Choosing Your Topic: Difference between revisions

Choosing a worthy topic is essential to the success of the overall blog <ref group=>Carroll, 140</ref><ref group=>Rehner, "Choosing Your Blog Topic"</ref>. A topic expresses one essential idea within writing and unifies each successive post <ref group=>Loos, "What is a Topic?"</ref>. At first, a specific topic may seem to confine creativity, but focusing the topic actually provides endless creative possibilities <ref group=>Trunk, "Blogs Without Topics are a Waste of Time"</ref>. A focused topic encourages the audience to engage more actively and interact as a part of a blog community <ref group=>Gardner,"Niche Blogging"</ref>, ultimately enhancing the popularity of the blog. Creating a successful blog topic can take a significant amount of forethought and preparation and encompasses Brainstorming, Focus, Assessment, and Finalization.  

#Use your personal character <ref group=>Archuleta, "How to Write a Personal Statement"</ref> to your advantage when brainstorming in order to allow the audience to understand a little more about you. This transparency will not only make you relatable online, but will also help identify your specific [[Audience]] and blogging community.

This [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_concept_mapping_and_mind_mapping_software    method] begins with a central idea and builds outward, incorporating all possible related topic ideas. The Mind Mapping <ref group=>Mind Tools Ltd., "Brainstorming"</ref> Method encourages you to “get out of the realm of words alone and see how different spatial representations might help you see the relationships among your ideas" <ref group=>The Writing Center, "Brainstorming"</ref>.  

Free Writing <ref group=>Mind Tools Ltd., "Brainstorming"</ref> is another useful method, especially when facing writer’s block, where writing starts and it does not stop. This method encourages continual thought through nonsensical ideas and pure imagination.  

Thinking Outside the Box <ref group=>Mind Tools Ltd., "Brainstorming"</ref> is a technique where you try to understand a concept from a different perspective and then relate it back to your initial idea. For example, imagine for a moment that you are writing about your own culture. Think of all the different possible meanings for culture, such as a bacterial culture or referring to a refined group of people, and try to relate those concepts back to your original topic. Often, this method gives you a different perspective than you may have originally identified.

When a topic is narrowed and focused<ref group=>Lucas, "Choosing a blog topic"</ref> into a niche, the writer can express more expertise on the subject, connect with more readers and essentially attract like-minded people. In order to find your blog niche, focus on your blog’s purpose, differentiation and inspiration.

Your blog’s purpose<ref group=>Gunelius, "Top 10 Reasons to Start a Blog"] should focus the [[Readability|<i>Writing Style</i>]] of the blog subsequently helping to identify your [[Audience]]. Some purposes might include the following:  

#Use different perspectives, such as journalistic perspectives<ref group=>The Writing Center, "Brainstorming"</ref> and geographical references<ref group=>Lucas, "Choosing a blog topic"</ref>.

*[[Research]] resources