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A comment on Catch-22: Tech Blogging As a Woman. Parent comment

Re:Catch-22: Tech Blogging As a Woman by lmm on Monday July 02, 2012 @04:45AM (#4187984)
The solution is to let it emerge naturally and subtly. Like the advice I've seen given to gays: don't have a big dramatic "coming out", just have a picture of your partner on your desk and let it come up naturally in conversation.

Sure, plenty of people will assume you're male (or straight) to start with. But keep writing good technical articles and don't hide your gender, let it come up naturally - just don't make a big fuss about it on day 1. If people read stuff you write, and appreciate your technical competence, and then realise you're female /once they already respect your technical ability/, then the attitude the OP complains about will change.

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Re:Catch-22: Tech Blogging As a Woman by wickedchicken on Monday July 02, 2012 @11:46AM (#4189322)
> The solution is to let it emerge naturally and subtly.

I reserve the right to let people know who I am at any time and to deliver it how I please. I don't want anyone to tell me I should "let it emerge naturally." If I want to do that then sure, that's very tactful. But sometimes I don't.

The author has an obligation to do nothing. It is up to the audience to change their perceptions.

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Re:Catch-22: Tech Blogging As a Woman by lmm on Monday July 02, 2012 @02:27PM (#4190146)
If you open with angry social commentary about being a woman in tech, then the perception being complained about is in fact accurate and your audience has no obligation to change it.
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