How Do You Keep Track of Your Ideas?

As writers, our livelihood depends on our ability to keep churning out new ideas—articles, blog posts, stories, new angles on old topics, and finding “newsworthy” material.

I have to admit, sometimes it gets a little overwhelming.

It’s hard enough to keep track of everything we have to do and everywhere we need to be. Add on the extra stress of not wanting to forget what could be a money-making idea and really, sometimes it’s enough to make me want to hide under the covers for a few days.

Am I the only one who thinks like this?

So, how do you handle the very important task of keeping track of your ideas?

I took the advice of many writers I know and started keeping a notebook. I took my time because I wanted to find something that would work for me—yes, I know it’s a notebook, but most writers know how important it is to have just the right tools. So I shopped around until I found one that met my specifications (basically, something sturdy that would also fit into my purse). Once I found it, I wondered how I’d lived without it.

I love my idea notebook. Since I have so many projects to follow up on and keep track of, it’s so nice to just jot something down and not stress about forgetting it. I try to list the article idea and a market that might be a good fit; other times I just make a list of possible story ideas and try to find markets later. It may not be a perfect system, but it’s been working for me. Once I complete a certain number of assignments, I go back into my notebook and see what else might be worth pitching.

I also started keeping a spreadsheet of my queries so I can see what ideas I’ve already pitched, and which ones I need to follow up on. Organization is not my strongest suit, but my system works for me.

Your turn! How do you keep track of your story ideas?

Keeping Those Ideas Fresh

I write 2 columns--my weekly "Date and Relate" one for Online Dating Magazine, and a second one about business/workplace issues set to start running in the fall for my local newspaper--and one of the most challenging parts of the whole process is constantly coming up with a new batch of ideas.

I submit the dating columns all at once, so technically I only need to come up with 4-5 ideas per month. An added challenge is that I appear to have lost my edge a bit--my column is for those still on the dating scene, while I've been happily spoken for since March. But I'm soldiering on and doing my best to keep those ideas coming!

So what's my process, you might be wondering? Glad you asked--I'm happy to share with you...it's no big secret!

I'm listing my ideas below in the context of writing a column, which demands fresh content each time, but as I was coming up with my list, I realized that they're the same tactics I use when trying to think of article ideas, too.

Brainstorming/Free Writing. When I was first assigned the column, I sat down with a piece of paper and jotted down every possible dating scenario I could think of. I call them my "go to" ideas.

Read newspapers or magazines. My local paper often prints lifestyle and human interest stories that I find myself gravitating toward. For my dating column, I save anything I can find that's dating or relationship-related. Sometimes a column will come in response to an article, or I'll put a different spin on it and turn it into something new.

Pay attention to trends. Cost-cutting measures...going "green"...technology...environmental awareness...they're some of the hottest topics that I've been seeing in the media lately. Can you put one of these spins on an idea from your freewriting list? I find myself on the lookout for workplace and business news and trends in preparation for my new column this fall. I wrote a column on finding love at pink slip parties, which some bars in New York City have been starting to hold each week. In many cases, it's all about narrowing your focus and/or putting a new spin on an old (or, if you prefer, "timeless") topic.

Keep an "idea file" (or several). Every article I save that's related to dating goes into my "Dating column" file, along with my freewriting notes. I also have a file for my workplace column, and a thick file for future story ideas. These ideas can come from anywhere, but I look in my local paper, and believe it or not, I've been perusing the e-newsletters, blasts, and other bulletins that I get in my work email, just in case that might spark something.

Being a writer means being able to use absolutely every bit of your life and the human experience as inspiration for your work. One of the biggest mistakes I made was telling a close writer friend of mine that I had "no ideas". It took some time, but I realized that I was way, waay off.