How to batch write your blog posts to save time

Time batching is a technique where you work on similar tasks at the same time to improve efficiency and productivity while reducing mental exhaustion. Batch writing your blog posts is an example of this. Creating a blog post requires varying levels of concentration at each part of the process and so you can time batch at each step to save you time and energy.

When you work on a number of articles at the same stage i.e. research, drafting, editing, then your mindset remains in the one space. Writing takes a different set of skills than editing or formatting and when you jump into editing mode it can take you out of the flow of writing. So I'm going to share some ways you can batch write your blog posts to work to your strengths, save time and stay on track.

Brainstorming 

This happens before you start writing. Write a list of 10-20 blog post ideas. Ideally they will be similarly themed and align with your content strategy. 

If you need time for those ideas to become fully formed, keep a notebook handy and jot down ideas, angles and topics over a few days or weeks. Whenever I have a new blog idea I jot it down in a notebook, or, if i don’t have that handy I’ll add it to the notes app on my mobile. 

Lean into the pull of creativity

From your list of blog ideas, there will always be a few that will pull at you more than others. Allow yourself to go with these ideas, as long as they fit with your overall goals. i.e. don’t write about a random topic just because you feel like it, ensure it fits with your overall content goals. 

Research

If there are areas of your topic that you need to research further that will inform the angle you take on the blog post, then do it first. Put a time limit on it and ensure you have a clear focus on what information you need to obtain. If you just need to locate a few statistics here or there to compliment what you’ll be writing then you can leave that for the editing stage. This means you won’t be tempted to go down the rabbit hole of reading research articles and procrastinating the most important step of blogging: writing. 

Outlining in batch

Once you have, say, four topics that really speak to you, begin fleshing them out. A blog template, which you can create yourself, or purchase from my online store, will help you set up the structure of your blog post. Start with the topic idea, what you’d like to cover and the particular angle you want to take. There’s no need to come up with a catchy headline just yet. Then map out your sub-headers. What are the key points you want to make? Jot down a line under each header to indicate what you will cover under each sub-heading. 

Make sure you leave space to write a recap and a call to action. Your call to action is where you want to direct the reader after they’ve finished reading your blog post. This might be the “contact” page, you may redirect them to another blog post to read more about the topic, you may invite them to join your mail list or you may suggest they learn more about your services and offers. 

Sketch an outline for each of your four topics. Once you have your outlines, or a skeleton draft, as it’s sometimes referred to, you’re ready to start drafting. 

Drafting in batch

A great mindset hack for writing a blog post (or anything, really) is to approach it as a ‘draft’ and not the final version. Because if you agonise over every word and sentence you’ll never get to the end (or it will take you SO much longer to get there). In the writing world, we sometimes call this “vomiting” onto the page. Just get down anything that’s in your head about the topic and get words on the page. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be written. 

As you go you may come up with new ideas and shift around words and sentences but try not to get too hung up on how it’s all coming together until you’ve completed the first draft. 

“You might not write well every day, but you can always edit a bad page. You can't edit a blank page.”- Jodi Picoult

Once you have a rough draft, set it aside and get started on your next topic. It’s always a good idea to give some “breathing space” to your draft and look at it in a couple of days or a week later to come at it with fresh eyes. 

Editing in batch

Now this is the fun part! Okay, not “fun” if editing is not your cup of tea at all but it’s the part where you pull all of your ideas together to be concise, readable and closer to how you envisioned the piece to be. Closer, being the goal here, not exact. Because one of the realities of writing is that, even if something sounds amazing in your mind, it’s never going to translate perfectly on the page. And that’s okay. 

When I come back to edit a draft, it’s usually the moment when I’m worried I’ve written a load of crap, only to find that what's there isn’t so bad after all. It just needs polishing. 

This is when you’re coming up with your headline, you're reworking your introduction to reflect the rest of the piece and you’re tightening up your conclusion so that it summarizes the points you’ve made. You’re checking your word count and adding more layers or deleting fluff to add value without overwhelming the reader. 

First, you focus on the content. Don’t worry too much about spelling and grammatical errors until you’ve edited the content. Then when you’re happy with the words, you check for errors, flow and grammar. It is useful to read your blog aloud and notice where the sentences are too long or you stumble over your words.

Edit all of your blog posts in a batch. Once you’ve put your “editing” hat on you’ll quickly find a flow and rhythm to the work. 

Formatting in batch 

Now that your blog posts have been written and edited, they are ready to format and publish on your website. Do all of your posts at the same time and use the scheduling function to spread out the publication date for each post. If you’ve got four posts ready to go, schedule them weekly and you’ll have a month’s worth of content done. 

Copy the text onto your blog platform and source all of your images at one time. Add your SEO titles and descriptions, internal/ external links, and images and captions. 

Recap

Batching your blog posts not only saves time but you become more efficient at each of the stages of blog post creation; brainstorming, outlining, writing, editing and formatting. 

Need some help gathering your blog ideas? Get in touch for a content coaching session or take a look at my blog template and prompts in my online store.