Google Season of Docs
Season of Docs is an annual program organised by Google. Its goal is to bring technical writers and open source organisations together to foster collaboration and improvement of documentation in the Open Source space.
This initiative is extremely important because the documentation of an Open Source project provides an avenue for users to not only understand the project but also make contributions to it.
During the program, accepted technical writers spend between 3-5 months either building a new doc set, improving the structure of the existing docs, developing a much-needed tutorial, or improving the contribution processes and guides of an Open Source organisation.
Who is eligible to participate in the program?
According to Google's rules, you must be at least 18 years old at the time of registration. You must also have prior experience as a technical writer and be eligible to work in your country of residence.
If you meet these qualifications, then you can apply to participate in the Google Season of Docs program.
Participants and roles
Below are the primary groups of people who take part in Season of Docs and the role each group plays in the program:
Organization administrators are members of the participating open source organizations who act as the principal Season of Docs contact for their organization. The organization administrators submit the organization’s application to take part in Season of Docs, handle the paperwork, and are responsible for submitting the final evaluation and case study. See the administrator guide and responsibilities
Technical writers are not direct participants in the 2021 Season of Docs. For information on how technical writers can participate in Season of Docs, please see the Tech Writer guide.
Google program administrators are program managers within Google who run the Season of Docs program
Preparing your application
Here’s what you need:
The Basics:
Name and email address (associated with a Google Account), plus a “display name,” or handle. Not unlike what you’d use on Twitter or other social media, the display name shouldn’t be your real name, but should still be unique. That way, you retain some anonymity with the project people you have perhaps interacted with over the past month. Projects must base their selections based just on what you share in the application.
Your Experience:
A description of up to three documentation projects you’ve worked on. These entries don’t have to be recent, but should be ones you’re proud of. If you’ve worked on other open-source documentation projects, that’s probably a plus too. You may also include a resume, a link to a portfolio of your best work, and a cover letter with additional information about you and your experience. These latter bits are optional.
Your Project Proposal(s):
This is probably the most critical section of your application. Here is where you show what you’ve learned from the conversations with the organization(s) you’ve decided to work with during GSoD. Google wants a detailed description of your project. Explain exactly what you’re going to do with this organization’s documentation and how you plan to bring your project to a successful conclusion. Take great care in how you write this section: Grammar and spelling count! Everyone will also be looking for how you use language to describe your project; use active voice and minimal jargon (unless you make it absolutely clear that the audience for these docs knows exactly what you mean by “adjusting the veeblefestzer.”
Length of Project:
Most GSoD projects run for three months in the fall, but if you and your organization agree that another six months would offer greater benefit to the organization and its users, you can apply for a “long-running project.
Acceptance of Stipend:
Google will pay you a substantial sum at the end of the project, but there are conditions attached that you have to agree to at the time you apply. If you can’t agree to the contract, you can indicate on the application that you’ll perform the project as a volunteer.
Benefits of Participating
There are so many benefits that come with participating in the Season of Docs program. Some are:
You can get a stipend
After you've completed the Google Season of Docs program, you get paid a stipend by Google. It is important to note that this stipend is optional so you have to indicate that you want to be paid during the application phase. The stipend amount is calculated based on your location. See here for full details about the stipends.
You improve your skills
Another obvious benefit of participating in the Google Season of Docs program is that it allows you to improve your skills as a technical writer.
You expand your network
Other than improving as a technical writer, you also get an opportunity to work with people doing amazing things in the Open source space.
In my case, I got an opportunity to work with the VideoLAN organization and that meant I had to work closely with the president of the organisation and major contributors to the projects.
You become an Open Source contributor
Aside from all the aforementioned benefits, participating in the season of Docs program means you get to contribute to Open Source projects. This helps the world debunk the stereotype that Open Source Contributions are only meant for Software developers.
You can find all the details about this program here