Knowing what to write about can honestly be one of the most challenging parts of being a writer. Coming up with writing topics is both an art and a science, and getting a good flow going in this area can make it a lot easier to get back to what you’re really good at. And that’s of course writing some amazing content.
How do you get that good flow going though? Let’s take a look at some of my tactics.
Categories
I set up a category for each day of the week. Each category is based on an audience segment and other research I have done over the years.
I’m not saying having a category every day is a foolproof way for knowing what to write, but it helps. It gets me into a rhythm and makes sure that I’m never working from a completely blank page. In other words, it sets me up for success and makes me more likely to write every day.
AI
If I’m having a day where I’m just staring at my category of the day and it’s not jogging any ideas, I then go to ChatGPT. But I don’t actually use any of the ideas ChatGPT gives me. I know it’s weird.
Basically, I read their ideas based on the request I put in and it’s enough to jog a more creative idea. Just reading the ideas is enough to get my brain back in the mode to think through to a topic that works better for me.
And why do I do it this way? If I consistently used the ideas AI gave me, I’d also consistently be writing the same things as others in my space since AI is basically just gathering ideas from others. That’s less than ideal. So, for now at least, I use it more of a jumping off point than anything else.
Answer the Public
Answer the Public is one of my favorite sites to use for clients. I put in keywords related to clients and it shoots me back the questions that are being searched for under those keywords. Amazing, right?
It actually is a bit overwhelming, which is why most people I send there do not end up using anything from it. Such a loss.
Answer the Public does take some time to organize everything and get it into a form that will allow you to make sense of it. But that time is well-spent. When you’re done, you’ll have enough writing topics to get you through the end of the year and beyond. It’s super valuable and will save you time in the long run. But I get that you might walk away when you see the work involved. Just don’t.
And what else will it give you? Context. If you look at the keyword results and realize all of the questions that Answer the Public gives you aren’t relevant, then you have the wrong keyword and you need to change it.
Chatting with fans and employees
Some of my best topics have come from simple chats with fans and employees. I ask them what they love about the organization. I ask them to tell me about how the organization’s resources are used. But mostly, I listen to whatever they feel the need to tell me. That’s usually enough to get a lot of ideas.
One of the worst things you can do is to go into these chats with an idea of what you want to find. That doesn’t leave you open for what is actually there. Go into these chats with a completely open mind.
And try not to do them over email. I’ve found the best topics come from a comment that just slipped out during a conversation. An email leaves too much room for overthinking on the other person’s part. The more they just chat and don’t try to only tell you what they think is important, the more likely it is that you will get what you need.
There’s just no reason to be starting with a blank page every time you sit down. If you’re constantly working a few of the tactics I have above, you’ll always be starting with something. And that’s a big part of the battle to get content out there consistently.
Where do you get your writing topics?