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July 8, 2016

32 fun blog post writing prompt ideas for this summer (or anytime!)


Over the course of more than seven years of vintage blogging, one naturally sees certain patterns emerge, both within their own process and throughout the online community at large.

For me personally, as well as numerous others I've spoken to about the topic, one of those things is that come summertime, as the beautiful - but also often draining - summer heat is out in full force, our blogging mojo or simply the energy needed to write posts can go flying out the window faster than a paper drink umbrella caught in a warm tropical breeze.

I've actually said before, only half jokingly, that if I could pen all my posts for June, July and August in the dead of winter, I happily would.

Of course such is neither practical nor very feasible, so naturally I've never done so (though I have often started brainstorming post ideas that far in advance). Instead what I try to do is just pace myself, focus all the more on outfit posts (tis the season after all!), and try to extend the fun, laid back vibe of summer to my blog writing, too.

My birthday is coming up this Sunday (on the 10th) and I've been racking my brain for a while trying to decide what to pen about for the last post of my 31st year of life. A few ideas bounced around for a while, but none lit up my eyes quite like the idea of sharing 32 different blogging post writing prompts with all of you (one each for every year of my life).

No matter if you find summer a little trickier to blog during or not, this list is handy and helpful the whole year through - especially because, objectively, just about everyone who blogs will eventually run into times when you need a little extra creative boost to help you come up with fun, fresh new ideas for blog posts (though I have covered some of these topics here over the years, I have not, to date, written posts with these same titles myself).

So with that said, on this fabulously sunny Friday morning, let us all jump head first in the following list of...



32 fun blog post 
writing prompt ideas




1. Twelve (or whatever number you desire) of my favourite summer recipes (vintage or otherwise)


2. A Day in the Life type of look at how you spend an average (or not so average, as the case may be) summer day


3. What's inside my summer beach bag (or weekend bag. A fun spin on the classic "what's in my purse" post


4. Summer just wouldn't be the same for me without these seven songs/movies/TV shows


5. The "ingredients" of my perfect vintage/1940s/1950s/rockabilly/pinup (or whatever style/era you favour) summer outfit include


6. Ten things you love and ten that you dislike about this season


7. A look at my summer beauty rituals


8. Five places I wish I was spending this summer (dream holiday locations, with old friends, etc)


9. By this time next year I hope to have accomplished X (where "x" is the name of the goal you're discussing)


10. What's on my summer reading list this year


11. Recollections of my first summer job


12. Twelve desserts that make summer so much sweater for me


13. The historical (and/or fictional) figures that I'd invite to my ultimate summer tiki (or cocktail or garden or tea) party


14. This summer I'm making [insert name of craft/project/baked item/etc]


15. Revive an old schooldays tradition and, as the season winds down, pen a post called "How I spent my summer vacation"


16. One thing I really want to try for the first time this summer is


17.
Eight of my all-time favorite summer scents (e.g., suntan lotion, pina colads, fresh cut grass, air dried linens, food on the grill, etc)


18. Interview an elderly family member about the childhood/early adult summer memories from decades past


19. How to have a fabulous summer staycation in [insert the name of your town/city]


20. My top five summer photography tips (they can be for outfit shoots and/or any other type of photography)


21. Vintage essentials for a great summer camping trip (or picnic, barbeque, or garden party)


22. Four WIP (works in progress) that I want to get finished before Labour Day rolls around


23. Why I like (or, conversely, dislike) summertime fashion so much more than winter


24. Seven moments/memories from summers past that will forever define (or speak to) the season for me


25. How to style a glam summertime evening look


26. My ultimate summer music playlist


27. The best thing that happened to me this summer was


28. DIY vintage summer decor ideas


29. My favourite Instagram snaps from this summer


30. 15 ways that I love to relax (or, if you prefer, stay active) during the summer months


31. Six things I can't stop pinning photos of (to Pinterest) this summer


32. What a difference a year makes (looking back on any major changes in your life from this time point last year)




{Though these thirty-two assorted post prompt ideas ideas are geared towards summer, you can easily switch them to any other time of the year or ditch the seasonal element entirely and put them to work on your blog whenever you please. Super charming vintage photo source.}



♥ ♥ ♥



Which of these post ideas jump out at you? Do you keep a list of post writing prompts to hand throughout the year? Do you find that your blogging mojo sometimes wanes during the roasty-toasty days of summer?

