Follow Your Curiosity to Article Sales
(write about what you don't know and increase sales)
by Sandra I. Smith

"Write what you know" is a nemesis for many writers. We unnecessarily stall our careers when we think we need years of experience or education to become expert enough to write about our interests. I've taught myself enough to write about many subjects, simply by learning to follow my curiosity.

For example, although I've never studied gemology and I own very little jewelry, I've written for several publications about gems and jewelry.

My status as a gem and jewelry expert began six years ago, when I moved to the Southwest, where people favor turquoise jewelry.  Wanting to purchase some for myself, I began reading up on turquoise. I acquired an exquisite belt buckle, and I wrote an all-about-turquoise article for Rock & Gem magazine.

I kept following my curiosity and eventually wrote articles about how sellers "treat" gemstones to increase their value; imitation and synthetic gems; birthstones; gold and silver; how minerals become gemstones; the difference between carats and karats; jewelry history and design; and collecting costume jewelry.

Many of the above articles spawned their own series of articles. The article on birthstones led to a monthly column on gemstone folklore.  My interest in carats led to weights and measurements throughout time; jewelry design got me started on colors and materials; and I discovered there is no end to articles about items that people like to collect.

I've parlayed my curiosity about turquoise into expert status on gemstones, and I've let it lead to myriad other subjects. You can do the same with any person, place, phrase, or product that piques your curiosity. Every time you say "I wonder why?" or "I wish I knew," you have the seed of an article. Find the answer to your question, and you'll reap dozens more questions and answers, all of them potential articles.

I've trained myself to ask "why?" or "how?" about my daily life, and I've found that I'm far more curious than I thought. For example, an early draft of this article contained the expression "the sky is the limit."  Turning my curiosity loose on that phrase generated the following questions:

How did that particular expression get into our vocabulary? If air is invisible, why is the sky blue? What's visible light?

Who invented air conditioning? What *are* all those chemicals in my hair conditioner? Are air, water, and earth chemicals? How did our world get to be named Earth? Who named the other planets?

Why are there twelve signs of the Zodiac if there are only nine planets? How did time get divided into years, months, weeks, days?

The last question led me to studying calendars and learning about lunar and solar timekeeping. From there I went to Daylight Saving Time, clocks and watches, and longitude, which depends on accurate timekeeping. Researching longitude led to maps, directions, compasses, and global positioning systems.

See how easy it is? All of that came from just *thinking* about the sky. Dozens more article ideas will come as I delve deeper into research and writing.

Searching for esoteric subjects and studying them for years isn't necessary for most writers. Look at everything around you with curiosity. An infinity of ideas awaits you--and because you're interested, acquiring the knowledge needed to write about them is fun and easy. One simple question can lead to a year's worth of writing.  And you can ask a new question every minute!

Today, my curiosity wants to know why I procrastinate, why flower petals are shaped the way they are, who invented tea bags, and how to organize all my ideas. It also wants to know why we describe things that are easy to do as "a piece of cake."

What are you curious about? Check out a book, talk to people, surf the Net. Answers, and article sales, are waiting for you.

About The Author:  Copyright (c) 1998, Sandra I. Smith. Copyright Notice: All material on this site is copyrighted. Copyrights are retained by original authors. All rights reserved. Please contact the author for permission to reprint, reuse and/or duplicate in any manner.