach for self-publishing.

What we look for in feedback:

When reviewing a proposal, we encourage committee members to consider questions like:

• Who is the audience?
  • Does the author clearly describe the ideal reader?
  • Will the book engage novices without frustrating them?
• What is the author’s tone?
  • Is the writing engaging and approachable?
  • Does it feel like a tour guide or more like a roadmap?
• Does the book solve real challenges for developers?
  • Does it address key pain points in the topic area?
  • Could a developer easily find this information elsewhere?
• How does it compare to existing books?
  • Is it too broad or too niche?
  • Does it provide a unique perspective?
• Is the author connected to the intended audience?
  • Can they actively engage with the developer community?

You don’t need to answer these questions directly—just keep them in mind when reviewing a proposal. The best feedback comes from your own perspective and expertise. We do ask that each review includes a recommendation: Yes (with reasons), Maybe (with suggested improvements), or No (with constructive feedback).

It helps if you’ve read a few PragProg books and are familiar with our hands-on, practical style.

If you’re interested in joining the Proposals Committee, send a message to margaret.eldridge@pragprog.com, and I’ll send over a sample proposal to review.

Feel free to post any questions here or reach out via email.

Thanks for considering this opportunity to help shape the future of PragProg books!