---
title: "Write the Docs Podcast episode 19: Static site generators, with Jessica Parsons"
date: 2019-01-31
description: "Discussions focus on considerations for choosing a static site generator, and how to manage the content they consume, from APIs to Git-tracked markdown files. Headless CMS options like API-driven Strapi..."
canonical_url: https://idratherbewriting.com/2019/01/31/static-site-generators-write-the-docs-podcast-episode-19/index.html
---

> For AI agents: a documentation index is available at https://idratherbewriting.com/llms.txt. Markdown versions of all pages are available by appending .md to any page URL.

# Write the Docs Podcast episode 19: Static site generators, with Jessica Parsons

> Jessica Parsons, a documentation engineer from Netlify, joins us for Episode 19 of the WTD Podcast. Jess recently conducted a Static Site Generator workshop at the Australian Write the Docs conference at Melbourne. In this episode, Jess illuminates the world of static site generators, comparing and contrasting Hugo, Jekyll, Sphinx, Gatsby, and others.

Discussions focus on considerations for choosing a static site generator, and how to manage the content they consume, from APIs to Git-tracked markdown files. Headless CMS options like API-driven Strapi and Git-wrapper Netlify CMS make an appearance.

You can view or listen to the episode on the [post on Write the Docs Podcast](http://bit.ly/wtdpodcast19) or watch it below.

[Video: Video](https://www.youtube.com/embed/ClujZ80mqxE)

Links for more information:

- [Staticgen.com](https://www.staticgen.com/)
- [Jamstack](https://jamstack.org/)
- [Netlify](https://www.netlify.com/)
- [Netlify CMS](https://www.netlifycms.org/)
- [Jamstack templates](https://templates.netlify.com/)
- [Headless CMS](https://headlesscms.org/)
- [Strapi](https://strapi.io/)
- [How to pronounce “thorough”](https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/pronunciation/english/thorough)

Note that unfortunately I was out of town for this episode, but after listening to it, I think it’s one of the best we’ve had. It’s especially interesting to compare the docs-as-code tool discussions with this [Tools Selection Podcast](https://www.scriptorium.com/2019/01/tools-selection-podcast/) from Scriptorium. Both podcasts are excellent, but their contrast illuminates how divergent the tooling for documentation has become in the industry.

> **Tip:** Did you know that you can watch the Write the Docs podcast on your Fire TV? Check it out in the [Amazon Appstore here](https://www.amazon.com/Id-Rather-Be-Writing-Podcast/dp/B06Y23TNC4/ref=sr_1_1).