This is a guest post by Karol K from Online Business Design blog.
A couple of months ago I wrote a post on how to kill writer’s block. Of course, it’s much easier said than done, so I figured that another follow-up post is in place here.
Last time the main 3 ways of fighting writer’s block was to:
- have a bank of ideas,
- relaxation and exercise,
- fixed schedule.
If you want to find out what the basic principles behind each are I invite you to visit the original post that’s been published here on SmartBloggerz – 3 Easily Applicable Ideas to Not Only Fight, but KILL Writer’s Block.
What I want to do today is focus a bit on the first item on the list – the bank of ideas.
In my opinion this is the #1 writer’s block killing tool. That is, once you have such a thing and it’s full of great ideas. But first, you have to somehow create it.
Just in case you haven’t read the original post here’s a quick definition of a bank of ideas. Basically, it’s just a fancy term for a mindmap that contains all of your ideas for new blog posts.
OK, moving on to the important stuff.
How To Create Your Bank Of Ideas
I have 6 main methods of creating mine. Here they are.
1. Write Down Every Idea You Have
This is obvious, I know, but bear with me. Sometimes the most obvious stuff is the most overlooked at the same time.
Human brain can process thousands of pieces of information at the same time (most of it subconsciously) and it’s really REALLY easy to forget about something you were thinking of just a minute ago.
Tell me if this sounds familiar. You’re doing something, whatever, let’s say, going to a gym. And then an idea for a new article strikes your mind – a nice interesting idea. So you think “OK I’ll start working on this when I get home, I’m good, I will remember.” But then you start doing something else, focus your mind and your body on working out at the gym, then a friend calls, so you talk for a while, and so on. Finally, when you get back home a couple of hours later the idea is gone, like, FOREVER, and there’s nothing you can do.
You need to create a new habit in your life – a habit of writing stuff down. If you don’t have a smart phone of any kind (like an iPhone) then make sure to have a small notepad on you at all times. Keep it in your handbag, or in your jacket.
Writing something down has one more really big benefit. It frees your mind. Just like GTD teaches you to do, use your mind to think about things not to remember about things. Once you write an idea down you make more space in your mind to think about more article ideas.
2. Personal Conversations
We spend a significant part of our lives on interacting with others. Why not use it as a base for some nice articles?
The idea is simple. You’re creating an article idea around your own opinion and another person’s opinion on a given topic… Two heads are better than one.
When you’re talking to another person, the conversation itself often forces you to expand your mind and think about certain things differently, and on top of that it forces you to speak your mind in a way so it can be understood by the other person.
This is a perfect opportunity to craft a post idea. That is, of course, if the topic you’re talking about is related to what you usually write about.
First of all, you probably already have a good outline in your head because you are being forced to speak your mind out loud. Secondly, you can hear what the possible counter opinion can be, so you can include it in your outline as well. And lastly, you can observe what the overall emotion and feel behind the conversation is, so you can set your tone of speech.
These are all the things you could ask for when you want to transfer your thoughts on digital paper. So go ahead and put it in your bank of ideas.
3. Keyword Research
This is a more analytical approach, but it actually works fine. What you do is you go to your favorite keyword tool (I recommend Google Keyword Tool or Market Samurai), and input your main keyword (the seed keyword for a broad topic you might want to write something about).
For example, if you write about some specific aspects of guitar playing, you might want to start with a seed keyword of “how to guitar.” The tool will show you many possible topics related to this term but much more specific (like “how to tune a guitar,” for example).
Using a keyword tool gives you one more valuable piece of data – the number of searches the keyword receives, i.e. how popular it is. So basically, not only do you get ideas fed to you, but you also get to know how many people are actually interested in these ideas.
I’m sure you’ll find tens of interesting topics to put in your bank by using this technique. I’m using it about once a month, usually. And every time there’s something interesting waiting there for me.
4. Forums
Simply join a forum within your niche and take note of which threads/topics are popular. Then once you find something lively and interesting simply include it as an idea in your bank.
Really nothing more to say here, a truly straightforward method.
5. Steal!
Oh no, I’m not going to spin it around in some clever way, and in the end say that you shouldn’t really steal.
Here, I mean it. Steal ideas.
When you find a nice post by another author, steal the idea, and use it for a different topic (or a different spin on the topic).
When someone tweets something interesting, steal it and write a post around it.
