6 Ways To Cure Blogger Writer's Block

So, you have chosen to develop a blog as part of your marketing plan. That's great. Done right, blogs can be an important and productive part of your marketing plan, especially if you are giving "how-to" advice. The problem that many bloggers have is that they start off out of the gates strong, but as time goes by, they start to lose their steam. In some cases, they grow tired of the work needed to keep a top-notch blog going. In other cases, they run out of things to say. Here are 6 tips to help you keep your blog going by avoiding blogger writer's block.

1. Reexamine your posts frequency. There is nothing in the rulebook that says your blog posts need to come out daily. In fact, I advise new bloggers to start slow and build in frequency as they find their blogging grove. Once a week is a good place to start and then add frequency as you get hang of regular posting.
   
2. Set posting categories. Sometime, blogger writer's block sets in when someone sits in front of their computer and can't think of a "how-do" topic. They beat their head against the screen, but still, nothing. One way to help narrow your thinking and jump start the creative process is by setting categories for your blog. For example, in my blog, I have three main categories so far.
   
   A. Guest Bloggers
   B. Book Reviews
   C. Advice Posts
   
   By setting categories, you can make your job of coming up with a post idea much easier.
   
3. Find Guest Bloggers. As mentioned earlier, guest bloggers can be a great way to keep the continuity of your blog going. This can provide you a needed break while introducing your readers to new perspectives. It also builds relationships with other experts in your field and provides you with different and useful perspectives.
   
4. Schedule/write your blogs in advance. Every writer knows that inspiration often comes at different times. When the mood hits you, take advantage of the moment and write a few posts, save them, or even schedule them for posting at a later time. Most major blog platforms give you the ability to schedule your posts. You can write a week's worth of posts at once, schedule them, and your readers will not even know you haven't been slaving every day on your blog.
   
5. Read up on your subject. One of the bests ways to break blogger writer's block is by reading often in your area of expertise. This will increase your knowledge, stimulate your our idea-making machine, and make you a better resource for your own readers. Set Google keyword alerts to have blogs written on specific subjects sent right to your e-mail address and sign up for an e-mail subscriptions on blogs with subjects similar to yours.
   
6. Take a break. Yep, you heard me right. Sometimes you just need to step away from your blog in order to recharge your batteries. During this time, you can do a number of things to stay mindful of your readers.
   
   A. Set up a series of guest bloggers or one guest blogger who can fill in for you while you are on vacation.
   B. Run A "Best Of" by scheduling your most popular posts to run again. This is a fine option if you don't abuse it by re-running your content all the time and if you have a deep pool of archived articles to pull from.
   C. Pre-schedule a series of posts to run while you are on vacation from your blog.
   D. Put out a post to let your readers know that you will be on vacation. Tell them when they can expect to see you back. Keep your readers informed and they will most likely understand and be there for you upon your return.
   

I hope you find some tips in today's post that can help you break the blogger writer's block that you may have run up against. Remember, no matter how it seems at the moment, writer's bock is always a temporary thing that will pass. Get an espresso, read the paper, and in no time, you will be posting with fresh insight and vigor.

Tony Eldridge