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Maggie Whitley

joy in motherhood, homemaking, faith & simple living

You are here: Home / blog & handmade advice / {5 tips for finding blog post inspiration}

{5 tips for finding blog post inspiration}

November 14, 2011 · 17 Comments
Filed Under: blog & handmade advice

There have been times in the past when I really struggled with consistently creating interesting blog post content, and it was so frustrating! I absolutely love this online community and all the ways it’s encouraged me and others to grow. And I’ve never had trouble coming up with post ideas, but developing them into something solid was once a struggle.

Below are 5 easy tips for you on finding blog post inspiration. They are prompts I use myself and they rarely have me searching for additional inspiration ;]
ENJOY!

julie ann art

5 tips for finding blog post inspiration:

1. carry a small journal with you and write down every idea you have. you can always go back and edit/expand on an idea, but for now focus on capturing every idea. i love this one because of the hard cover and blank pages – for sketching or idea-capturing. i almost always carry a larger purse so this makes it easy to keep my journal with me.

2. if you’re working on ____ and suddenly you brainstorm a creative or interesting post topic, stop what you’re doing and either make a few notes about it or start writing a draft. this idea came from Zack and i can’t deny it, it’s a good one! in the past i wouldn’t do this but tell myself i’d remember the key details later, and i never did {sad!}. lesson learned: write it while you have it :]

3. keep a bookmark folder on your internet browser to save inspiring post or DIY ideas, cute shops or websites you find, or anything else that you think you could reference later. Pinterest is amazing (!!!) but i still like to keep a running website “list” via a bookmark folder.

4. develop an encouraging/creative/informative mini-series that consists of 3-5 blog posts. this is a really easy way to turn a larger, more complex post idea into a few tangible posts by breaking it down. plus, you instantly have 2-4 posts pre-planned, yay!

5. share a series of photos that visually describe your day or your creative process. you may choose to write a small descriptive paragraph at the end, but the challenge is to let your photos do all the talking :]

Share with us: which tip is your favorite? Or, do you have a personal favorite that you rely on often?

xoxo

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17 Comments
Filed Under: blog & handmade advice

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Comments

  1. cait says

    November 14, 2011 at 6:04 am

    love this :) i always need inspiration ideas! xo

    Reply
  2. Natalia says

    November 14, 2011 at 8:08 am

    I love these ideas. I need to do them more, sometimes, well a lot of times, I just forget! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  3. Skye @ Neathering Our Fest says

    November 14, 2011 at 8:29 am

    love this list Maggie! finding inspiration for writing is really hard especially sometimes in the blogosphere when you are inspired by what someone else has written. It is tricky to emulate inspiration without blatantly copying their idea. i try to keep a running list in my phone and a calendar for posting so that when i have an idea i can remember it and immediately give it a date. it keeps me accountable to take pictures for it and have it ready to post on time. that way i have no excuse for not getting it done! :)

    Reply
    • Gussy Sews says

      November 14, 2011 at 11:46 am

      yes! what i love about your comment is that you are doing what works for YOU! we can all have a general way of finding inspiration, but if using your cell phone helps you more than a notepad in your purse, that is so awesome!!!! knowing what is best for you individually is what makes you succeed.

      happy monday! xo

      Reply
  4. Erin says

    November 14, 2011 at 9:04 am

    Love this!! I use a journal and a bookmark folder as well. I also love to have my quick digi-camera with me and take snapshots of things that are inspiring or make me think of an idea. I just have to remember to also write it down or else I sometimes don’t remember why I took a picture! haha ;)

    Reply
  5. Sarah says

    November 14, 2011 at 10:24 am

    Thanks for this post! Your tips are very helpful. I usually (especially if I’m short on time) will create a draft post with a few little notes about the idea I’m working on, a photo prompt or a URL for my inspiration to bookmark my ideas. When I get time to flesh something out, I pull up my drafts and pick whichever one inspires me most. If a draft collects dust too long, I assume that it probably wasn’t a very good idea to start with and delete it.
    I’ve been thinking about getting a moleskin notebook or something like that to carry around with me!

    Reply
  6. sharon says

    November 14, 2011 at 11:17 am

    love all these tips. especially the journal! I actually keep one on my nightstand – ideas come as I am drifting off and I can write them down and get to sleep!!

    Reply
  7. Bethany says

    November 14, 2011 at 11:53 am

    Thanks for sharing, Maggie. This is definitely a post every blogger can benefit from.

    Reply
  8. Jenny Taylor says

    November 14, 2011 at 1:05 pm

    You can have everything in life you want, if you will just help other people get what they want.
    Zig Ziglar

    Every time I read this quote it reminds me of you. I love that you care about others’ success just as much as your own. This list is very helpful! I’ve been in a blogging “funk” lately and have been feeling completely uninspired. I carry around a notebook, but I’ll admit I do not always utilize it. Thanks for the tips! You are amazing. :)

    Reply
    • Gussy Sews says

      November 14, 2011 at 2:12 pm

      yeow — we love zig ziglar!

      thank you for the sweet comment!!!!! :)

      “inspiration is all around you.”