I hope that you guys enjoyed this selection of thirty-two different possible post ideas. Please feel free to let me know in the comments, if you did, and if there's a lot of enthusiasm for them, I may very well share more in future posts of this nature.

To help celebrate my birthday to the fullest, I'm giving myself a three-day weekend and will be back here bright and early on Tuesday morning with a delightful new vintage summer outfit shoot to share with all of you.

Right now though, there's a tasty  b-day dessert to be made and perhaps, spurred on my these ideas, a fresh new summertime post or two to begin working on myself!

46 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday to you! Hope you have a lovely long weekend.

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  2. Those are good prompts.

    My blogging mojo has more or less disappeared. I'm not sure why. I feel as though my *living* mojo has more or less disappeared, I'm existing, but I'm not really making the most of life. I have a spreadsheet and try to blog things in a spread of categories, to ensure that it maintains a balance between them, but as I'm not really doing anything interesting, there's nothing to put in any category!

    I should try one or two of your prompts, I think. They might get me going again.

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  3. those are great ideas I sometimes run out of ideas and then just sort of scale back a bit I think Ill be doing two posts a week for summer I cant imagine you ever running out of ideas as your blog is so fabulous

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  4. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSICA!!!! I hope it's as fabulous as you are :)

    In my beach bag would be sunglasses, some good old spf, and a good book (Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie was a great beach book).

    The one summer dessert we always have is blackberry crunch made with the blackberries that grow in abundance by my house :) A big dollop of cool whip tops it off :)

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  5. I needed this so much! I have been so reluctant to even *try* to dress vintage in this heat, let alone haul myself outside into my ragweed-ridden yard (or beyond) to do any photography for my blog. I should try a recipe post or something!

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  6. Happy Birthday, Jessica! Thank you for putting together this list. I don't currently plan blog posts out very far, although I will need to shortly as I have some trips planned for the end of summer. Maybe I will have to use some of these ideas as there aren't going to be many sewing posts on my blog for a few weeks.

    Sarah
    www.sewcharacteristicallyyou.com/blog

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  7. I'm loving that picture of the ice-cream licking girls! Since I've only started blogging a couple of months ago, I haven't yet experienced energy-draining summer weather, especially since Summer has not really made an appearance hear. I will be keeping your ideas in mind, though! Many hugs, xxxx

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  8. Great list! July is always a bittersweet month for me, more so this year than last. By mid-month I am made abundantly aware of the impending semester: book orders need to be filled out, classes and assessments written, on-line classes built, and summer research hurriedly finished. I haven't really had a chance to do anything really "fun" yet: no "fluff reading," no relaxing antique hunts, no relaxing summer mornings drawing or painting.

    I can't wait for the 25th to go camping ... which is strange because it's my Mom's anniversary. *shrug* I thought it would be nice to visit where we put her ashes. :)

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  9. There are some fantastic ideas here, I especially love the suggestion to interview an elderly person and find out what life was like back then from a truly personal point of view. I also love posts on an average day, as these are truly fascinating. I love seeing how other people live their lives, I find their joy and passions for things so catching. I hope you have a wonderful weekend surrounded by family and friends who love you dearly and are grateful and privileged to have been a part of your life. Xx

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    1. Ooohhh, so do I - massively. In fact, one the very first things I do when I discover a new-to-me blog is to read a person's about (or the equivalent) page, to help me get a better picture of who they are and what their site is about (and I always feel quite bummed if a person has opted not to have such a page).

      I'm really happy to know that you enjoyed this post, dear Emily, and am equally glad to report that I did indeed have a wonderful birthday weekend (which, as holidays always do, knocked the wind out of my sails and now I'm recouping from it this week - totally worth it for a spot of b-day fun though!).

      Many hugs & happy mid-July wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  10. So many good one. How fun. I'm sharing this in my writing groups. LOVE it. My faves from you list are:

    3. What's inside my summer beach bag (or weekend bag. A fun spin on the classic "what's in my purse" post
    I hope EVERYONE has at least one book in there ;)

    10. What's on my summer reading list this year
    Being a historical fiction writer, this ones a no-brainer for me (my list will be coming out shortly) hee hee

    13. The historical (and/or fictional) figures that I'd invite to my ultimate summer tiki (or cocktail or garden or tea) party
    This one's got me thinking. I don't have an answer, but I sure like thinking about it.

