Are you hoping to learn some top tips that will help you to write blog posts faster?
A common challenge facing freelance writers and content creators is how to produce original content without spending hours upon hours racking their brains and thinking of what to write.
While all writers experience the dreaded “writer’s block” once in a while, to produce a compelling and engaging blog, you need to ensure you publish high-quality content on a regular basis.
Granted, this is often easier said than done.
So, as a writer, how do you write blog posts faster? Are there certain ways that you can boost your creativity and productivity simultaneously?
To help you out, we’ve put together this post to help you learn how to write blog posts faster in 6 simple steps.
Let’s dive in and take a look at how you can go from outlining to publishing your blog posts quicker than ever before.
Step 1: Create A Thorough Outline
We have to begin by saying this: writing isn’t easy.
If it was, the world would be full of published authors and content creators whose prose would be a joy to read through and ingest.
Therefore, if you’ve launched a successful blog, you should be very proud of your achievement!
Now, to increase your productivity and to reduce the amount of time you spend creating content, you need to begin with a plan. After all, the more time you spend outlining your thoughts before you start formalizing your ideas, the faster you will be able to write.
We would highly recommend spending fifteen to thirty minutes outlining the structure of your post and conducting your initial research before you set about writing your introduction.
Why?
Because your research and structure will be your guide and will help your thoughts progress as you write.
When you’ve decided on your topic, grab a pen and piece of paper and jot down the following:
- One or several catchy title ideas – for some writers, it’s actually easier to come up with a title at the end of your post.
- Headings and subtitles. As a blogger, you should break your posts into sub-sections so that your readers can easily find the information their looking for. (More on this in step 2)
- Any thoughts, questions, or quotations you wish to include in the post.
- A list of sources or external references you plan to use.
A loose structure and some initial thoughts will work wonders when it comes to formalizing your ideas, and it’s well worth the initial investment of your time.
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Step 2: Break Your Posts Into Small, Digestible Sections
If you’ve tasked yourself with writing 2,000 – 3,000 words about a specific topic within your niche, it can be a little difficult to know where to begin.
For instance, knowing that you want to write about an abstract topic like ‘African coffee’ is an important place to begin, but it doesn’t add much context or structure to your ideas.
Using the same topic as an example, you could think about splitting it down in the following way:
- How coffee is grown/processed/transported across the African continent.
- The different types of beans grown in Africa, be it Robusta or Arabica, and the differences between them.
- A case study from a coffee estate that exemplifies your ideas.
- Data and industry-leading examples that add credence to your post from trusted external sources.
- How you see the future of coffee farming developing within the African context and how this compares to other countries in different parts of the world.
Instead of planning to write 2,500 words on such an abstract and generic topic, focusing your research on these sub-sections and tasking yourself to write 200-300 words on each will certainly help.
Although this is a very specific example, the approach is applicable to any niche or sector.
Think of it like this, if you break a 2,000 word post into 20 sub-sections, then it’s kind of like writing 20 small, 100-word articles, which is much less daunting (and time-consuming).
Step 3: Create A Content Schedule (And Stick To It)
If you’re serious about creating high-quality blog posts that can improve your visibility and engagement within your niche, you need to create a content schedule and stick to it.
If you have to sit down and think about what to write every time you want to write a post, blogging will take a significant amount of time.
Putting together a comprehensive content schedule can help you do the following:
- Plan how many posts you will create and publish every week.
- Schedule your posts to be published at optimum times during peak traffic on your site.
- Save you from having to create new content ideas every day you plan to write.
- Brainstorm new ideas and conduct research into what your audience actually wants to see.
We recommend planning out anywhere between thirty and fifty post topics ahead of time.
If you’re a prolific blogger, this should provide content for at least two to three months.
Your plan doesn’t need to be anything fancy; it just needs to include all of the key components that enable you to prepare your desired content.
You can begin by doing the necessary keyword research, then by coming up with an engaging title for each post, and then listing it in a spreadsheet alongside a targeted publishing date.
As you work through your spreadsheet, be sure to hold yourself to account and stick to your targets!
Step 4: Write At Least 1,000 Words Every Day
As is the case with any discipline, you need to set a target goal and practice a lot. This target needs to be realistic, but it also needs to push you. In the early days of your blog, set yourself a target of writing at least 1,000 words every day.
Why 1,000 words exactly?
Well, it’s a good round figure to begin with, and it’s not too taxing.
