Fundamentals of SVG Programming: Concepts to Source Code (Graphics Series)

Do I Need to Be a Programmer?

Not at all. Unlike traditional programming languages, there's no compilation required (such as C), nor do you need to generate intermediate byte-code (such as Java 'class' files). You need only learn how to use the XML-based features of the SVG specification, most of which are fairly intuitive and straightforward. You'll be able to create SVG documents on-the-fly after a modicum of practice.