You’ve been there. So have I. There you are, minding your own business, when suddenly you realize you need a blog post written for today. And it should have been posted an hour ago.

Not only that, but you were just getting ready to head out for lunch, your stomach is growling, and you still have another enormous project to finish when you get back.

Don’t stress. Here are five ways you can crank out that last minute blog post in 10 minutes or less.

1. Post a picture

It’s not as lame as it sounds. Find a great picture that makes a statement. Maybe it’s a picture you took or maybe you grabbed it from a stock photography Web site. Either way, BAM! You’ve got content.

But don’t be that guy that posts a picture and makes that a post. Tell a story about the picture or make some witty commentary. Make it relevant to your audience. It’ll be fine.

2. Make a list

Hey hey, look at that. I’m taking my own advice.

Oh sure, many people bemoan the fact that Top 10 lists are tired and overdone.

But you know what? Readers still eat them up.

They get voted up on social voting sites and re-tweeted dozens of times on Twitter.

Why? Because they make for easy reading. They’re skimmable.

When we have a million things crying out for our attention, it’s nice to know that this post isn’t going to take too long to read if it’s only got five bullet points.

3. Start a poll

Here’s a thought. Instead of trying to provide your readers with all the answers all the time, why not ask them what they think? Create a poll. Write a paragraph or two explaining the issue, and ask your readers what they think. If you can get them to start a debate in your comments section, that’s even better!

4. Piggyback on another post you’ve written

Did you write a post a few weeks or a few months ago that could use an update? Make that update now as a separate post that links back to the original. (Note to self: you need to post the update on your blog comment spam post. It will only take 10 minutes!) It’s a lot easier to comment on something without having to re-create the setup and background information. If you do this, you have to make sure you’re adding value for your readers and not just rehashing the same old thing.

5. Piggyback on a post someone else has written

I’ve done this several times, but not because I was under pressure to post something quickly.

you’ve just
written
400 words
as a comment
in 4 minutesSometimes you read another blogger’s post and you fire off a comment that’s practically another post in and of itself. On occasion, I’ve stopped myself from submitting the comment and instead copied and pasted the text into my blog. It’s funny when you realize you’ve just written 400 words as a comment on someone else’s post, and it only took you four minutes.

If something was that provocative, give that original post a link and turn your comment into your very own post. It’s not cheating. You’re passing link juice to the original blogger and hopefully introducing your readers to a new conversation they may have otherwise missed out on.

In case you were wondering – yes, this was a last-minute post for me. I’m a bit of a procrastinator sometimes, but I still met my deadline! But no, I didn’t write it in under 10 minutes. It’s not a perfect system, but it works in a pinch!

Christina Gleason is a writer, blogger, former Google Quality Rater, and Founder of Phenomenal Content LLC. She is currently accepting new clients for SEO content writing, blogging, and editing services.

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8 fascinating comments

Great tips Christina. Quick and easy blog post with great information. I'll be passing this on! Thanks.

Rob Lewicki  ^#

Over time, I find I've developed a #6, which is that I've always got a couple of unfinished posts on file that I was never quite satisfied with and decided not to publish. Sometimes, if I go back to those, the fresh perspective let's me polish off one of them in 10-15 minutes and put it live. I suppose it's kind of like piggybacking on a previous post, but I'm piggybacking on previous work that never saw the light of day.

Dr. Peter J. Meyers  ^#

Pretty smart idea!

In general it is a very good idea to be working on more than one post at a time. There is no need to be linear in blogging.

Ruud Hein  ^#

Great ideas Christina! I usually spend way to much time writing posts. I'm sure it becomes negative productivity for me at some point. I like the idea of a poll, but I feel you would need a large reader base in order to pull that off.

Cool Gifts  ^#

Peter,

Always good to go back and check those unfinished "drafts" sitting there in WordPress. (I just took a look at mine this morning.)

Cool Gifts,

(Keyword name, really?) Yes, a large reader base makes it a lot easier to pull of a poll post. But with some good promotion in other locations, you can still make it work with a smaller readership.

Christina Gleason @ Phenomenal Content  ^#

I like the photo idea, have used it many times. I also like Ruuds mention of working on more than one post at a time. I find only a fraction of those posts get published, but it's easier to put something together in a short time span, if it's already partway hashed out.

Michael D  ^#

Thanks a ton Christina! I hope I will be able to remember most of your points. when I usually start writing a post on my blog I eventually start surfing and Finally by-the-time the Blog post ends, about 1-2 hours pass by easily.

Tech-Freak Stuff  ^#

I got mad at myself yesterday when I realized my I'd spent over two hours writing a single post for my LOST fan blog. Not the best use of my time because my ad revenue for that blog sucks, but at least the research was fun!

Christina Gleason @ Phenomenal Content  ^#