In the early days, you might find that 1,000 words take you 4-5 hours, particularly when you include the research, planning, and proofreading alongside the actual writing.
However, as you hone your skills, you will find that your writing speed becomes much quicker, and you will begin producing more content in a shorter space of time.
When I first started my blog, it took me almost five hours to write 1,500 words. However, after all of the practice I’ve had writing long-form content, I can now competently write a 1,500-word post in less than ninety minutes.
I’m not telling you this to boast, rather show you what’s possible when you get some writing experience under your belt!
The bottom line is, the more you write, the faster you will get. So, begin by writing 1,000 words every day, and within no time, your productivity, writing quality, and capacity will increase.
Step 5: Set A Timer When You Write
This is something that many bloggers forget to do in the early days but quickly realize is an important part of your time management.
Whether you set your phone to begin a timer or make a manual note of the time you begin and end your work, it’s vital to work within a time limit.
Timing yourself is important when it comes to holding yourself to account, but it also enables you to work out your hourly writing capacity. This is a vital realization when it comes to building your blog, billing your clients, and understanding how many words you will be able to write before a set deadline.
You will also work hard to meet your hourly and daily word targets.
If you don’t keep a record of how long it takes you to write, it will be difficult to know that you need to increase your speed!
Step 6: Don’t Let Perfection Hinder You
We all want to create perfect content that inspires and delights our readers!
But is that possible every single time we create a post?
Probably not.
As a blogger, you have to strike the right balance between perfection and volume.
For instance, if you race through your research and planning and publish error-strewn content that is unreadable, you won’t attract any readers.
Equally, if you’re such a perfectionist that you constantly rewrite and edit your writing and barely ever hit publish, you will also struggle to attract a loyal and engaged readership.
So, how do you strike the right balance?
You have to begin by setting your standard and be willing to receive and act upon feedback. Think of your writing as an ever-evolving process that you can improve upon as you progress.
For quality control, think about installing Grammarly and run your finished posts through the software. You will notice slight mistakes that you hadn’t even considered, and over time you will greatly improve your writing style and flow.
Not to mention the fact that the more your writing skills improve, the less editing you’ll have to do—which is a massive time-saver.
Remember that blogging isn’t like writing a book.
You can always return to your published content in the future and edit and update it.
So, if you’re going through a piece and notice a couple of errors here and there, you can always make amends.
Bonus Tips:
The six steps above can help any writer increase the speed at which they produce content, so hopefully, you will be able to implement them and become more a more productive blogger.
As a little extra, we’ve included two bonus tips that will help you refine and increase your blog-writing speed even more.
Start Your First Draft With A Question
Deciding how to start your post is often the hardest thing about creating written content!
How many times have you stared at a blank word document, hoping that words will magically appear on your computer screen? We’ve all been there.
An effective way to combat this challenge is to begin your first draft with a question.
Even if you remove it before you publish your post, it’s an excellent way to stimulate your imagination and get you thinking about the content you’re hoping to produce.
In fact, you might even consider starting all of your sections with a question, as writers often encounter the same challenge throughout their posts.
Remember, you can always change or remove the questions later on, so feel free to get creative when prompting yourself to come up with ideas.
Spend More Time Reading Actual Books
One of the best ways of improving your writing is to read more books. And we don’t necessarily mean books with titles like ‘How to write better blogs.’
While these types of books can be instructional, reading widely about your chosen subject can enhance your understanding and help you come up with original ideas.
As an added tip, when you’re reading, keep a notebook and pen handy, and jot down some ideas that you have.
Your ideas might come from the content or perhaps the structure that your reading material follows.
While it might sound counterintuitive at first, reading will significantly help improve the quality and speed of your writing, as well as your grasp of the English language.
Ultimately, reading books will help you hone your craft as a blogger.
Final Thoughts
Blogging isn’t easy, but it doesn’t have to be impossible, either.
If you spend a little time preparing your thoughts and getting them down on a piece of paper before you begin writing, you will find that writing will come a lot more naturally, and you will be able to articulate your ideas more quickly.
Also, don’t be too hard on yourself when you start out.
Your readers don’t expect you to be Shakespeare. So long as your content is compelling and well thought out, you will attract readers to your site.
And the more content that you produce, the quicker writing will become.
So, begin researching the topics that interest you and put your ideas down in front of you.
The world is waiting for your writing, so don’t be too scared to put it out there!
You can always edit and make changes in the future.