When someone writes a nice and short tutorial on something, steal the idea and write a more thorough and complete tutorial on the same thing.
And finally, when someone steals your idea, steal two ideas back from them.
You see, there’s a good reason you can’t put a patent on an idea (that’s the law). And it’s because an idea in itself is worth nothing.
It’s the implementation of an idea that’s worth something. The value is created when someone decides to put some work around it, and creates a tangible piece of something by using the idea. So stealing an idea is stealing something that has no value. Is it really stealing then? Damn it, I’ve spun it around anyway!
6. Use Other People’s Banks
Many writers share their banks of ideas with the world, so to speak. They don’t actually share the ideas themselves because … read point #5, but they do share the methods they use to get more ideas, or some very broad seeds of ideas.
Let me just go ahead and share some links:
- 604 Blog Post Ideas For When You’re Stuck – massive.
- The Massive List of Ideas for Blog Posts.
- 58 Topics to write about on your design blog.
OK, that’s the list. Six methods I use when building my bank of ideas. I hope it’s helpful. Feel free to comment and tell me why I’m wrong and why you wouldn’t ever steal anything. 🙂
Top 10 Search Terms:
• just your mind mortal
This is a great post I love the way you make writers block into something you can knock out it is hilarious. I have decide to not have writers block and so far it’s working pretty well for me.
I think no.5 is really useful and preventing writers block. Most of us usually find it very easy to write a certain post if we are given a reference and fresh ideas written by other writers/bloggers.
Without doubt, the most important thing is writing things down and keeping thoughts documented. Even when the thought seems completely asinine or silly, write that goofy thought down. The kinds of content that can come from a thought pattern triggered by even the silliest ideas is very rewarding and beneficial. Write, folks! Anything. Everything. Document it. You never know what a thought you had a few weeks ago will unlock today.
Writer’s block is a common problem. In addition to your fine ideas, may I suggest another? Always have a pen/paper handy.
I have had my blog ideas come to me while on walks, washing dishes, and yes–in the bathroom. Getting the idea written before it leaves the brain is vital!!!
I do like the idea of visiting others in your niche–commenting will give you search engine juice, and stealing ideas.
Great post. All bloggers have been frustrated by not knowing what to write about.
This post is great, and I love your thoughts on knocking out writers block. Writing ideas down sometimes can be hard, but it’s really worth it when an amazing post comes out of it!
Everyone steals idea’s from people. Most of the time, it’s not even intentional. But we have to get our wisdom from some place! Getting a spark for an idea from some one else isn’t a bad thing, it’s just learning and taking in points that you find relevant or interesting.
Thanks for the helpful tips!
I like David’s idea to keep writing tools handy all the time. Because you might not have inspiration now, but when you’re out and running around, something may come to you and you will want to have something to record it.
Creative writing’s biggest enemy is strictness and perfectionism. You can perfect your craft once you’ve got the concept down! First focus on brainstorming, thinking freely. Give whatever comes to you a chance to become something interesting. That helped me a lot in my hobby writing.
Some great ideas here, Karol K. I write a lot and find that taking time out to do other tasks helps me a lot. I also struggle with remembering ideas when I am out and about. I like your idea of keeping a notepad handy at all times. Informative and useful blog, thank you for sharing.
Number 5 is not as devilish as it sounds. If you really think about it, we all share the same experiences, observations and material as humans – except those who got to experience truly exceptional things in their lives. We are bound to write about the same things as another person whether consciously or not. And number one is the most commonsensical but it really is the best idea to combat writer’s block.
I believe that the stealing you are referring to is to curate right? It is getting an idea from a simple post or tweet. I like this post. And I would also love to add that exercise helps short term writer’s block. This is because through exercise your body releases hormones that make your metabolism fast throughout the whole body, and this includes your brain. So how can your brain burn up as much calories to keep up with the metabolic rate? It is through thinking.
I think it was Steven King maybe who said that he always stopped writing when he still knew what was going to happen. So he would start writing and then stop right in the middle of his idea. That way he always knew that he had something to write the next day. I think that this is a good way to write. For blogging it could be useful in writing a series of posts.
The other technique that I use is definitely writing everything down! I carry a Moleskine notebook around and whenever I think of something that I like, I write it down! Regardless of where I am. Or even text it to yourself if you don’t have a notebook.
Thanks for the post! These are all great techniques.