A friend and I were talking the other day about writing. He liked to write, but even so his biggest problem was finding things to write about. My friend was astounded at the volume of writing that I do - at least one article and something as many as six, per day. Where do I get all of the ideas from?
I, in turn, was astonished myself. Why on earth would anyone have any trouble finding things to write about? In fact, my main problem has been I have so much to write about that I often find myself locked in a silent battle over which subject should be put on paper first.
People find it even more amazing when I tell them I try very hard to only write about positive events and provide helpful articles. Only rarely will you find any of my writings containing criticism, complaints or, worst of all, whining. Occasionally I will write an article which recommends against purchasing a product, seeing a movie, reading a book or visiting a web site, but these are the exception.
The world is a huge, amazing, wondrous place. Things are going on around us all of the time. There is so much good to see and do all over the planet, so very many wonderful things going on all over the place, that it's easy to find something to communicate about if only you open your eyes and look.
One of my passions is the internet. I've written over 1,000 articles about all aspects of this massive communication medium. Much of this is taken from my 23 years of experience in the computer field, and the rest is from research, reading and, most of all, questions from other people.
Although much of my writing is about the internet, I also find time to communicate about many other subjects as well. These include relationships (marriage and romance), raising children, building a career, handling office politics, current events, hobbies and history. I have yet to find a subject which I don't have something useful to contribute to other people.
How do I find so much to write about? Let me tell you some of the ways: Many of my article ideas some from real life - For example, I have a long and happy marriage, so I like to write articles which help people with their relationships. I've also worked hard most of my life, as have most people, building a career, which is another area where I enjoy passing along tips to help others.
Question and answer sites - Sites like askme.com and askjeeves.com are perfect places to visit once in a while looking for ideas for articles. I visit and just scan the questions (and there are thousands of them), looking for anything which looks interesting. When I find something, I write an article.
Newsgroups - There are over 70,000 newsgroups. Most of these are worthless, but several thousand of them contain useful information and varied conversations. Lurk in any active newsgroup for a while and you should find something worthwhile to write about.
Yahoo and DMOZ - Visit any big directory site and you will find thousands of subjects to explore.
Egroups and Topica - There are thousands of email discussion lists available at these two sites. Sign up for a few and get articles ideas from them.
There are many other places to look for article ideas all over the internet. I tend to avoid looking at things like ezines, ebooks and web sites for article ideas. Why? Because when I look for article ideas I am not looking for answers.
What I tend to look for is questions. What kind of questions are people asking? Is there a question which begs some further analysis and a little more explanation than a simple sentence? It does not matter if someone else has already answered, as my primary purpose is not to provide raw information.
My primary purpose is to help people understand. You can find out raw information from any number of books or encyclopedias, but finding out how to clean up the clutter in your bedroom, well, that takes something different. That requires the experience and knowledge passed from someone who has had to go through the experience of cleaning many times, so many times that it has become easy.
Interestingly, I've found that television is not as worthwhile as one would expect for article ideas. Excluding a few reviews, I've found television to be a vast wasteland, void of anything but the most trivial or violent concepts in our society. The exceptions are, of course, channels such as Nova, History channel and Discovery.
So the next time you are trying to figure out something to write about for your own ezine, web site or ebook, just check out a newsgroup, elist or directory on a subject which you find interesting. Sooner or later, you will get an idea and you can start writing.
About The Author
Richard Lowe Jr. is the webmaster of Internet Tips And Secrets. This website includes over 1,000 free articles to improve your internet profits, enjoyment and knowledge.
Web Site Address: http://www.internet-tips.net
Weekly newsletter: http://www.internet-tips.net
Claudia Arevalo-Lowe is the webmistress of Internet Tips And Secrets and Surviving Asthma. Visit her site at http://survivingasthma.com
maide service in Park Ridge ..Do you suffer from writer's block? Is there a pending... Read More
For those looking at the jobs listings for writers, they... Read More
So you've decided to crown yourself with a title that... Read More
With the advent of email communications in the workplace, it's... Read More
It occurred to me one day that I needed something... Read More
Whether you keep a separate spiritual journal or just want... Read More
Every hero has a seminal insight - the apotheosis. Once... Read More
Whenever you sit down to plot a story (or even... Read More
FERRETING OUT WORK You keep hearing that there's work out... Read More
I hate to admit this, but I rarely get an... Read More
Imagine a three hundred page book was in the author's... Read More
One day in the mid-1970's a young man stumbled into... Read More
Today Norm Goldman, Editor of sketchandtravel and bookpleasures is honored... Read More
When we think of writing it triggers many thoughts and... Read More
Being a great writer is no longer enough if you... Read More
To write books for readers at an elementary reading level... Read More
It never ceases to amaze me when a prospective writer... Read More
You can make a lot of money by writing and... Read More
Why should you consider creating a memoir of your personal... Read More
Way back in your early school years, you were probably... Read More
If you either want to write a book to help... Read More
You might not need any memoir writing help, per se,... Read More
Today I took the dog for a walk and realized... Read More
"If you're like me, than I'm sure you're pretty familiar... Read More
A writer writes. Bet you've heard that one... Read More
after renovation cleaning Highland Park ..As one of those fabulous Baby Boomers, you now own... Read More
You have a new website, or a new business, or... Read More
You send me an e-mail. You tell me you've written... Read More
The big question. Do you submit directly to the publishers,... Read More
You sink back into your favourite chair with a new... Read More
The journey to having my first novel for children published... Read More
Our Freelance Writing Needs DefinedWe must make freelance niche types... Read More
Eight or nine times out of ten, picking up and... Read More
Writer's forums are bustling with debate over whether or not... Read More
Part 1 of this article discussed the experience you need... Read More
My article this issue is an excerpt from a book... Read More
Set your journal or diary where you will see it... Read More
In the business of freelance writing, it's not enough to... Read More
Writing is hard work, and like all hard work, one... Read More
The Scanning ReaderWriting for the Web is different than writing... Read More
SO YOU WANT TO BE A WRITER?Many people have entertained... Read More
Language Training - A key to Global CommunicationLanguage Training is... Read More
Regardless of what sort of writer you are and how... Read More
Great business writers combine narrative skills with sound judgment to... Read More
I call it cheap therapy. That gushing, near-religious, poured-from-the-body stress... Read More
PASSED, PASTPassed is the past tense of pass. Past means... Read More
In my ten years as an advertiser, I've encountered plenty... Read More
Summer's here and the time is write for dancing in... Read More
You are far more likely to successfully write and publish... Read More
All Writers need the press, especially new writers. As a... Read More
Writing |