Huib Schoots: I speak at many conferences and I was asked to apply by Andrei. Andrei and I met a couple of years ago at another conference. After he told me about the conference, I got enthusiastic and applied. I never regretted it, RTC is a great conference and I had a lot of fun speaking there!

HS: There are several challenges for first time or inexperienced speakers: First is to come up with a topic. Second is make a good abstract. Third is to make a good talk and forth is to deliver it. Rob Lambert, the conference chair for this years edition of RTC has written an excellent blog post to help: Blazingly Simple Guide To Submitting To Conferences. Other stuff that can help can be found here.

My advise would be: only talk about stuff you really know! I like experience talks and that makes it pretty simple to talk about: since you really know about your own experience! If you are confident about your story, it will also make it easier to deliver on stage… Read what Rob has to say in his guide, it is an amazing guide!

Also: have a look at Speak Easy. They help new speakers create abstracts and prepare talks. They also help you get a spot on a conference!

HS: It was aweome! RTC really takes care of their speakers: travel is arranged for you, they pick you up at the airport and also the hotel is arranged. What else can you wish for? A great conference with great speakers and a lot of fun…

HS: Because it is important to share stories, inspire others and learn from each other. Speaking at a conference will help you become a better tester and will help other become better too. A win-win!

HS: I am happy to help anybody who wants to speak, but needs some help. As an experienced speaker and Speak Easy mentor I think I can help you find a good topic, create an abstract, create a talk and deliver it. So let me know if you need any help…