Do you look at a draft folder that’s full and become overwhelmed? Do you see it as projects that may never be finished? What if there was another way to look at it? I look at a full drafts folder and see potential! For me, there are two great benefits of having a ton of drafts waiting to be published.
It will keep your fears at bay
What do writer’s fear the most? Running out of ideas! But when I see over 40 drafts in my folder, it reminds me that I have a ton of ideas! And even if I haven’t come with a new idea lately, I still have several things to write about until I do come up with a new post idea. This takes a ton of pressure off, which actually makes it easier to come up with ideas.
Another fear I have – getting behind in blogging. I know that this is a self-imposed fear because there is no rule that says how often I should post. But I have set myself a goal of posting three times a week. And when I have several drafts, I know that I have plenty of material for the blog. I want my blog to be fun, not a chore, so having lots of drafts takes the stress out of blogging.
It speeds up the writing process
Lauren at Elle&Co suggests that you outline all your posts when you put them in the drafts folder. I was only half doing this. Sometimes all I would have would be the post title, any notes about the post would be in my phone or on a random piece of paper somewhere. But now I put in all the points I want to make in my post, as well as a reminder about any anecdotes I want to tell.
This has really sped up my writing process. I pick a post from my draft folder, and then just start writing. I don’t have to rack my brain trying to remember what I wanted to say, or search all over for my notes. Since the process is more simple now, I look forward to writing more than I ever have.
What about you? Do you enjoy having a full drafts folder? Do you find it overwhelming? Any tips on drafting? Let me know in the comments!
I only started using my drafts recently. I used to only have one or two at most that I was working on. I really like the idea of outlining the post when you create a new draft. That makes so much sense!
I’m curious – Do you write your posts within WordPress? Or do you take the outline and write it somewhere else like Word or Docs?
Michelle Westbrook recently posted..Why Do You Blog?
I write mine within WordPress. And I have the app on my phone so I can write and edit anywhere! It’s great!
I always forget to use the app! Thanks for that tip 🙂
You’re welcome! 🙂
I only started using drafts the last few weeks, as a fashion blogger i dont tend to have a lot of time for photoshoots so when i have a shoot ready to go, it goes! But over the june i was away and didnt have any time to create new content and i didnt have any drafts when i needed them! So ive started making mini posts to go up for times like that, for ‘in-between’ times!
Dana
Fashion Dew // Bloglovin’
I like that idea! We all have busy times like that when we can’t be on our computers as much!