I have Blog posts to write, I have newsletters to write, I have a list of books to write for myself and for my clients and I have to write all the marketing material to make sure what I write, gets read!
The problem is, when I face that blank piece of paper, or computer screen, my mind goes blank. Duh. I can stare at the screen for an hour, just meditating on whiteness.
I know from talking to hundreds of writers, photographers and artists that I am not the only one with the Blank Page Syndrome!
Over the years I have come up with ways to keep MY idea pipeline full. What works best for ME may not work for you. So though I will give you my technique for fighting the blank page syndrome, I encourage you to come up with and contribute your own ideas and techniques.
My blank page syndrome pops into being when I put myself on the spot. The fact that I have created a deadline somehow leads to the diagnosis, “brain dead.”
When I am not facing a deadline, I have an endless stream of ideas. My clients can’t shut me up. I don’t have enough time to implement all the ideas I have for my blogs and newsletters.
My solution is to capture my ideas when there is no deadline looming. It took me years to develop a system for capturing the ideas in a way that is easy, fast. elegant and ultimately useful given MY working style.
I use an online version of Microsoft OneNote to capture my ideas in the form of notes or lists. I can track my ideas by creating sections and pages. For example, I have a section called Proof Positive Blog if I had an idea for a blog post on “writing compelling Kindle descriptions” … I create a new page in the Proof Positive Blog section. Right now I have over 100 pages … some are just titles, others include short descriptions and a few are more fully developed.
If I have 3 to 5 minutes of spare time, I browse through my lists and add to my ideas. For example I might go back to my “Kindle Descriptions” blog idea and add a list of points I want to cover. I might even write a sentence about one or two of the points.
Since my OneNote is online, it is synced for all my computers. It is also accessible via an app on my smartphone. I generate a lot of ideas while on Vancouver’s Skytrain. I simply use my smartphone to access my OneNote files. The app has been glitchy in the past, but the OneNote team has been working hard on improvements and right now I am thrilled by the usability and accessibility. No matter where I am as long as I have a connection I can upload my ideas. IF I do not have an Internet connection, I simply make a note right on my smartphone and add it to OneNote when I can connect.
I still encounter the Blank Page Syndrome, but now the solution is seconds away … I simply open OneNote and choose from the hundreds of ideas I have stored away. Some of them are just a title, others are in point form and a few are almost completely developed.
I’d love to hear YOUR solution to the Blank Page Syndrome!
Melanie Rockett
the IDEA Queen … 625,689 ideas and counting!
That blank page is terrifying. I will check out Backpack and see if I can test it. I have been using Google NOtebook to keep some of this type of information, but the Google Brass decided it wasn’t making them enough money to bother supporting it anymore. I’ve been looking for a better alternative.
I simply carry a recorder with me or my cell phone has a recorder on it and i constantly record my ideas thru out the day and later on i listen to them and add to them when i write or plan a photography shoot.
http://www.dominickjr.com
Great tip Dominick! I have a friend who spends at least an hour in traffic every day. He uses his car time to come up with new ideas or to develop ongoing projects. He has an assistant transcribe his recordings and pop them into the appropriate project or idea folders for him. He says that what used to be a stressful annoying daily commute has now become a relaxing and creative and very productive time for him.