Interview with Sara Vieira

Web developer and author Sara has organized Queer JS in Berlin and Women of React Conf online. In this interview, she talks about working in opensource and on CodeSandbox. You can find her on Twitter as @NikkitaFTW and get her new book Opinionated React.

What got you into OSS?

I began doing open source as a “designer” actually, I was still pretty ashamed of my code so one of the first things I did was two logos and I am proud to say they are both still used :D

One of the products is paid and still uses it and its doppppe.

What got you into React specifically?

I actually started using React quite late, around 2016 I think in a previous company. We used it to migrate from an angular 1 codebase and it was amazing for getting small components in. It was a supernatural way to write front end. Up until this point, I was mostly a CSS person

How do you make time for this work if it’s not a part of your job?

Most of my “need” comes having learned a lot of what I know from the internet, most of what I learned was also from free courses or videos so I feel like if all of us that learned from the internet gives a bit back we will build a way stronger community. Oh, I also have no life and I am a weirdly fast coder.

How do you balance what you do with having (no) life?

My [wife] is also a coder so it’s easier to be understood when I am coding on a Saturday or doing something related to the community. I also try to force myself to leave the house at least once a day since I work from home and I learned to remember that work can wait, nothing will burn.

You organized React JS Girls and Women of React — what’s next for you? (Queer JS!?)

Right now I am super focused on making QueerJS the best it can and bring it to more places. It’s been growing like crazy and I am super proud of my baby. I think at least for now its something that deserves a lot of my attention so that it does not lose traction.

What is CodeSandbox?

CodeSandbox is an online editor for javascript, this means you can run React, Vue or even Node projects completely on the cloud without any setup being done on your computer. We also try to integrate with a lot of tools like Netlify and GitHub to make development even more streamline.

What do you do at CodeSandbox?

Honestly a bit of everything in the frontend, from CSS to state or Node. From being a small company I think we all do a bit of everything. Didn’t learn Elixir yet though (the API is Elixir).

What do you like to do when you aren’t hacking?

I love movies mainly horror and thriller movies. I also play drums sometimes and have a PS4 and play a lot of FIFA like a 13-year-old boy

Describe your workspace.

I have a big IKEA desk with a monitor, a small mechanical keyboard and an apple trackpad. Honestly, it’s not very interesting but it does have a tiny Groot and he’s adorable

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve overcome?

Believing in me. Overcoming the fear I had to be rejected by everyone and everything. I lived in the fear of not being accepted so I didn’t even try.

My biggest challenge came from the inside only, I needed to be able to see that all that mattered was that I accepted myself.

Also making a freelance business in Germany without knowing 0 german was terrible.

Where does your self-confidence on stage come from?

Glad you ask! That is all fake, I am terrified, terrified I will fuck up but the way I learned how to deal with fear was humor all my life so it may look like I am just chilling because of my defense mechanism but trust me, I am dying inside.

What one thing do you wish you could tell everyone reading this?

Life is hard, like programming but like programming, it also almost always has a solution and sometimes you are just missing parenthesis and in life, if Germany has taught me anything is that you are probably just missing a paper.

This interview appeared in a condensed format in the 2019 Women at the Heart of React Zine. It is part of a series of interviews with women who contribute to React Core and organize the React Community. Portrait by Xyra Brittney.

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