5 tips to help with blogging output

One of the nuts that the blogging community tries to crack with the Newbie Blogger Initiative each year is, “How do you get into the groove of writing regular posts for extended periods of time?” While nobody is telling you how much you have to write, blogs that are very infrequently updated have a much more difficult time finding traction with readers. If you’re going to blog, I would suggest that you at least try to get something out two or three times a week at minimum.

Here at Bio Break I’ve settled down into a routine during which I’ll take the weekends off, then post about twice daily (sometimes more, sometimes just once, but at least something during the week days). What’s helped me do this, other than the cadre of slave monkeys that I have chained to various keyboards? Here are five tips that work — at least for me:

1. When you have a good idea, write something down then and there. Don’t wait until later, because you’ll probably forget. If I have a notion for a post, I’ll at least create a blank post with a descriptive header. If I have a little more time, I’ll write down a few bullet points. My drafts folder is full of these, all waiting for rainy days when I have writer’s block.

2. Screenshot your games incessantly. You never know when you’ll need a certain type of screenshot for a post, and sometimes a screenshot can actually be the catalyst for a good article.

3. Find a time to write every day and stick to that. When I get up in the morning, I’ll often have about 45 minutes to write, which I split between Massively OP and Bio Break. If I get that day’s post(s) done the night before, then great, but if not then I always know when I’ll be writing them.

4. Have a list of quick-and-dirty post ideas for when you’re short on time or drawing a blank. Again, I feel that getting something out is always preferrable to nothing, even if it’s just a day where I unload my screenshot folder with commentary or put up a poll. You’d be surprised how many times a post created in under three minutes blows up into a sleeper hit.

5. Play games with purpose. What I play on a given night is more often than not dictated by what I haven’t talked about lately or what I want to cover. Even if I’m just picking an MMO at random, as I play it I constantly look for a fun experience to share or an idea to spark a rambling commentary. Very often I find myself tabbing out to whip up a post based on something that just happened, schedule it, and then have my next day’s post done.