CHOOSE A THEME
Michelle Rafter incorporates theme days throughout the month to help make the event more interesting, and to help you come up with topic material. But it also helps to consider using a theme for the full month. I've done this several times. Choosing an overall theme that fits the focus of your blog will help you come up with material even on the days when you're not feeling particularly inspired. All you have to do is think about the word or the phrase you've chosen. My topic is "joy" or joyful living. It's a sure bet you could sit down and write out a list of 31 things that pertain to joy. I bet you could do the same about "fiction" or "breakfast foods" or "technology for dummies."
OPEN A BOOK
The reading material you have on your desk or on your bookshelves can be an excellent source of topic material to write about during the blogathon. You can even review a book for a blog post if you like. Perhaps you're reading a chapter right now that has you perplexed about an idea. You can write about that. If you use the right tags, you might even bring in new readers who are also curious about that same book. No matter what you find inside the pages of a book, you'll surely find content to comment about, and then that could lead to an interview with the author perhaps.
USE A QUOTE
Do you have favorite quotes that pertain to your blog topic? Post a quote for the day, followed by your thoughts on what it means to you and why. This will engage your readers to comment.
ASK A QUESTION
Pose a question to your audience. Make it as simple as that. You can take it a step further and use this as a weekly event, your own "Question of the Week" series the occasional "Question of the Day." That's what I've done, and it always makes for good conversation, which is the whole point of blogging. It's about interacting with your audience, engaging them about your topic, and furthering their knowledge, or having them further yours.
POST A PICTURE
Of course you want to use graphics anyway, but if you're having a difficult time deciding what to write about, then just post a picture. An idea will generally stem from that alone.COMMENT ON THE NEWS
Use your Google Alerts to find news items worthy of discussion or editorializing. Dissect what you've read. Post an opinion. Add links to updates about a news item you covered earlier in your blog. Sharing an opinion on a controversial topic is a great way to pull in readers. Don't worry if they agree or disagree. Just be glad they'll come to your blog to discuss the matter with you.
HIGHLIGHT NEW RESEARCH
Perhaps your topic is getting a lot of press because of new research or surveys published. Find the links to this research, read about it, find out what other people are saying about the new developments, and add your two cents.
COMMENT ON OTHER BLOGS
Finally, let's end the list with something that's very helpful in building a bigger audience for your blog, and that is visiting other people's blogs. But don't just go there. Stop and stick around. Read what the bloggers have to say. Post comments. And if something really catches your eye, blog about it.If you have additional thoughts about how to fill out 31 posts in a month, list your ideas here. It could help us when we regroup next year.
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