Darren Rowse, founder of the ProBlogger blog since 2002, blogged today about blogger’s block. I have written about writer’s block in the past, so this post was of interest to me. I know my students need to have tips on writing every day as well. It turns out that being able to write quickly will make a huge difference in the level of success you achieve online.
The first thing I recommend is to keep a spiral notebook with you at all times. I have one in my purse, another in my car, and yet another that stays in the suitcase I travel with. I want to capture all of my ideas in a place where I can retrieve them later on and turn them into blog posts, articles, and other repurposed formats.
Another excellent way to get ideas is to read. I read everal blogs each day, as well as other people’s articles, non-fiction books, and magazines. As a teacher I knew that the students who were the best writers were also avid readers, so this crosses over into the adult world of business as well. Find blogs you enjoy and subscribeto them to receive the latest posts.
Finally, I recommend answering people’s questions about your topic by writing. If someone on Twitter or one of your blog posts asks you a question about something, write another post that answers the quesion. You know more than you might think, so get it all out in the form of blog posts.
Hi Connie – I’m planning on re-launching my training blog and thinking about my first few posts. I wasn’t motivated to draft it out in Word, I was looking for paper and pencil! I plan on writing about that in one of my first few post – sometimes being old school is better – use a notebook, write stuff down, something tangible. I just wanted to comment because you mentioned keeping a spiral notebook at all times 🙂