HERE'S HOW
"FIND WRITING IDEAS WHEN YOU NEED THEM"
By Ruth Marlene Friesen
You're convinced you can write productively after all,
and have even resolved to make time in your life to actually
do it. Most likely you cleared a block of time in your
schedule, and chose a desk to work at, got a computer
hooked up, and found a comfortable chair. Hey, maybe
you even went shopping for file folders and attractive
pens.
But the minutes of your writing time a ticking away and
your bright ideas for articles have - well, flown south?
Now you need a plan for getting ideas on command.
My answer is so simple it may stun you; go rooting
through the things you have already written. Look them
with a fresh, objective eye, as if they were
written by someone else. Do you see a little gem here?
What about the
potential of that piece if you gave it a fresh introduction
and closing?
I've been an inveterate journal-writer for years. When
I'm really stuck I go
reading in old journals and it doesn't take long until I spot
whole passages
I could lift out and turn into articles. Sometimes I see
two or three that
have something in common. Suddenly I see them turned
into a series of
articles. That's a red-letter day!
Here's another place. If you send out an ezine, you may
have written focused articles there. What if you slant them
to a more general market, or (if they were written in a general way),
perhaps more focused towards one group or segment of
society, then you have a new article there. Maybe batches
of them! That's what I'm discovering in my ezines of a few
years ago.
So you have never published an ezine? Have you ever written
letters or emails to friends in which you described some
experience in fairly good detail? If you take out the
personalized parts, or change them to speak to a more general
readership, could some of those passages not turn into articles?
No doubt you receive by email some of these touching,
tear-jerking stories that have been forwarded all over the
internet. You don't want to steal someone else's writing,
but does that piece remind you of another story or
point to make in an article? Maybe the converse scenario,
or what was applied to animals, you can write as applying
to people. Remember to use those ideas as springboards
for your articles and stories, not to just re-tint the written
piece. (The Bible does warn that our sins will be found
out and shouted from the housetops; you don't want
plagiarism shouted along with your name).
If you save letters, journals and emails the way I do, you
have a fabulous
treasure trove of writing ideas. You will never run out
of ideas.
On your computer, create a list of key words and ideas
and topics that you have some passionate interest in, or
some training and experience in doing.
Now make a folder for each of those ideas or topics. It is
also smart to
create a spreadsheet with those keywords as column
headings.
As you have ideas, start articles and stories, or even
book outlines, be sure to file them in the right folders.
Set yourself a naming rule, so that you can tell at a glance
which ones are works in progress and not finished yet, and
which ones are ready to publish or send out as a freelance
submission.
Try to keep a record on the spreadsheet too, although
that may be as simple as jotting down the titles and dates
in each column when you start and when you finish or
publish a piece.
(You may need to add columns as you go along).
The next time you come to your writing period feeling blank,
skim over your chart/spreadsheet, or your folders. Very
often in just moments your eyes will camp on a certain piece
and you realize that today you want to get that one edited
and polished, and instead of starting a new one, you can
spend time working on one that you are already enthused
about. Your writing energy will rush to the surface, and
your block of time will be productive.
Ruth Marlene Friesen (c) October 2008
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Ruth Marlene Friesen, gladly shares small
business ideas with imagination, creativity, and God's
Blessing at her website.Check
out her books, courses, and Azaleas Virtual Assistant
Services.If you are in a pinch
for an article to borrow, check out her
Sharing Library
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