Creating content can be daunting.

Creating long-form content even more.

Even if you may have some motivation by being paid for it (if you are a freelancer like me), when you sit at your computer to write, you may feel dried out.

The words don't come, and time passes. You either think you are good enough or that writing is not your thing finally. You feel stressed.

I know what it is; I have been there too.

Except that you are like everybody else. There is nothing wrong with you.

The problem is in the method you use.

Starting from scratch by staring at a blank page will make your work much more difficult.

The solution?

Using a framework, a process, will guide you from start to finish without leaving any space for self-doubt.

If you follow the process I give you in this article, you won't feel stuck anymore.

Here are the 9 steps you must follow for writing efficiently.

The 9 steps of my no-fail blog writing process

1. Know the reader

You need to know who you are writing for.

An efficient blog post should attract and bring value to a specific audience.

Do you write for the general public? An audience of layers, business owners, sales representatives?

It goes even deeper than professional or social categories. You have to try to understand the mindset and the thoughts your reader has when it comes to the topic of your blog post.

The keyword is empathy.

Cultivate that skill each time you write by taking a moment to think as deeply as you can about your reader and her life.

Keep this in mind when you write and when you edit.

2. Mission statement

I learned this tip from Tom Albrighton in his book "How to write clearly" which I highly recommend.

Here is how to do it: write a paragraph that explains the mission of your article. Describe the audience, where they are before reading, and where they will be after reading (transformation).

3. Research

Analyze what has been published on the topic.

The basics are the top 5 organic results on the SERP, but you will create a much better article if you go beyond that and find other sources of information.

This will help your article to stand out and rank.

4. Outline

Define the sections required to support the mission you wrote at the beginning.

Use Google's "People Also Ask" and tools like Answer the public to find what people want to know on the topic.

Pro tip: I use an outliner software, Dynalist, to write super-fast outlines. You can reorganize, reorder at will and be as granular as you wish with the infinite list feature at the core of this app.

5. Research each headline

Take each section of the article and do some research like in step 3.

It will give more depth to your content.

You will gather the essential information and related questions and topics to add more depth to your article.

6. Add links/pointers

While doing your research, you find interesting links and resources.

Copy/paste the links in your document for future reference and inspiration when writing.

You are probably writing for online content; thus, adding links to external resources is an excellent addition to your text. It is also one of the search engine optimization techniques.

7. Draft

Time to write. Just type and type without making any pause. You want to reach a flow state where the words are coming out from the tip of your fingers without effort. That is the state I am in as I am writing this paragraph.

Deactivate your grammar and spelling software. Ignore the mistakes you are typing. This will come later.

Also, don't forget who you are writing for. Use a tone and level of language adapted to your readership. You won't write the exact text for a high school student and a business finance expert, even if it is the same topic.

8. Edit

Time to cut the fluff.

After letting your work sleep a night, read back your mission statement and make sure everything fits well.

Don't add more sections to make your blog post longer and supposedly rank higher on Google. It doesn't work like that.

Readers first!

9. Deliver or publish/revise

Do the final formatting, add images and videos.

If you write for a client, ask for feedback and adjust accordingly.

If you publish it for yourself, go back after some time and edit it again.

It is also a good time to do the basic on-page SEO: URL, title, meta-description, H2, internal links, and external links.

Conclusion

After reading this article, you should have a clear path to follow for each article you write. You will not stare at a blinking point and hope for some inspiration to come down from the ceiling like a spider from its web.

You have an action plan, and by taking action on each step, you won't let your doubts stop you.

In summary:

1. Know the reader
2. Write a mission statement
3. Research
4. Outline
5. Research each headline
6. Add links/pointers
7. Draft
8. Edit
9. Deliver/revise

What to do next?

Comment below if you find this helpful and have questions or more tips to share.

And apply this framework. At least try it and see how you feel next time you write.