Alexis Kestler
Writer’s block is known as a condition, associated with writing, when a writer loses the ability to produce new work. This condition usually comes as a struggle with coming up with original and fresh ideas.
When we first hear the term, we will usually think of a novel writer who is stuck and unable to write for years, but nowadays we could apply this to modern blog writers also. If you are posting your content often, sometimes days without inspiration may seem like years, and becomes more and more difficult to come up with some fresh post ideas.
When this happens, it’s good to have a strategy, and we’ll give you some tips on how you can help yourself to get back to writing. You may also get some inspiration here.
So, let’s get to work!
Get Back to your Previous Posts
This is an especially good tip for bloggers who have written lots of posts before. Searching inspiration in your work may take you to some new ideas or updating old ones. For example, if you run a technology blog, there is plenty of room there to get back to your old posts and updating them, since this is the topic that is constantly changing.
Even if this is not the case, read your old posts. Particularly the ones you liked most. It may remind you of how you felt writing them, and give you some new boost.
Also, it can easily happen that you will find an idea inside a post you wrote earlier. There might be something you just touched, and it may be worth writing a post about it now.
Find Inspiration in other People’s Work
You are reading blogs that are similar to yours, right? If not, you should start. That doesn’t mean you should copy other’s posts (this could go really bad!) but simply it could inspire you to do something similar, in your own way.
Like we mentioned in a tip above, there is always a possibility you will find something inside the post that may catch your attention, maybe just one sentence that you’ll consider worth expanding and give your own opinion about it. Try to research it more, read a few posts about it, and when you wrap your mind around it, mold it into something entirely new.
Create a Roundup
If you don’t consider other bloggers to be your competition, but your colleagues, you could benefit from it in a time of writer’s block. If you are reading other people’s blogs, maybe you already have your favorites or some kind of a must-read list. That’s a good start to creating a roundup, which is basically a list.
So, you will list a few blogs/posts you fancy and write a few words about why you chose them. It is not a lot of writing, and it’s great in a moment when you lack inspiration. Just give your short opinion about it.
Being a blogger is also about being a part of the community, so this is not a benefit only for you, but for your colleagues also. They should be happy that you mentioned their blog, especially if it is in a good light. Hopefully, this will improve your relationships.
Write Something Personal
This won’t be possible for all types of blogs, but most of them will. Sharing a personal experience, or your point of view, will not only help you get through writer’s block but will also show your readers that you are a human being. They will feel more connected to you, so it’s a win-win situation.
For example, if you run a blog about pets, you can write a piece on what was your first childhood pet. Or, for a cooking blog, share your grandma’s favorite meal recipe. You got the point, right?
If your blog is strictly business, this might be a difficult thing to do. But not impossible! There are always ways around it, such as writing about how you learned something or presenting the person who inspired you the most.
Read Printed Publications
Newspapers and magazines are declining in popularity nowadays. We have everything available on our devices in seconds, and mostly for free. But that doesn’t mean their quality is declining also. Most of the printed publications are a great source of fresh post ideas, and also a perfect way to learn something new.
A lot of great experts are writing in magazines which may be related to your blog. And it is not just about what is written, it is also important the way it’s written.
Visit Websites
We already mention the benefits of reading other people’s blogs, but what about informational websites? Yes, those are also great for stimulating your inspiration. And we are talking about some popular websites and portals.
Most of the pages have some kind of search, based on topics, categories, or tags, so you can easily find what you are interested in.
Listen to your Readers
Sometimes your readers will ask you to write about certain topics, and this can be a great idea. (Not just when you have a writer’s block, but generally.) You should pay attention to that, and if you are not able to fulfill their wishes at the moment, keep records.
Another great way is to create a poll and wrap your post around it. You can use their answer as a statistic, or just to help you decide what they would like to read about. Bonus: you will expand your relationship with your readers.
If you are using WordPress, and writing your own posts, creating a poll shouldn’t be so much trouble. We found some great tools that may help you in this post, so take a look at it.
There are some other ways of finding inspiration in everyday life, such as your daily activities, even scrolling through your social media, and we are certain this list could go on and on. But we would also like to hear what are your ways? How are you fighting writer’s block? Hopefully, this post helped you to expand your ways and actions.
