Non-fiction writers: if you are struggling to find a topic to write about, grab your Tarot cards and let's go! Shuffle the deck, open your notebook, and draw ten cards at random. Lay them out (face up or face down) in two rows like this:
Using the first card as inspiration, answer the first question below. Then go down the list with the rest of the cards. If, for some reason, when you're a few cards down and nothing seems to be working, simply draw cards to replace these ones and start again.
- What will you write about?
- What effect do you want to have on your readers? What do you want them to do or feel when they have read your article?
- Why would your readers do or feel this?
- What do you want your readers to understand?
- How will you achieve this understanding?
- Why does the topic matter to you?
- What is most surprising about the topic?
- What new approach or angle can you give to the topic?
- What problem should your article solve for the reader?
- What is the one point you want to make?