Writers are often given the advice to ‘write what you know’.
It makes sense at first glance. After all, how can you write what you don’t know? The thing is though, there is so much out there in the big wide world that to only write what you know really restricts your chances of getting paid writing work.
Let me be clear, I’m not talking about writing in-depth, learned articles. I’m talking about the kind of writing that skims the surface and delves just far enough into the meat of a subject to inform someone who knows less than you do. And there is always someone who knows less than you do who could benefit from your initial research to gain a lead into a subject. If they want to know more, they go somewhere else, but you’ve given them a starting place.
Research is so easy to do when you know how, it’s worth learning the skills and putting them to use in writing. You suddenly find you can write intelligently on just about any general interest topic that takes your fancy. And that opens up a whole new writing world.
To anyone who wants to earn money from writing, I suggest honing your research skills and writing outside your comfort zone. Write about gold mining, about the history of innoculation, write a brief biography of a famous person, write a short article on how to make soap – anything that means you start from scratch and write from research.
When you’ve done a couple of articles, put yourself on a timer and see how fast you can do both the research and the writing without sacrificing quality. Remember, nothing in-depth, just basic information presented in a straightforward, readable manner. Aim for about 500 words.
It’s fun, it’s educational, and more importantly it expands your knowledge base and gives you confidence as a writer.
