A written handbook · 8 chapters · ~28,000 words

Break into modern QA.
Without the video course filler.

A no-nonsense written handbook on getting into QA engineering — written by someone who does the job every day at a London software company. Playwright. MCP. CI/CD. The actual work, in writing you can skim, search, and keep on your shelf.

chapters
8
words
~28k
format
PDF + repo
Get the handbook £49 ▸ see the chapters
The Handbook · 2026 edition
From tester
to QA engineer.
Playwright · MCP · CI/CD
The work, written down.
EDITION I
theqahandbook
§ 01 — Format

It's a handbook. Not a video course.

Most "QA courses" are 14 hours of someone screen-recording themselves typing. This isn't that. It's a written technical handbook, the kind you keep open in another tab while you work.

What it is

  • A PDF handbook — beautifully typeset, 8 chapters, ~28,000 words.
  • A companion GitHub repo with a working Playwright suite, CI pipeline, MCP config — clone, run, learn.
  • Skimmable. Search the PDF. Jump to the chapter you need. Re-read the bits that matter.
  • Written by someone still doing the work, not someone teaching it full-time.
  • Future updates included. Playwright and MCP are moving fast. You get every revision.

What it isn't

  • Not videos. No talking-head footage you watch on 2x speed.
  • Not a live cohort. No fixed dates, no Zoom calls, no slack channel to keep up with.
  • Not a certification. ISTQB doesn't apply here.
  • Not 400 pages of theory. Tight, opinionated, code-heavy.
  • Not a job guarantee. No course can promise that and the ones that do are lying.
§ 02 — Audience

For career switchers and junior testers ready to skip the fluff.

This handbook is for you if

  • You're trying to break into QA from another field and want a clear path, not a YouTube rabbit hole.
  • You're a manual tester stuck on click-through work and want to move into automation.
  • You can write a bit of JavaScript or Python (or are willing to learn fast).
  • You want to learn what teams actually use — Playwright, MCP, CI pipelines — not 1990s test theory.
  • You'd rather read than watch. You think faster than 1x video speed.

This is not for you if

  • You expect a guaranteed job placement.
  • You're a senior SDET. You'll find this too entry-level.
  • You want ISTQB certification prep.
  • You only learn from video. Reading 28,000 words isn't your thing.
  • You won't open the companion repo and run the code.
§ 03 — Chapters

Eight chapters. One coherent path.

Each chapter is ~3,500 words, code-heavy, with practical exercises and links to the companion repo. Designed to be read in order — or jumped into when you need the specific bit.

01

The QA Career Map (2026) ✓ live

What QA actually is in 2026, who hires for what, what the salaries are, where the field is going. The chapter that orients you before you start learning anything technical.

role map UK/EU/US salary bands what to skip what to learn
~2,300 words
02

The CV, Portfolio & Interview ✓ live

Written for non-traditional candidates. How to frame previous experience, what hiring managers actually scan for, the portfolio repo that gets interviews, and how to answer the interview questions that always come up.

CV template portfolio structure 10 mock questions live-code drill
~3,600 words
03

Playwright From Zero next · 2 wks

Install, config, your first test. The locator hierarchy that makes or breaks every suite. Why we skip Selenium entirely. By the end you have a working Playwright project on disk.

setup walkthrough playwright.config.ts locator strategy first test
~3,500 words
04

Test Suites That Don't Break

The technical core. Assertions, web-first waits, killing flakiness, Page Object Model done right, fixtures, and the API-first setup trick that makes suites 10x faster.

expect() patterns flake triage POM vs fixtures API setup
~3,500 words
05

MCP for QA Engineers

What MCP is in plain English. Why every QA team is going to be using it within a year. Hands-on setup of the Playwright MCP server, with code. The chapter that future-proofs your career.

MCP explained Playwright MCP server AI-drafted tests review checklist
~3,500 words
06

Testing AI Features

Your product has an LLM in it. Now what? How to test non-deterministic outputs, golden datasets, LLM-as-judge, eval harnesses. This isn't in any other QA course right now.

non-determinism golden datasets LLM-as-judge eval harness
~3,500 words
07

CI/CD: Shipping Tests Like a Pro

GitHub Actions from scratch. Running Playwright on every PR. Matrix sharding for parallelism. Trace artifacts, Slack notifications, soak tests. The chapter that turns a hobby project into a real engineering deliverable.

workflow.yml matrix sharding trace artifacts soak tests
~3,500 words
08

The First 90 Days & Beyond

You got the job. Now what? How to onboard well, the conversations to have with devs, the growth ladder, salary negotiation, and what to do in the next 12 months to become a senior.

