WRITING TIPS
Struggling to Find Stuff to Write About Every Day?
Sadly, you’ll keep struggling unless you switch up your feet
Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt like the guy in the above image. LOL! My hand is up for sure. Coming up with something to write about can be challenging to say the least but it doesn’t have to be this hard.
So, the first thing is to stop making it out to be so hard, because it’s really not. Writing topics will come to you in overflowing abundance if you just take the steps to manifest this to come into your universe.
I understand the frustration of wanting to put out more content but worrying about it not being good enough and not having any ideas come to the mind that you feel are worthy of being written. I get it. I do. I’ve been there.
But I did a lot of seeking and finding information to learn from others on Medium and outside of Medium, which helped me understand the concept of being a master at coming up with interesting topics to write about.
I also found that inside of myself was a well of experiences, knowledge, observations, thoughts, and creativity that could be turned into countless stories that others would find interesting. Also, I like to write so that others can relate to what I write and get something out of my writing, to help them in some way with things in their lives or endeavors.
Switching Up Your Feet
Do you want to quit struggling for viable topics to write about and finally enjoy relaxing in the comfort of simply choosing from your many story ideas in your drafts just waiting to be fleshed out?
You can do this and never run out of story ideas.
But where will all of these good ideas come from? You ask.
They will come from your own thinking and observations because you have learned to be more open to topics that come to you.
And you will master a skill in seeking out good topics to write about, and I’ll show you how.
So, as my title says, you need to switch up your feet. What does this mean?
It means to proverbially put on different shoes or boots and take some different steps or walk differently or go in a different direction.
Get the picture?
Switching up your feet focuses on three key areas:
- Changing your mindset and the way you think
- Becoming more aware of what you already know
- Actively searching for information to draw ideas from
These are the three key things that I have found to help me when I was in your shoes.
So let’s take a look at these three keys separately.
Changing Your Mindset and the Way You Think
Get in the right headspace that’s conducive to success. Consciously focus your mind as often as possible on the idea of complete clarity, positivity, and openness.
This includes changing negative self-talk that can create mental blocks to achievement. A good way to change your mindset in a positive and productive way is through practicing mini-mindfulness, meditation, and relaxation techniques.
Becoming More Aware of What You Already Know
So, think about it. There’s so much information in your own world that’s stories just waiting to be written. Start honing in on some of it. A good idea is to keep an Ideas Journal of some sort. It could be the notes app on your phone, a steno tablet, or maybe an iPad, or even your Medium drafts.
Take note of various thoughts, observations, or experiences that come to mind throughout the day. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. Just jot stuff down.
Train yourself to recognize story topics right before your eyes, in your thoughts, or what you’re exposed to at any given moment. What are your current feelings or emotions? What do you see? What popped in your mind when somebody said something? Things like that.
- For example, you may be riding to work on the subway or in your car and you witness a scene that makes you think or moves you in some way, be it good or bad. Maybe you find somebody dancing in the street interesting. Or something like that.
- Perhaps a broken stoplight reminds you of being broken in a relationship. You could write about that. What about your skills, hobbies, or talents? If you’re good at something you could definitely write about that.
- Maybe there’s something going on at school or at work that strikes some thoughts. Do you have kids or pets? Write interesting or funny things about them. Maybe you enjoy nature. Go out and find something to write about nature that you can share.
The point is that life is full of potential stories. Open your mind, eyes, and ears and you will be amazed at all the possible topics that are just floating around you every single day. Then you can pull from your Ideas Journal when you sit down to write.
Actively Searching for Information to Draw Ideas From
This is where you can really add some meat to your efforts to be able to come up with story topics.
How to Do It
- Get inspiration and ideas from reading other stories on various topics. If you truly engage and actually read some stories, including the comments of others while adding your own comments, then you will often have useful ah-ha moments with ideas coming to your mind. Try it with at least five stories every day for a week and see what happens. You may be surprised. Any ideas that come to mind, though, don’t start writing about them immediately. Just jot down the ideas in your Ideas Journal.
- Proactively search on the platform for topics that interest you and see what other writers have written to get a bunch of perspectives on a particular topic, and think of ways to spin on those. Is there something that was left out? Do you have an interestingly different perspective? But, don’t copy or plagiarize others! Medium will ban you and rightfully so. But do draw inspiration and allow your creativity to catapult from others’ writing.
- Search on the internet for news stories, articles on various topics, opinion commentary, etc. Google is your friend. Use it to seek out information. Do searches on topic categories. For example, a search on “funny articles” brings up a host of content to dive into to find interesting humorous topics to write about. Again, DO NOT be copying content. Use your own brain and write from your own perspective. Be sure to cite where you got information if it’s not your own or common knowledge. For example, I got the idea for my story, Woman and Girl Severely Bitten by Putting a Live Octopus on Their Faces, from doing a Google search on “weird news”. The more creative you are with using this technique, the more you will be able to uncover interesting stories hiding in the sea of online content.
These are the only techniques that I use to come up with a never-ending bank of story topics.
Discussion
If you want to finally stop struggling when it comes to creatively find things to write about, then you’ve got to put in some work and some time. You can’t be lazy, dismissive, negative, or blaming others. You have to make the choice to employ techniques and follow the blueprints that others leave you.
It’s not always easy but it is simple in concept. So, just know that if I can do it, you can do it too!
