Writing Ideas Abound in Your Experiences and Life

I love to write, and in fact,my goal is to write 10,000 words of material every single day. This breaks down to a couple of blog articles, a couple of thousand words for paid work, a chapter in a novel, and part of an eBook. At least, that’s what I accomplished today. You might think it’s hard coming up with writing ideas, but actually it’s not difficult at all.

Where do I get my ideas from? Mostly, it’s from life and from being alive. You see, things are happening around me all the time; sometimes interesting things and sometimes not. I keep my eyes open, look around, and ask questions. Before long, I’ve got an article mapped out in my mind.

That bum on the way to work who asked me for a dollar – how did he get to where he was? How does he survive? Does he sleep on the street, and if so, how does he stay warm? It won’t take long until I ask him some questions, and out of that will come an article.

Or the local gang member with the tattoos all over his arms, neck and back. Don’t those hurt? What do those little pictures mean? Why does he have them in the first place? How did he get the tattoos and do they have gang significance? What about the colors of his clothes – is that important?  A quick conversation with him and I’ve got enough material for several articles: one on tattoos, another about what it takes to be a gang member, and yet another about how to talk to one in the first place.

Subjects for Writing Ideas

Other subjects which I’ve written about:

• My first job interview
• The first time I had to fire someone
• How I handled the bankruptcy of the company I worked for
• How to please your wife
• How to pick a great present for a spouse
• Who was Caesar?
• What happened on Iwo Jima?
• How to pass a test
• How to study
• How to find good, cheap books to read

And so on. You can find article and story ideas in all aspects of your life. Believe it or not, even the most ordinary life is filled with writing ideas.

Areas of Your Life Where Writing Ideas Abound

Your job – If you hold a job, any kind of job, then you have something to write about. It doesn’t matter whether you flip burgers, work in a market, run a nuclear reactor or operate computers. Think about your job – you solve problems all day long. Let’s say you work in the local burger joint: even there you’re doing something that other people find interesting. What kind of people have you met? What are their stories? How do you prevent accidents? What’s the best way to cook food? I could go on and on and on. There is literally an infinite number of articles that can come from any position in any job.

School – Ah yes, the good old days of school. There are thousands and thousand of stories and articles that you could pull from your education (whether you are still in school or not). Everything from how to study to how to party to how to clean up the mess after the party (how to articles are always very popular.) On top of that, you’ve can write about the personalities such as that strange professor or the interesting habits of your fellow students. Additionally, there are stories behind the campus and the surroundings (how did that school get to be there, anyway?)

Travel – Any adventures you’ve had while traveling can be written into fanciful stories or factual articles. I remember when I went to the Grand Canyon and woke up early to see the sunrise. It was still dark and I walked silently outside and watched as the sun came up over the canyon. I looked around and saw I was surrounded by animals, everything from deers to racoons. Think of all of the articles that could result from that one morning: how did those animals get there, what do they eat, how are they protected?

Romance – There are an infinite number of articles and stories that could be written about romance. Think of all of the adventures you’ve had over the years and what you’ve learned. How to talk to the opposite sex, what to say (and what not to say), how to prepare dinner, what gifts to give and how to handle the holidays.

Holidays – These special days can be the catalyst behind any number of articles. Just look around the next time you have a holiday: why are you there? what’s it all about? What kind of food are you eating and how is it prepared? How do people act differently on holidays than on normal days? The opportunities are endless.

Social gatherings – How do you handle yourself at a social gathering? How do you dress properly and why? How do you speak, stay sane, and have fun? Hundreds and hundreds of articles are available here if you just keep your eyes open.

Other people you’ve known – People always want to know about other people. What are their stories? How do they survive, make friends and live their lives?  Just think back on everyone you’ve known and write about them. How did your boss get promoted? How did Joe get that project done? Why does Jane party so much and what does she do at them?

Writing prompt books – There are entire books that are filled with writing prompts, which are basically the seeds for ideas.

So you see, there are stories all around you, and all of these contain ideas for writing. All you need to do is keep your eyes open and look, do some research, and you’ve got what you need to write something interesting.

Richard Lowe Jr

Richard is the Owner and Senior Writer for The Writing King, a bestselling author, and ghostwriter. He’s written and published 63 books, ghostwritten 40+ books, as well as hundreds of blog articles.