onboarding growth ladder salary negotiation communities
~3,500 words
Founder's edition: Chapters 1 & 2 are live and ship immediately · new chapter every 2 weeks · all 8 by August 2026
§ 04 — Author

Written by someone still doing the job.

theqahandbook
// QA engineer · london · writes The QA Handbook

I work as a QA engineer at a London software company. Playwright suites, MCP integrations, automated test infrastructure — that's my Tuesday. I write this handbook under a handle so I can be straight with you about how the work really gets done.

roleQA Engineer
locationLondon, UK
stackPlaywright · MCP · CI
platformsWeb · CI
also offers1-on-1 sessions

I broke into QA the hard way — without a CS degree, without a bootcamp, without anyone telling me what actually mattered. I burned a lot of time on the wrong things. ISTQB syllabi. Selenium tutorials from 2018. Frameworks nobody uses anymore.

This handbook is the thing I wish had existed back then: a tight, honest, modern guide from zero to useful on a real team. Written by someone still in the trenches, not someone who left the field to become a course-seller.

Every chapter is built around what I actually use at work this week: Playwright suites wired into CI/CD with linked test cases, MCP integration for AI-aware test workflows, and soak-test infrastructure that catches the regressions devs swear "can't be reproduced."

If you get stuck while reading, you can book a 1-on-1 session with me — 45 minutes, your specific CV, your code, your interview prep. Optional, never required. The handbook stands on its own.

§ 05 — Common questions

What people ask before they buy.

There are no videos? +
Correct. This is a written handbook — a PDF you download plus a GitHub repo with working code. No videos, no streaming, no waiting through someone's "uhm" and "let me just" while they type. If you want video, this isn't the right product. If you read faster than you watch and want to keep something on your shelf, this is for you.
How is it delivered? +
After purchase via Gumroad, you get: (1) the PDF, downloadable any time, (2) a link to the private GitHub repo with the working code and templates, (3) email updates whenever new chapters drop or existing ones get updated.
When are all 8 chapters available? +
Chapters 1 and 2 are available immediately on purchase. New chapters drop every 2 weeks. All 8 complete by August 2026. Founder's edition buyers get every release at no extra cost, plus all future updates after that.
Why £49 (or £69 later)? +
Founder's edition is £49 for the first 50 buyers, then it goes to £69. The price reflects that this is a deeply-researched written technical book — not a free blog post, not a 4-hour video course. Comparable handbooks (refactoring.guru, Josh Comeau's CSS guide) sit at £50-£200. £69 is the lower end of that range.
Do I need to know how to code? +
A little JavaScript or Python helps. If you can write a for-loop and you know what a function is, you'll be fine — I explain the rest as I go. If you've never opened a code editor, do a free 5-hour JS primer first and then come back.
Will this get me a job? +
No handbook can guarantee that. What this does: gives you the skills hiring managers look for, a portfolio repo you can show in interviews, and the framing to talk about QA work like you've already lived it. The rest is on you. But you'll be ready.
What about the 1-on-1 sessions? +
Optional add-on. £99 for a 45-minute private Zoom session — use it for CV review, mock interview, code review, career strategy, or salary prep. You can book one after buying the handbook. I have ~4 slots per week (day job permitting).
Refund policy? +
30-day no-questions refund. If you read it and it's not for you, email me — I'll refund the full amount, no forms, no friction.
Why are you anonymous? +
I have a day job at a software company that I'm not leaving. Writing under a handle means I can be straight about the work without putting my employer in any of the material. The work is real. Only the byline is kept private.
§ 06 — Get it

Get the handbook. Book me when you need to.

A written handbook you keep forever. An optional 1-on-1 add-on for when you want personal eyes on your work.

Founder's edition · first 50
⌁ The Handbook

The QA Handbook

The full written handbook. 8 chapters, ~28,000 words, PDF + GitHub companion repo. Chapters 1 & 2 ship immediately, new chapter every 2 weeks, all 8 by August 2026.

  • 8-chapter PDF handbook (~28k words)
  • Companion GitHub repo with code
  • Working Playwright + MCP project
  • CI/CD pipeline templates
  • CV + portfolio templates
  • Interview prep workbook
  • Private buyer Discord
  • Lifetime access · all future updates
  • 30-day refund · no questions
£69£49
founder's edition
first 50 only
then £69
Get the handbook →
⌁ Secure checkout via Gumroad · Card / Apple Pay / PayPal
1-on-1 sessions coming soon. Want CV review, mock interview, or code review with the author? Email [email protected] — early-access slots are £99 for 45 minutes.
✓
30-day money-back guarantee. If you read the handbook and decide it's not for you, email me and I'll refund the full amount. No questions, no forms, no friction. The handbook should sell itself or it shouldn't sell at all.