Thread by @JoshWComeau

Around this time tomorrow (10AM EST), I'll be launching my first product as an indie hacker, CSS for JavaScript Devs (css-for-js.dev).

It has been one heck of a ride 😅. In this thread, I wanna share what the journey's been like ✨

In early 2020, I developed an RSI that made it impossible to use a keyboard/mouse. I spent months not using a computer at all, and then months training myself to code with dictation and an eye-tracker.

It's mostly better now, but this was a catalyst for my abrupt career change.

I mention this because I think it's important framing: I'm not the type of person that would typically quit their secure, very-well-paid job as a staff engineer *during a pandemic* to pursue an unproven venture. But it felt urgent to me that I do this right now.

Early in 2020, I started writing a book, “Building an Effective Dev Portfolio”.

When I lost the ability to type, I switched to dictation. Dictating English is easier than dictating code, so I focused at first on finishing that book. It was “written” ~75% by voice.

Over the summer, I also read a few business books/podcasts. A common theme was to *build your mailing list*. Everyone stresses the importance of an email list.

I decided to give away my book to everyone who signs up.

This graph shows the # of subscribers over the past year:

A few other things went super well during this period:

• I released a blog post that became my most-read post ever, ~125k hits (joshwcomeau.com/css/full-bleed/)

• I released “Operator Lookup”, a weekend project for JS operators, and it got widely circulated (joshwcomeau.com/operator-looku…)

I also tweaked the newsletter opt-in process. As you read articles on my blog, my 3D avatar pops out from the side. If you give him permission, he'll tell you about my newsletter.

This increased signups by ~50%, and I get way more love-mail than hate-mail about it.

In addition, I've also been publishing a new post every 2 weeks. Most posts don't blow up, but they all help build momentum!

For aspiring bloggers: my best advice is to set and keep a schedule. Consistency is so beneficial.

I started my blog because it was fun, and I liked sharing what I learned. Over this last year, I've started to see it a bit more strategically, as a vehicle to build an audience. I worried a bit that I would grow to enjoy it less, but that hasn't happened yet 🤞🏻

I spend maybe 10 hours a week on my blog. The rest of my time is spent building my course.

I had expected it to take 4 months. It turns out, it'll be more like a year 😅

The course is released tomorrow in “Early Access” — about 50% of the content is ready. I expect the full launch will happen in August or September.

Building a course is *freaking hard*.

My biggest mistake so far: not enough user testing.

I did a fair amount (~40 students so far), but it still feels like nowhere near enough. Feedback is so critical, and you really need a lot of it to be able to identify common trends, and separate them from personal preferences.

In terms of how it's felt: most mornings I wake up excited to get to work. I still vividly remember the frustration and powerlessness of WANTING to work, and not being able to.

It is a privilege to be able to type. I feel grateful and energized.

But, it's also *very stressful*. I've put a lot of eggs in this basket, I have a lot riding on it. I've burned through a substantial amount of my life savings in the past few months.

I'm worried that it won't sell. I'm worried that it'll sell TOO MUCH, and I won't be able to offer good customer support. I'm worried people will be disappointed, that it won't be what they expected. I feel confident in my work, but I also know it's impossible to please everybody

It takes most people *years* to become profitable with their first indie-hacking business. And I don't have years of savings 😅

But honestly, I haven't really thought of this as "starting a business" (even though it absolutely is).

Because I've been teaching for so long already (at Concordia University, through my blog), it feels like a natural extension of what I've already been doing. It's obviously risky, but I think it's the least-risky thing I could be doing.

I'm not really going about this in the smartest way, though.

Common wisdom dictates that it's best to start with a "quick win". Spend 40 hours on a mini-course and sell it for $20, to validate demand & get some income going.

I've probably spent 1000 hours on my course so far 😬

I'm building my own course platform from scratch. I could have saved *hundreds of hours* by using something like Teachable. But then the course wouldn't be as good.

Because I built my own platform, I can embed one-off widgets and mini-games. It's unlike any course that exists.

Long-term, I think this'll be to my advantage. But I almost definitely should have started with something smaller, to validate demand and see if I even enjoy creating courses 😅

Fortunately, demand seems strong, and I've discovered I quite like doing this kind of work ✨

My course will only be on sale for 1 week, starting tomorrow. After that week, I'm closing down orders so I can focus on delivering the promised content to the Early Access students.

Sales will reopen in the Summer or Fall, when the course is completed.

My goal is to sell 390 copies, which would equate to ~$50,000. This is a wildly ambitious target, given that it's my first-ever shot at selling my own content. But I think I've done enough of the "pre-work" throughout my career to make it plausible.

We'll see!

Thanks for reading this way-too-long thread 😅

I'll be flipping the switch around 10AM EST tomorrow morning. It would mean the world to me if you could help promote it 💖