3 Ways To Use Your Own Writing To Inspire More Writing

Summary

The author describes how their writing process often leads to new stories emerging from initial ideas, introductions, tangents, and bullet points.

Abstract

The article outlines three methods the author employs to generate additional writing from their initial drafts. Firstly, compelling introductions sometimes evolve into full-fledged stories themselves, diverting the author from their original narrative. Secondly, the author allows their mind to follow tangents, which can result in entirely new articles that are only tangentially related to the original topic. Lastly, certain bullet points in listicles demand more attention and are developed into standalone pieces, reflecting the depth of the ideas they represent. The author embraces these organic developments, viewing them as part of the creative journey that gives each story its unique form.

Opinions

The author believes that writing is a generative process, where one story can multiply into several.
They express that a strong introduction can be so engaging that it warrants becoming a story in its own right.
The author values the non-linear thought process, suggesting that tangential ideas should be pursued and can lead to meaningful content.
They hold the view that some ideas, initially intended to be part of a list, can be too significant and should be expanded upon as independent stories.
The author sees the act of writing as a flow that should not be constrained by the original plan, allowing stories to evolve naturally.

Unlocking the stories within the story

When I first started writing, I was afraid that I’d run out of things to write about. After all, writing is a bit like a monologue from me to my imaginary readers. Sooner or later, wouldn’t I run out of things to say? Instead, I found that once I started writing, it was like my writing was growing roots. What I thought was one story would multiply to become two or three stories as I continued to explore the idea from different perspectives or angles.

Here are three ways I use my own writing to inspire more writing.

Killer Introductions That Deserve To Be Their Own Story

Sometimes I’ll start an article with a killer introduction. So killer that once in a while, the introduction becomes a story in and of itself. When this happens, I’m so busy writing this “introduction-that-has-become-its-own-story” that sometimes I have to come back another day to finish the original story I thought I was going to write.

Example: I recently started an article intending to tell the story of how I went from being a couch potato to running 377 km. But I wanted to convince people that I was truly a couch potato first.

I was 1700 words into my “introduction” and was still bursting with examples of times I failed at athlete feats. That’s when I realized that I wasn’t just writing an introduction anymore — I’d written a full story about my couch potato life.

Tangent Thoughts That Become Their Own Story

Our brains rarely process information linearly or logically. Let’s work with this instead of fighting it. When my mind goes off on a tangent about a related topic that’s not necessarily relevant to my intended story, I’ll continue to explore that train of thought. When I do my editing and reviewing after, I’ll break that segue off into another article.

Example: I was writing about my experience eating at a Michelin-star restaurant in Japan. When looking up reviews about this restaurant, I came across numerous negative reviews claiming the restaurant was rude to foreigners.

This inspired me to share my opinion that I don’t actually think these restaurants are non-foreigner friendly and so I wrote about that. Recognizing that a reader who wants to enjoy good food vicariously through my writing might not initially be interested in that topic, I broke it off into a separate story but linked the two in case they were interested.

Bullet Points That Continue To Write Their Own Story

Ever start a listicle only to discover there’s a bullet point that’s just begging to be more than just a bullet point? It’s like the diva of a show that won’t take her place amongst the backup singers. Well, let that diva shine and be her own story.

Example: I was writing a listicle summarizing some life reflections on my birthday. One of those nostalgic kinds of stories where you take the time to ponder what brings you happiness and I kept coming back to my dog.

I could write multiple listicles any day about my dog, but I took that fixation and turned it into a more eloquent non-listicle story about the secrets to happiness that our dogs already know.

Final Thoughts

The way I build each story is unique to that story. Some ideas follow the paths I thought they would take; other thoughts fight for their independence and blaze their own paths till they are stories of their own.

You could say I like to write in the flow of things. I prefer to think of it as embracing the writing journey that each story deserves.

Sometimes a story needs to be written, whether or not it was the story you were originally planning to write.