There are times when a blogger, like any other writer, will 'loose the muse.' Every idea that comes to mind seems either trite or dull or, worse still, no ideas come to mind. What's a blogger to do? Here are five tactics that just might clear away the cobwebs and allow you to find an inspiring idea for another great post:
Start with the news! Open up your favorite news page or open a newspaper and see what catches your attention. What are the politicians up to today? Any pending legislation that worries you or flat out scares you? Or perhaps someone is running for office or proposing a law that you may want to publicly support. Some celebrity is sure to be in trouble again; have anything to say about that? Maybe you have an idea about who should be dating or marrying who. Who died? A nice memorial post for a nice person may be in order. What happened “On This Date” in past years? Some past events are worth researching and writing about. Are you into sports? Many bloggers or blog readers are sports fans and they might be interested in your take on the playoffs or the players. Don't forget to check the editorial page and the letters to the editor -- do you agree with the opinions? Tell the world why or why not.
Read some blogs! Start surfing your favorite blogs. What are they talking about? You might have a different perspective on the latest hot topic that might just be interesting to your fellow bloggers or a perspective that might make them mad (BTW, never worry about making bloggers mad -- most of them love having something to gripe about). If you can't find anything that inspires you in your favorite blog, surf through some of those blogs that always make you mad; the ones that seem to promote everything that goes against your lifestyle. Anger is always a good blog motivator but don't get so angry you get irrational. Comment on some blog posts and then expand your comments into a post on your blog. Also try logging onto Blog Explosion, Blog Clicker or one of the many other blog traffic generator programs -- there are lots of ideas out there that are worth writing about from either a pro or con perspective.
What have you been watching or reading? Have you read any good (or bad) books lately? Write about your latest read -- recommend it, blast it or even write an abstract for your blog (but don't give away ending). How about movies, the great ones or the pitiful losers might be worth some good or bad words -- you could make movie or book reviews regular features of your blog. The same goes for television shows. Start a series that follows your favorite TV show, there might be quite a few fans of the same show that will be interested in your take and appreciate your summary of episodes they missed. If there is a book, movie or TV show that you thought was great there is sure to be a reviewer who panned it. Find the bad review and write a post countering the reviewer's opinions.
What have you been doing? Your work place, your co-workers, you bosses, your home and your family members are all fair game for your blog -- keep it short and amusing and you'll have a great post. Once you introduce a particularly interesting person to your readers you may want to do some sequels. When was your last travel vacation -- write a travelog about where you've been or do some research on some places you'd love to go to and write about them.
Do you have a special skill? If you can make something that is unique or something that is common but made special because of what you know, there may be people interested in knowing how to do it. Give away tips on cooking, sewing, cleaning, fix-it projects, pet care, child care, beauty secrets, personal care or organizing tips. Make it a regular feature on you blog. If you have a digital camera find an interesting subject, take some pictures and then write something based on the subject. If you found it interesting or comical or sad its likely to interest someone else.