16 Jan 3 Easy Tips: How to Write Content + Get Results

Stuck for a writing angle? Got your blog or book started …. but then ideas fizzled out? You’re not alone – every writer experiences this dilemma. But there are ways out of the black hole of writer’s block.

Written by Daniela Cavalletti

3 min read

Well, I’ll be damned … there are so many prolific writers amongst you. How exciting! After last week’s post on how to hire a professional ghostwriter, I’ve had such a wonderful time talking with many of you about all things writing, editing, story-telling, publishing … and also writer’s block.

I wrote a short piece about how to overcome writer’s block a little while ago. But it’s a big and many-faceted topic: we all hit our very specific, individual hurdles. And getting stuck writing a blog post or 2,000-word article will be a different experience than hitting a wall while working on your book manuscript. If the latter is you, have a read of our blog post for some ways to help you finish your book manuscript or give me a buzz and we’ll chat it through. I promise you, you’ll get over that hurdle, no matter how big it seems right now.

For this post I address the most common problem that popped up in my recent conversations – finding an engaging writing angle that – and some solutions we discussed this week.

I hope you’ll find them useful, too.

3 Ways to Overcome Writer’s Block and Hit ‘Publish’

#1. Let’s Google That

Whether you’re arguing about some fact with your partner, are wondering how to boil an egg (yes, some people do), or are looking for weird and wonderful home-made remedies – I bet you’re going to ‘google it’!

Therefore, answering burning questions on your blog, in your article, or even book, is a smart strategy. Why? Because not only will your answers help your readers, but this should produce good karma right back at you. Your answers can generate a ton of search traffic because people google questions all the time.

The Guardian, for example, has a weekly online column, The Autocomplete Questions, in which their writers answer life’s most difficult questions based on Google searches. Neat!

What questions do you get asked all the time?

#2. Have You Jacked the News Today?

We are living in an environment of 24/7, year-round news exposure. Make that your friend when writing. Stuck for a writing angle? Go and watch or read some news!

What’s happening in your industry, is new in your community, or is affecting your clients’ lives? How does the world / political / economic / climate news affect your business and your customers?

The term ‘newsjacking’ was coined by David Meerman Scott: it’s a way to grab the attention of your audience by riding the wave of breaking news. Timing matters, but some topics have a long shelf-life, so judge for yourself which news is worth writing about, based on the effect that news has on your readers. Be careful to avoid the click-bait headlines: whether using them, or writing them. Substance is queen!

You may want to comment on the news, analyse the situation, offer solutions, or pinpoint further effects and issues (and even solution to those issues). There are many ways to anchor into the news; make sure your contribution is useful, aligns with your values and is well-argued.

#3. This One’s a Keeper – The Checklist

Who doesn’t like a good checklist? Ah, the joy of working through one.

Checklists provide a good way of creating valuable content because everyone is afraid to miss important steps when working on a project or learning a new skill. Checklists will help beginners get to grips with a task they’re unfamiliar with while more experienced readers will be able to check their progress. And it will stimulate conversations.

Our checklist post on how to get the most out of your networking is, for example, one of our top five posts of all time for comments, views and shares.

What checklist would your readers find helpful?

We all have different strengths and skills. Remember that the things that might come easily to you are valuable skills others may lack and want to learn about.

Bonus Tip: The Crystal Ball, Telling the Future

Posts that look ahead and offer predictions are wildly popular. The end or beginning of a calendar year (or any other significant date in your industry or community) is the perfect time to write a post about future trends, products and ideas.

We’re only a few days into the new year, and a google search for ‘predictions for 2018’ throws up almost 10 million hits. Granted there’s likely a lot of rubbish in those results, but … it shows the high demand for that kind of information. Predictions, direction. Humans are often both, curious and somewhat unsure creatures. Your post about upcoming trends; pitfalls or highlights to watch out for; funny and serious things to expect in the future? It’ll get read.

So, what will you write about next?

What will your next writing angle be?