What to Do When You Run Out of Ideas

I’ve recently found that I have been running out of ideas for writing – on many different topics! Some come and go but others I’ve gotten to a dead end and have no idea what to move onto next. So, what should you do if you come to a dead end and run out of thing to write about? Here are some tips that have helped me.

What Do You Need Help With?

When you think about your topic of expertise, what information would you like to know? What did you need help with when you first started out? There is bound to be something that you haven’t covered or could offer a unique view on it. Make a list of everything that you have ever thought about, wondered or researched into your topic and how they could become articles or blog posts.

What Are Others Writing About?

Research into the type of posts others are writing about within your field. You can gain ideas from them. If you run a weight loss blog, can you write about similar topics to others from a different point of view? Maybe you can add your personal experience on a weight loss programme. Do not copy someone else’s work; use it for inspiration.

Reading others sites will also help you see why others write about what they do and the type of material they offer. It will help you stay interested in your subject while you suffer a writer’s block.

Take a Day Off

Just because you are self-employed doesn’t mean that you can’t have a day off. I spent a few months thinking that if I didn’t work, I didn’t get paid so I had to write. My husband soon pointed out that he had two days off a week and didn’t get paid on those days so having a day off wasn’t the end of the world. I took a day off and have the chance to do nothing apart from relax, refresh my mind and body and do the things that I’d been wanting to do for months.

Take some time off when you start running out of ideas. Your blog will survive and your clients can wait an extra day – as long as you haven’t agreed a deadline on that day. If you regularly take a day off, switch it one week to another day to give your mind the chance to recover.

Go Somewhere Different

You may find that you just need a change of scenery to gain some inspiration. Go somewhere that you wouldn’t usually and have a rest. You may find that ideas come straight to you while you try to take in the beautiful sights. I often took a drive out to a local beach before I moved to where I am now. I could sit and watch the waves and just let the thoughts come to me; now I tend to take a walk down the high street with the buggy and watch the people around me!

Tips Now NaNoWriMo has Ended

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is over. Time to put the computer down and stop typing! For now at least. I completed my eBook by November 27 and had three days to take a break and just glance over my hard work and it was hard work! I have to be honest, I didn’t think that I was going to complete it after a really difficult week a couple of weeks ago. How did you do? Did you get to the end?

Don’t Publish Yet!

You may think that your novel is all finished and ready to be published but it really isn’t! Remember the whole just write and don’t edit? I admit, I did some editing along the way – mainly the last three days when I’d finished – but mine definitely isn’t ready to put up yet. I have at least two more rounds of editing to do before it is anywhere near ready.

The problem with trying to write so much in a short space of time is that most of it will not make sense and will be complete rubbish! If you send your novel off to a publisher now, it will be sent back with a lot of work needing to be done. So save your time and look at editing it now.

Take Some Time Away

Because you have been staring at the same piece of text for the past month, it is best to step away from the computer and leave it to sit for a while. Start working on another novel – some people get ideas while writing – or do something else for a few days, weeks and, for some, months! I’ve just got my Open University materials for my next law degree, so I’m going to look through them for the next few weeks, possibly into the New Year, before I touch my eBook so that I have a completely free mind on the text included.

Don’t Be Afraid to Erase

Before editing, read through the novel in full. Never be afraid to erase the rubbish from it – you may find that you cut thousands of words out because of this. If you find work that you could adapt, highlight it and go back to it after reading the novel. I use a yellow highlighter for the work that I can adapt or may be able to adapt, a blue for the areas that I am unsure about and a red for the areas that can definitely be erased. It lets me go through the piece first before making any edits at all.

Change the Ending

Did you abruptly end the novel? Many people do because they realise the month is coming to an end and they need to prove they have completed the challenge. It doesn’t matter as you can go back and edit accordingly. Make changes to fit the way that you actually wanted to end the novel or make some changes in the run up so that the current ending fits – it is completely up to you. An abrupt ending may work if you decide to create a sequel to the piece.

My one important tip is to let it stew for some time, especially if you have written a fictional novel. This will give you the chance to step away from the world you have created and then go back in to remove the bad and adapt the not so bad areas. You may find that the whole novel changes but at least you can say you completed NaNoWriMo.