The Dev Opportunity Radar story is the part that stuck with me most, starting a series because you kept finding great opportunities after the deadline had passed is such a specific, lived frustration, and it shows in why the series still feels worth doing even on weeks the view count is low. That's a much better reason to keep showing up than chasing a metric.
"The topics you're most connected to often become the ones only you can write" is probably the single most useful line here for anyone hesitating to start, since it reframes the blank-page problem from "what do people want to read" to "what have I actually lived through that nobody else can write the same way."
Question for the AMA: when a Dev Opportunity Radar edition gets contributions from readers (opportunities you wouldn't have found yourself), how do you decide what to include vs. what to leave out? Curious if that's ever created tension between keeping the series curated vs. keeping it community-built.
Hey, I'm Hema 👋
Developer, writer, and creator of Dev Opportunity Radar, a weekly series published every Friday on DEV, helping people discover opportunities they might otherwise miss.
Thank you so much, Talha! That really means a lot, and I'm so glad those parts resonated with you.
That's a great question!
Whenever someone shares an opportunity with me, I always take the time to look into it. I check whether it's still open, whether it's relevant to the audience, and whether I think it would genuinely be useful to include.
So far, I haven't really had any tension because people have been incredibly thoughtful about what they send. The community has done an amazing job of understanding what the series is about, and I'm really grateful for that.
If I ever decide not to feature something, I'll always thank the person for taking the time to share it and be transparent about why. It might be because the deadline has already passed, it's too niche for the series, or I couldn't verify the details. I'd much rather explain my reasoning than simply leave someone wondering. I believe trust takes a long time to build but can be lost very quickly, so being transparent is really important to me.
At the end of the day, I want Dev Opportunity Radar to be something the community helps shape while still staying curated enough that readers know they can trust what's included.
And if you think of any other questions, feel free to ask! I'd be happy to answer them.
For further actions, you may consider blocking this person and/or reporting abuse
We're a place where coders share, stay up-to-date and grow their careers.
The Dev Opportunity Radar story is the part that stuck with me most, starting a series because you kept finding great opportunities after the deadline had passed is such a specific, lived frustration, and it shows in why the series still feels worth doing even on weeks the view count is low. That's a much better reason to keep showing up than chasing a metric.
"The topics you're most connected to often become the ones only you can write" is probably the single most useful line here for anyone hesitating to start, since it reframes the blank-page problem from "what do people want to read" to "what have I actually lived through that nobody else can write the same way."
Question for the AMA: when a Dev Opportunity Radar edition gets contributions from readers (opportunities you wouldn't have found yourself), how do you decide what to include vs. what to leave out? Curious if that's ever created tension between keeping the series curated vs. keeping it community-built.
Thank you so much, Talha! That really means a lot, and I'm so glad those parts resonated with you.
That's a great question!
Whenever someone shares an opportunity with me, I always take the time to look into it. I check whether it's still open, whether it's relevant to the audience, and whether I think it would genuinely be useful to include.
So far, I haven't really had any tension because people have been incredibly thoughtful about what they send. The community has done an amazing job of understanding what the series is about, and I'm really grateful for that.
If I ever decide not to feature something, I'll always thank the person for taking the time to share it and be transparent about why. It might be because the deadline has already passed, it's too niche for the series, or I couldn't verify the details. I'd much rather explain my reasoning than simply leave someone wondering. I believe trust takes a long time to build but can be lost very quickly, so being transparent is really important to me.
At the end of the day, I want Dev Opportunity Radar to be something the community helps shape while still staying curated enough that readers know they can trust what's included.
And if you think of any other questions, feel free to ask! I'd be happy to answer them.