      Reply
  9. Natalie @ NS Pottery says

    November 14, 2011 at 2:02 pm

    Great tips! I’ve definitely experienced having a random bright idea, thinking I’ll remember it and later feeling like I don’t know what to blog about! Writing ideas down in the moment is SO important! It’s awesome when I have weeks where I feel like I have all these ideas and know what I’m posting about. Then other times I feel totally dry, like now. :/

    Reply
    • Gussy Sews says

      November 14, 2011 at 2:15 pm

      hey girl! i totally know how you feel. it’s OK to have a dry spell. use this time to surround yourself with things you love or wish you knew more about. the post ideas will come when they come :)

      have you ever thought about writing about how you feel? ask for topic suggestions, share how you get through the dry spells, write a list of 10 things you want to learn about.

      xoxo

      Reply
  10. Renee "Nay" Soriano says

    November 14, 2011 at 5:25 pm

    I love ideas 4 & 5 and have been doing 1 for a while:) Thanks for this post. I’ve also teamed up with my bloggy bff and we do “copycat posts” – we take turns figuring out a topic and then both blog about it and link back to each other:)

    Reply
  11. Steph @ Crafting in the Rain says

    November 14, 2011 at 8:11 pm

    Great suggestions! I like the notebook idea–I’m constantly jotting things down, and then forgetting where I left that piece of paper :)

    Reply
  12. Jenn McClure-Caldwell says

    November 15, 2011 at 3:17 am

    I constantly carry a notebook with me, wherever I go. I keep a tiny one with me at all times, but I have a normal sized notebook so I can expand on ideas when I have enough time. I like to write stuff out by hand a lot because most of my ideas come to me while I am away from my computer.

    Thank you for sharing your tips as always! I get a lot of inspiration and ideas from you!

    <3 Jenn

    Reply
  13. Sarah B. says

    November 15, 2011 at 4:48 am

    I’m new to the blogging world, so I’m really happy to have found these ideas for blogging so early on. Yay! Can’t wait to use these techniques. Thanks for posting them! :)

    Reply
  14. Ashley says

    November 16, 2011 at 11:44 pm

    Great post Guss! Love the part about the mini-series…I totally agree!

    Reply

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ABOUT MAGGIE WHITLEY DESIGNS:
Maggie Whitley weaves her writings around joy in motherhood, homemaking, faith, and simple living. She homeschools her children, enjoys a quiet room while reading, and roars with laughter over the challenges & delights of motherhood. Maggie and her husband, along with their four young children, live in metro-Detroit. She has been writing online since 2008.
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maggiewhitley

JOY in motherhood & homemaking 🧺🌿💓✨

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Reflecting on this today 💓🕊 When I reflect o Reflecting on this today 💓🕊 When I reflect on the moments I’ve felt my mind spinning, my emotions swirly, it’s almost always when I’m not feasting on the word of God. Not that reading scripture is the cure for anxiety —no! Rather, it’s hard to worry when we’re worshipping.
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#mothersofinstagram #tea #winterreading #hygge
I fought every internal comment I could think of a I fought every internal comment I could think of and took my kiddos for a looooong walk today before dinner. ❄️✨ There’s just so much work required to raise children! I’m feeling like a tired lady. But sunshine & fresh air are good companions to keep around. 

We came home and I made “the best dinner ever”. Max specifically announced, “it’s so great you’re launching new meals to the world”. LOL— kids! 🤣👏🏻💓
How about a little Wednesday night introduction? 😘Social media sure has changed over the years and we don’t always SEE who we’re following or remember WHY we’re following certain accounts. 

So, hello! As you can gather, my name is Maggie ;) 

I started writing online (almost 13 years ago) to share the handmade products I was sewing. My shop was called Gussy Sews. ✂️👛I love the community that has grown from sewing & sharing online.

Let’s FFW to today: Zack and I live in Michigan and have four young children (2 boys & 2 girls). I slowly left the handmade industry and walked right into homemaking, homeschooling, and encouraging women through writing. 💕📝

Motherhood has been very hard on me. (And not just because of how close in age our four children are.) It’s been hard for me because I fought for years to accept that *it’s supposed to be hard*. 

I mean, how do you effectively teach another person to know and love the Lord? Bc that’s how I think of motherhood: a calling to nurture others by studying the One who nurtures me. So I gotta make the first move: study the Bible and seek Him first. As my friend Autumn reminded me, vulnerability births transformation. 

(I’ve had to be really vulnerable!)

So, yes motherhood has fully transformed me. But even more so, Christ has fully transformed me. My list of “all that He’s done for me” is off to a beautifully long start.

Something else I want you to know about me: I stalled for years before acknowledging I have anxiety and depression. It’s hard to talk about this because of course this isn’t forever “my hardship”, but rather because acknowledging this means to heal I have to work through some really difficult things. ✨

But my friend Jesus walks alongside me. He’s already done a mighty work in my heart, including helping me process my anger in healthier ways. I’ve also adopted a heart for sisterhood, mothering, and Titus 2 mentorship.

Sometimes our greatest losses are our greatest gains? That’s what I’m clinging to!

How about you? Tell me something about yourself so I can get to know you on a deeper heart level. 🖤🖤
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Just a few cheery memories from my week! How about you?
Book reading! One of my best “Maggie” activiti Book reading! One of my best “Maggie” activities. I finished my last book moments before 2020 ended, which brought my started list to a close. Small joys add up to big joys ;)

What are you reading this year? Currently?

How many books are you planning to read? What’s your goal?

I’ll share what’s on my list for 2021 soon as I received some nice titles at Christmas. 📖✨🤍
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