This article doesn’t have any content writing tips!

Content used to be the king. Now it is only one of the overly abused words that no one knows what to do exactly with. Everyone is creating content about how to create ‘relevant’ content.  But, let’s face it, with every second person creating content (including this post), being different and relevant is as simple as trekking Everest.

When was the last time you wrote something apart from a listicle or a blog? It’s funny how most of us are writing the same kind of content and not realising it, just because it’s a part of a trend and is being received well. What happens when the trend dies?

Before you expect this article to reveal the next hot-selling content trend and save your life, let us tell you, that is exactly what this article will not do! On the contrary, if you know the next trend, share it with us.

So, what next? Well, let’s try getting some inspiration to simply think beyond the existing. Shall we?

The 10-word formula!

This a trick used by councillors to help their clients get in touch with what they truly feel about a particular topic or person.

The idea is to write down the first 10 words that come to your mind when you think about that topic – no peeking! It’s a lot difficult than it appears. Trust me!

After the first 6 words, the human mind draws a blank. It is then that the mind actually starts thinking beyond what its’ heard and read and starts building its own opinion.

Writing about Facebook, food or fashion – jot  down the first 10 words that come to your mind. The last 4 are your thoughts, something that hopefully anyone else hasn’t written about.

No shit Sherlock

If you already don’t know it, No Shit Sherlock means not stating the obvious. The question is how do you do it?

This one is a team exercise. Let’s say you have to write about net neutrality. Get your entire office together and ask them to jot down their thoughts on the topic. Once done, ask every team member to share their thoughts, while one person is listing it down on a whiteboard.

Make buckets of similar thoughts – this will give you an idea of the various aspects that you need to cover. Scratch the thoughts that everyone or most people mentioned – those are the obvious aspects of the story.

Going beyond No Shit Sherlock will help in making the story less repetitive.

Get personal

How well you can write an article, how fresh you can make it, completely depends on how you view that topic. Till your thoughts and experiences don’t show in it, it’s plagiarism.

Here’s a little something for inspiration. Abhinav Chandel, a veteran travel blogger, wrote about his feelings for someone he met in one of his expeditions in #RestaurantSeries. It was his story, in his words – fresh, true, and inspirational.

Whether or not, a certain piece of content is king, depends on the writer. If you feel you possesses the skills and have implemented it well in the decor space, and have nominated yourself for Asian Paints Indian Decor Influencer Awards – you deserve recognition. Stay tuned, shortlisted entries will be out soon.