Nine Quick Tips to Get Yourself in a Blogging Mood

[Today we have a great guest post from Maggie of Say Yes to Salad. Enjoy! Love, the Hollaback Girls]

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Does this sound familiar?

“I can’t think of anything good to say.”

“I have writer’s block.”

“Everyone else can probably write this better than I can.”

“Why did I start this blog, anyway?!”

I am not a writer. I was actually a math major back in college, and one of the reasons for my choice of study was, well… I hate(d) writing. I’m not kidding. My opinion of writing has changed, but there are still days that I feel uninspired. So how do I come up with stuff to post about (almost) every day? I have a list of tricks to get myself in a blogging mood. My choice of trick varies depending on why I am feeling blah about blah-ging blogging. There are usually three blahs that try to derail me from writing something:

1. I have a topic but I have no idea how to start my post or even what I should say about said topic.

2. I cannot think of anything to write about, at all.

3. I just don’t feel like writing.

Let’s tackle the first blah, shall we? If you have something in mind, but don’t really know how to develop that little thought into a post, try these tactics.

1. Turn on your webcam and record yourself talking about the idea. Just talk – start with a simple statement and then ask yourself questions (out loud) and answer them. Go back and listen to the recording. Hopefully you will find some nugget(s) of inspiration!

2. Record a conversation about said topic with a friend. (If your friend doesn’t want to be recorded, you can always make your significant other or a family member listen to you ramble. That’s what they’re there for.) Tell the friend to ask questions, too. Again, go back and listen and find some nuggets of inspiration.

3. Turn to Google. Read some articles about the topic. Do you agree with the authors? Disagree? Why is what you have to say worth saying and different from what’s already out there?

Now onto the second blah: you (think you) have absolutely nothing to write about. Here are some tips to get inspired.

4. Look at all the pictures you’ve taken recently. When I do this I almost always find a picture that I haven’t blogged about yet. I usually blog about food, so I might find a great restaurant meal that I haven’t posted yet. So easy — there is my post topic!

5. Read your recent comments. Sometimes a reader’s question can be turned into an entire blog post.

6. Read the news. Google News is great — I always find something there to post about.

And last, if you just don’t feel like blogging…

7. Have a list of posts that you want to write. Make this list when you DO feel like blogging; this way you have some inspiration to turn to when you’re feeling blah.

8. Take a rest day! Just like with your workouts, it can be therapeutic to take a day off from blogging. My rest day is usually Sunday (not for religious reasons, just because Sundays are lazy days in my household). Sometimes, you need to be out living so you actually have something to write about.

9. Go out for a walk or do something else for 20 minutes – and then see if you feel like writing. If you do, that’s great; if not, take that rest day.

That’s all I’ve got! What are your tips and tricks to stay motivated and inspired to blog? What gets YOU in the blogging mood?

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Maggie writes the blog Say Yes to Salad. She also says yes to butter, yoga, and moderation in all things.

Tagged as: guest post, guest posts, writing tips