    18. Interview an elderly family member about the childhood/early adult summer memories from decades past
    This gives me some stellar ideas and I love listening to people's stories, though I usually fictionalize them

    24. Seven moments/memories from summers past that will forever define (or speak to) the season for me
    I'm swimming in memories. Thanks for the prompts!

    All of them are good, but I'm going to go work on these! You're awesome. Thanks!

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  11. Happy Birthday this weekend, Jessica! While I really like all these writing prompt ideas, they don't apply too much to my blog, since it's one of those OOTD (Outfit of the Day) things. More of a "lite" diary of my life, more like it! Send some sun our way, would you? It's cold and grey and rainy here.

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  12. What perfect timing for this post, Jessica! Right now I'm feeling a lull with blog post ideas for myself, so I will happily swipe some of these! Thank you! ;-)

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  13. Happy Birthday Miss Jessica! I did like this post, as I always keep blog prompts on hand. I especially like number 9 since most goal posts happen in January, it be nice to seem them mid year too.

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  14. Dearest Jessica,

    ♫Happy birthday to you! ♫♪

    I wish you a wonderful, fun-filled three day weekend.
    You continue to be the most darling, sweetest person that I have EVER met on the internet. I love your great big giving heart :)

    ~~~♥~~~♥~~~♥~~~♥~~~♥~~~♥~~~♥~~~

    The following are my favorite blog post ideas:

    8. Five places I wish I were spending this summer

    21. Vintage essentials for a great summer camping trip

    23. Why I like (or, conversely, dislike) summertime fashion so much more than winter

    25. How to style a glam summertime evening look

    Thanks for this delightful post.
    I love you, my darling little friend.

    Hugs,
    Hope

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  15. Happy birthday for tomorrow Jessica, hope you have a truly fab day! I really enjoyed reading this post. I am aiming to publish one blog post each week, but even that takes a lot of thinking, and I generally write quite short posts. There are three ideas in here that I will definitely use (Summer/winter just wouldn't be the same without... Ten things I love about Summer/Winter...What's on my reading list). Thank you for the inspiration! Xxx

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  16. Awesome post ideas! I wish I was organized enough to write a bunch of posts ahead of time. Maybe one day... :)

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  17. What perfect ideas, Jessica! For me, sometimes it's difficult to really "get into" summer, so I loved how these tended to follow that theme and related really well to the season.

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  18. Happy Birthday! Isn't that just like you to give US a present on YOUR birthday! Xxoo

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  19. I hope you have a lovely birthday!
    I like the post prompt about what a difference a year makes. I would say this last year has been one of the craziest of my life, and thinking about how much has happened is astounding! Great list, and it really gets the mental gears working in full force again. Thanks!

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  20. Jessica - Great ideas and very helpful for those of us bloggers who often suffer from writer's block. Have a great birthday weekend!

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  21. Happy birthday, Jessica!

    A lot of bloggers have a summer doldrums, and take a bit of a blogging break. I sometimes use summer (and December-January) to post stuff I know my regular audience might not see (and possibly wouldn't be interested in reading), but which will get picked up regularly later on by people researching those subjects. I have a file with my future blog post topics and series, with an X put after each once they're all written and scheduled.

    I've got a couple of series I should probably start writing so they'll be posted over the summer, particularly my Rudolph Valentino series (seeing as August is his 90th death anniversary).

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  22. first: HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSICA! <3 *** <3 *** <3 *******

    thank you for that great list! i´m sure i will turn back to it in the next weeks! you have some great tips here!
    an extra ton of hugs! xxxxxxx

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  23. What a great idea! I'm in need of some writing inspiration. I can't wait till it is summer again in Australia. It is a little bit too cold for me here at the moment

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  24. Happy Birthday to you!!! This post is so timely as I was just sitting down to work on my post for this coming week. I'm really trying to stick to my blogging schedule but it is getting harder & harder to think of interesting post ideas. I'm just feeling kind of blah & I haven't finished anything major or had any particularly cute ensembles lately. So...anyhoo. Your little hints helped me to brainstorm some of my own!

