The word “writer” conjures up images of a person who has a perennial source of ideas floating in her head – ideas that turn to well written prose at the flick of her pen. Writers themselves do not entertain such thoughts, when time and again they hit a dead end and struggle to come up with ideas. The desire to write helps the writer to cover familiar topics, issues that concern him and then, what? Writer’s block? So how do you break free of the writer’s block and find topic inspiration for your next blog, article, short story or novel?
How does a writer attack this personal writing demon and kill it for good?
Topic ideas are all around us. We need to consciously draw ideas from what we see and hear. Innate curiosity and the desire to dig deeper always pay off when you are seeking topic ideas. Let us take one example and see how we can make the most of a daily experience:
It is a nice balmy evening and you are at the park with your child. As you enjoy the cool breeze and watch your child and his friends at play, you will have several thoughts that cross your mind:
- Where is this playground equipment manufactured?
- How safe is that playground equipment?
- Look at that parent hovering over his child as he climbs the jungle gym
- The group playing tag is rather rambunctious
- How do the authorities manage this facility?
- Laughter club meets here every Friday
When you delve deeper, you will realize that you have at least five topic ideas staring at you
- Safety norms in manufacturing playground equipment
- Difference in parenting styles and techniques
- Sports psychology among children
- Constructing and maintaining public facilities
- Outdoor recreation for young and old - Social networking
Easy enough, right? Look around, absorb, ask questions, research answers and turn it into a well-poised write up. I would just add one tip – carry a small notebook to jot down thoughts, events and ideas that might occur to you.
Other sources of topic inspiration
In addition to looking around and generating ideas, here are some obvious places to look for information and get inspired:
- Newspapers and news channels: Any information that is newsworthy will result in a winning topic idea. Lifestyle, gardening, finance, world news, and politics – you name a topic and you will find inspirations and information.
- Personal experience: Just flip through your journal or jog your memory for events, conversations, settings and write it all down. Hobbies and interests can be converted to articles by combining experience and research.
- Read: Reading habits take a backseat when you start writing for a living. Big mistake – always devote time to read. It lends a fresh perspective to your writing and you could surprise yourself with some topic ideas as well.
- Follow blogs: It is a good idea to follow blogs written by others. The blogs themselves as well as comments on those blogs will trigger topic ideas!
- Writer websites and forums: There are plenty of websites and forums for writers that offer writing prompts to get you started. Check out the Chillibreeze writer website reviews section that point to sources for daily/weekly and monthly prompts to help you get over your writer’s block.
Topic inspiration is all around you – simply awaken your senses and let your creative juices flow!
- Vidya Prabhakar
Please Note: Chillibreeze does not endorse techniques or views mentioned in the articles here. The articles listed here are provided as reference material for writers as a support service.
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