Bloggers have the most difficult job any writer has, and it’s not just the writing, it’s consistently coming up with fresh and exciting ideas to write about.

I’ll be honest with you, constantly coming up with ideas is hard work. So it’s great to have a quick reference list for those times when you’re drawing a blank.

Top Ten Blog Post Ideas

These ideas might seem obvious at first, but when you’re stuck nothing seems obvious, or easy, for that matter. At least, not for me.

1. Steal ‘em!

I’m not talking about plagiarism. I’m talking about visiting your favorite blogs, making a list of your favorite posts and write about the ideas presented in those posts by giving your unique take on them.

If you copy any content for a quote or reference, be sure to give credit to the author. I stole the “steal ‘em” idea from Jeff Goins.

2. Writing Contests

Either start a writing contest or enter one, or both.

Google: “Writing Contest,” explore the various topics and make a list of the topics you’d enjoy writing about for reference. I’ll soon have a new writing contest here on Positive Writer with great prizes. Stay tuned.

3. Book Reviews

Write book reviews and make them standout critiques that help potential readers decide which books to read.

If you write stellar reviews on a regular basis you’ll become considered an expert reviewer, admired, respected and, well, in some cases, hated. (You’re not going to love every book you review, but that’s okay, Roger Ebert didn’t love every movie he reviewed.)

4. Make A Top Ten List

Whatever your niche, how about making a top ten (or 20, or 30, or whatever) list of blogs related to it. Other lists you might consider are your top ten favorite books, movies, albums, artists, and anything else worthwhile you can think of.

Make your list more interesting by providing useful information about each item. When I created the Top 25 Writing Blogs list, I also included links to what I considered the best posts from each of those blogs.

My top 25 writing blogs list already has over 50,000 shares. So, give it a go! Make your own top list. If you do, be sure to share it with me in the comments below so me and my readers can find it.

5. Interviews

If you’re not sure who to interview, consider interviewing bloggers within your niche or bloggers who write about closely related topics. The key to getting interviews with top bloggers is to ask them. It’s really as simple as that – just ask!

Who knows, you might even land interviews with the top of the top, such as, Seth Godin, Guy Kawasaki, and Jeff Goins. All I did was ask them. Now it’s your turn. Pick a blogger you admire and ask for an interview.

I have one more tip for you about asking for interviews, have your questions prepared before asking. I usually include the questions with my initial request.

6. Quotes

Make a list of your favorite quotes. Famous, inspirational, motivational or whatever kind of quotes you like.

My favorite quote post is: 7 Inspirational Quotes That Could Change Your Life.

7. How To Do Something

Do you know how to do something? Well, of course you do! Because you’re awesome like that. Write a detailed post teaching others how to do it. Do the same thing for everything you know and you’ll soon be regarded not only as an expert, but as a generous expert.

How-to posts are not limited to what YOU know. Perhaps you hired someone to design a book cover and you learned a few things from the experience. Here’s an example: Simple Tips for Hiring a Book Cover Designer

8. Share Your Adventures

Everyone I know loves to travel and they all love to research places they are going to visit. Where have you visited, why did you go there and what did you learn?

Share your experiences with us in a post. I went to Paris recently.

9. Ask Fellow Bloggers To Guest Post

Set up guidelines for guest posters, make ’em tough and only approve the very best. If you have an area within your niche that you don’t write much about, ask guests to fill the gap.

I enjoy writing about overcoming the doubts we have as writers (I have way too much experience in this area), but I don’t blog much about the technical aspects of writing, so I appreciate guest posts like 6 Quick Tricks to Help You Tighten Up Your Writing by C.S. Lakin and How To Edit Your Book Until It’s “Finished” by Joe Bunting, and many other guest posts.

10. Answer questions

If you answer a question in an email or comment that you know is relevant to the rest of your readers, consider writing a detailed post about it. I did exactly that for last week’s post.

Sometimes all you need to open the door is just one more good idea.

-Jim Rohn (Tweet This Quote)

Bonus: 11. Post An Infographic

Here’s an infographic highlighting the Top 10 blog post ideas. It’s my gift to you, for those times when you’re stuck and would like a quick reference to these ideas:

(Click the picture for a larger version. Feel free to share it and, hey, how about posting it on your blog. It’s a ready made blog post.)

 Now it’s your turn…

Help out fellow bloggers by Sharing your blog post ideas in the comments.