next tech book outline

My big project for the holidays was completing an outline for the next tech book.  I’m glad to say that the outline is done. I can’t yet give the title, but I can say:

• It’s huge:  29 chapters in a 25-page outline.
• I have a tech editor, a respected figure in the relevant community.  He’s currently reviewing the outline.
• No Starch Press wants it.
• I expect to spend a year writing it, so I would expect a release in early 2012.

The book’s length is a concern. I want to write books small enough for me to hold comfortably in the bathtub. I’m a big guy, but a 29-chapter tech book pushes that limit.  I might trim some content, or cover some parts in less detail, to meet that goal.

I don’t announce book titles far in advance, due to problems that’s caused me in the past.  (Some day I’ll write up that story, but not today.)  I expect that I’ll be far enough along in a few months to announce the title, so:  I’ll announce it during my presentation at BSDCan 2011.  (And now that I’ve made a public commitment to that date, I’ll have to get cracking!)