Are you a blogger? Do you have trouble coming up with ideas for your blog posts every week? I’ve struggled with this in the past, but I’ve been reading on how to find ideas.
So, I’m sharing how I find ideas for keeping my blog posts fresh and for keeping the ideas flowing.
1. Read other blogs
I spend one day a week, usually Mondays, reading blog posts from my writer friends. I try to comment on the post if I can relate to it and see if there is an idea I get write from a different angle.
Of course, I wouldn’t want to use the same idea, but every blog post or article always has different angles a viewpoint can be told. You have to find it.
2. Use writing prompt books/websites
For half of my ideas, I’ve found various websites and even some writing prompt books with some great ideas. Sometimes I can even tweak the ideas a bit to make them fit me, but usually I can make them work in some way.
3. Look at Quora
If you’ve never looked at Quora, you’re missing out. This website is full of questions about every topic you can think of. I’ve gotten quite a few ideas for this website on there, especially the ones about freelancing.
All you have to do is type in a topic you want to find, and it lists the questions associated with what you typed. You can even read the answers to give you some ideas about the topic, too.
4. Read everything
Writers should be readers, too. I will say this over and over. As a writer, I read as much as I can to learn about my craft. But I try to read articles that mean something to me, like health issues I’ve been dealing with.
If we’re going to pitch ideas to a publication, a magazine, or other blog, we need to read those anyway. We can’t pitch ideas to a publication if we haven’t read the articles and gotten to know the style.
The more we read the more we learn and know. In turn, we should have plenty of ideas for our own blog posts.
5. Write a review
If you’re really stuck on ideas, write a review. Remember all that reading you’ve been doing? Write a book review. Share what you thought about a book.
Maybe you’ve used a new product that helps you with your freelancing or even a new product for your family. Write a review about the product.
I’ve written a blog post about Scrivener — the best parts about it. I’m sure I could even write more about it if I thought about other angles.
6. Use journaling
I’ve kept a journal off and on since my college days. I’m sure if I went back and looked I could find ideas that I could easily turn into blog posts.
The blog post wouldn’t have to be too personal, but it could be something like an issue or experience you’ve had. For instance, maybe you’ve journaled about a trip to the beach. Write a blog post about how the beach helped you overcome your writer’s block or how it inspired a travel feature for another blog.
7. Invite guest posts
I’m always willing to let someone write a blog post for me so I’m open to accepting guest posts. I can’t pay right now as much as I would like to reward someone for their willingness to do write a blog post for me.
Many times the other writer can give a different perspective on a topic or has an expertise you may not have. I’m open to hearing those viewpoints.