    Have an absolutely lovely birthday.
    {hugs}
    Michelle ^_^
    Delightful Handwork

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  25. Happy Birthday! I'm loving a lot of these prompts and may put a few to use!

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  26. Happy Birthday again for yesterday! Fab prompts. It's never really occurred to me to take a seasonal type approach to my posts, maybe because I'm conscious it's always the reverse in Australia, but I really could go on about my love of the smell of a particular brand of suncream for a whole post!! Maybe if we get a summer over here (still waiting) I might feel more like it... xx

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  27. These are all such great ideas, I am totally going to use some of these
    xo
    www.laurajaneatelier.com

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  28. What a fantastic collection of ideas! I'm definitely going to bookmark this for reference. I'm sure I'll come back to it time and time again. Thank you for the inspiration! xx

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  29. Happy belated birthday, sweet Jessica! I hope you had a fabulous day and will have an even more fabulous year ahead!

    Thanks for these fun writing prompts - as a very new blogger, I'm looking for all of the ideas I can get my hands on! :-)

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  30. These are great, I may just have to try some! :)

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  31. I love these ideas!!! Great inspiration for posts on my new blog. It's been a while since I have been here, but every time it just keeps getting cuter! Great post!

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  32. Well, hello there!
    This comes to you after your birthday (I did send a digital greeting-card your way, on time). I hope you've had a GREAT time, and I hope you've chosen a dessert to follow the joyful moment. What was it? Pineapple cake?
    These lists seem absolutely useful, and I just might use some of them in the days to come. THANK you for introducing an inspiration-in-blogging to me (as always, you're a great help).

    HUGE hug!
    Marija

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  33. Such a gorgeous blog post!
    Summer is always tricky for me to blog. It's exam time, afterwards I normally enjoy my summer vacation and then, I have to work to survive winter semester...
    Now I have some new ideas, thank you!

    Many hugs,
    Sandra <3

    PS: I hope you had a wonderful birthday weekend!

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  34. All of these ideas are great! Really nice ideas for summer blogging and I love the vintage twist to them. Will definitely try some of these out over the next couple of months.

    Daisy x

    www.florencemayvintage.blogspot.com

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  35. Thanks for all these amazing ideas, I may have to steal a few! You always have such interesting blog posts that are such a joy to read, so it doesn't surprise me that you've come up with so many fabulous post ideas! XxxX

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  36. Happy belated birthday. Thanks for sharing these great tips! I just might use a few this summer :)
    The Artyologist

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  37. I LOVE summer and I LOVE your writing prompts! Happy Birthday!!!! (a few days early) =)
    Laurie

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  38. Thank you each very, very much for your awesome comments and joyful birthday wishes here. I had a great celebration on Sunday, which - along with a couple of days of preparing and cooking for it beforehand - knocked the wind out of my sails big time (as is normal for me with holidays and big events), so I'm not able to reply to each comment individually here.

    I have read them all however and really do appreciate and want to thank you for them. I'm thrilled to know that you found this list to be so helpful/inspirational. It was a lot of fun to put together.

    Huge thanks & hugs to each of you,
    ♥ Jessica

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  39. This is such a fun list and will be a great help to anyone with a bit of a pause in their mojo! Thanks for sharing. I hope you are recovering your energy levels after your birthday celebrations.

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  40. A very happy belated birthday Jessica! <3 I hope you had a wonderful birthday this year! I know exactly what you mean about how blogging mojo can go out the window when summer rolls around. I have been away from my blog and away from the blogs I like to read because it's just been too darn hot. Just last week or so it was too cold for it being summer and now it is scorching. Oh well, c'est la vie! If you ever decide to make any of these posts I'd really like to see #25: How to style a glam summertime evening look :D

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  41. Fabulous ideas birthday girl!! Bookmarked for summer here :)

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    1. That's awesome to hear, sweet Tanith. I'm delighted to know that you enjoyed this post. It was a lot of fun to put together. Perhaps I'll do a winter (in North America, summer down under) one at some point, too.

      Many hugs & happy weekend wishes,
      ♥ Jessica

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  42. Thank you for this dear Jessica xxx

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    1. It is my sincere pleasure, sweet Melanie. I'm really happy to know that you enjoyed this list.

      Tons of hugs,
      ♥ Jessica

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