What's the etiquette around forking and submitting PRs to open source repos?

[discovicke]

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I want to make my first open source contribution but I'm a bit scared of doing something socially wrong and looking like an idiot.
A few things I'm unsure about:

• Should I always open an issue before submitting a PR, or is it fine to just fork and go?
• How small is "too small" for a contribution? (fixing a typo, adding a comment etc.)
• What should a good first-contribution PR description include?
• How long is reasonable to wait for a response before nudging the maintainer?

I'm a junior dev, so extra points for "don't do this or maintainers will hate you" type answers.

[Sunil56224972]

Hey @discovicke! Been there, here's everything you need to know:

1. Should you open an issue before a PR?

Bug fix / typo / docs → Just fork and PR directly, no issue needed
New feature / big change → Open an issue first, wait for maintainer approval, THEN code it. Saves you from wasting hours on something they'll reject.

2. Too small?
   Never too small. Typos, broken links, unclear comments — all valid. Just batch multiple tiny fixes into ONE PR instead of spamming separate ones.
3. Perfect PR description:

What you changed + why
Closes #123 if linked to an issue
How you tested it
Screenshots if UI related

4. How long to wait?
   1-2 weeks then just comment:
   "Hi! Just checking if you had a chance to look at this 😊"
   Friendly bump, not pushy.
   🚫 Don't do this or maintainers will hate you:

Never PR directly to main — always use a feature branch
Always read CONTRIBUTING.md before anything else
Don't spam the maintainer on other platforms to review your PR
Don't argue when they request changes — just fix it and say thanks
Don't open 10 PRs for 10 typos — batch them

Good luck with your first contribution, you got this! 🚀

[discovicke]

Thanks for the bullet points, will keep them in mind to avoid friction with the community! :)