Figuring out what to write about can be every bit as challenging as actually writing.
This truth is well known and all-too-well understood by writers of every description. Reporters have to sniff out their story before they can worry about snappy leads. Poets must find that inspiring moment before they start wrangling metaphors. And web writers—bloggers, content developers, even Facebook and Twitter users—must first discern their topic before they sit down to write.
The best status updates or tweets are informational and insightful in nature. They might contain a link to an enlightening article, an entertaining video, a light bulb realization that struck the writer while sitting in a meeting.
Writer 1: “I ate a ham sandwich for lunch.” While this post is informational, it is certainly not enlightening. The most useless updates and tweets are simply statements of the mundane detritus of every day life, devoid of any context or quest for meaning.
Writer 2: “Just enjoyed a ridiculously tasty croque monsieur at L’Albatros. Gooey, melted fromage, tender ham, crisp bread. Perfection. Check it out!” This is both informational and insightful—and actionable. Anyone in that writer’s network now knows where to go for a smashing sandwich.
The difference between those two updates (besides the use of “telling detail”, thanks Creative Writing 101) is that while both started out with a piece of information—a ham sandwich—writer 2 pushed the information to the next level. That post actually shows an opinion. The second writer actually has something to say, something on which to write—as opposed to writing just for the sake of writing (or tweeting for the sake of tweeting.)
The same theory applies for blogging and web content writing. The best blog entries actually put something new into the world and provide an insight. The best web content is, in addition to being engaging and exciting, of practical use. The zenith of web content is usable information.
Not sure what to write about on your website or blog? This great post on Small Business Trends identifies sources of possible story generators, like WordTracker and Google Trends. If you collaborate with a content generator in an informed manner, the usefulness and effectiveness of your content can reach new echelons.
I find a lot of great links that inspire me to write these posts on Twitter. If you blog or write, where do you find your ideas?
