β¨β¨β¨ Join us - it's free and online β¨β¨β¨
Date
: Dec 19 (Saturday)
Time
: @1-3pm EST
Live
: Video Link
RSVP
: Reactor Meetup Page
β¨β¨β¨β¨β¨β¨β¨
π£ #VisualizeIT: The Series
Welcome to workshop #3 in this event series organized by Microsoft Reactor, Azure Advocates and the Lets Sketch Tech community.
Read this postππ½ to learn more about the series goals and schedule - then join us and add visual storytelling to your tech tool-belt for 2021!


#VisualizeIT: A free online series of workshops to build your visual storytelling skills!
Nitya Narasimhan, Ph.D for Microsoft Azure γ» Dec 1 '20 γ» 5 min read
Speaker Cards Artwork: by Kaitlin Gu
π¨ "From Tech Docs to Tech Talks"
Workshop #3 happens Dec 19, 2020 at 1pm EST
. It is free and online - register here to get the event link and other resources post-event.
Workshop Abstract:
If you work in tech, chances are youβve βwritten documentationβ or given a βtechnical talkβ to a diverse audience. Visual Storytelling skills can help you improve written or delivered content in a way that improves your audienceβs comprehension and recall.
In this workshop weβll explore this space in four segments:
- Visual Toolkit = quick primer on drawing tools & process
- Sketch The Docs = apply toolkit to visualizing tech documentation!
- Chalk The Talk = apply toolkit to visualizing talk flow & slides
- Scene To Zine = other ideas for applying toolkits
Each segment will provide time and freedom for you to choose your own adventure and explore specific subsets of ideas at your own pace.
Materials Needed:
Lots of paper, pens, and a few color markers or pencils. Bring your curiosity and imagination. If you have a specific talk or documentation page you want to create visual notes for, that's icing! Most of all, tap into your inner sense of creativity and joy. You won't regret it!
π©π½βπ» Speaker: Nitya Narasimhan
Nitya is a community & technology advocate with 20+ years of experience across industry, academia, startups and consultancy. She has a PhD in Computer Engineering with software research & development expertise spanning distributed systems, ubiquitous & social computing, mobile web, cloud & ML/AI.
She's passionate about building inclusive communities and pragmatic software solutions that address real-world needs. Her mission is to help developers translate awareness of emerging technologies & platforms like Microsoft Azure into actionable impact on products, careers and communities.
- Find her on Twitter
- Explore her site on visual storytelling
- Follow #sketchthedocs and #visualizeit on dev.to
π Useful Resources
Bookmark this website and revisit the Resources section periodically. I'll be updating it with content and resources relevant to the 4 segments above. You can also follow these tags on dev.to for updates.
πΉ After The Event
Check back on this post for relevant resources shared at the event, and a link to the video recording when it becomes available.
Fantastic workshop today!!
I really enjoyed hearing how @nitya approaches sketchnoting today with #VisualizeIT
Learning how layouts are important for practicing and anticipating before a talk was really valuable.20:10 PM - 19 Dec 2020
Update: The recording is now available
I also wrote an article on why I do these talks:
I wrote a treatise on why I am running a #VisualizeIT workshop tomorrow and why I hope you will join :-) linkedin.com/pulse/visualizβ¦
It also made me realize how many talks I've given on this subject - and why I need to consolidate in 2021! Making a start at visualize-it.dev16:46 PM - 18 Dec 2020
And since this is the New Year, I will hugely advocate for #sketchercising your mind by spending a few minutes each morning just doodline something fun and whimsical.
Here's an example:
![]()
Just "sketchercising" this morning as I prep for the #VisualizeIT workshop. It will have a structured start, an exemplary middle & a freeform ending. Join me won't you?
1pm EST
RSVP: meetup.com/Microsoft-Reacβ¦
Join Live:
aka.ms/SketchnoteSeriβ¦
Read More:
dev.to/azure/visualizβ¦ twitter.com/nitya/status/1β¦13:57 PM - 19 Dec 2020Nitya Narasimhan @nityaIt's fun. It's live. We'll build a toolkit, sketch the docs, plan out talks and build our visual storytelling skills just in time for the new year! #VisualizeIT with me! Tomorrow, 1pm EST RSVP with @MSFTReactor https://t.co/rRxhxxui4s Learn More: https://t.co/VghqwnEcba https://t.co/8j6ZVGHzLn https://t.co/mE2s5PTfAb
The LetsSketchTech Community
If you liked this series, follow @letssketchtech on Twitter and right here on dev.to.
This is continuation of a series of free online virtual event series organized by the Microsoft Reactor team in collaboration with Azure Advocates and the Lets Sketch Tech community.
Top comments (0)