I think that finding something to write about is a function of generating enough ideas that you find interesting.

Easier said than done, I get it…

Of course, you can write about anything under the sun – but most professionals find a niche to hang their hat on.

Your topic needs to be both interesting and sustainable. If it’s not interesting, you simply won’t do the work. And if it’s not sustainable, you will run out of work to do.

I enjoy the topic of grit and persistence, for example.

But these issues might be too narrow for me to find interesting in perpetuity. And they might become difficult to always find an original take on.

“Smart ideas from books” works well for me because I read, and I could read forever without running out of material.

Get it?

MOST WRITERS my age have to come to grips with one persistent problem: they have to find something to write about that interests them enough to make the investigation worth it. This priority is usually experienced by writers with a long trail of books behind them, as I have.

-Larry McMurtry, Literary Life (Amazon)

Larry McMurtry came up with the title to his famous novel Lonesome Dove – in a moment of total serendipity – directly from Lonesome Dove Baptist Church.

Lonesome Dove Baptist Church is located in Southlake, Texas.

The address if you get a wild hair to swing by is:

2380 Lonesome Dove Rd, Southlake, TX 76092

Of course, it is close to his frequent stop in Ponder…

Bonus: Since we are talking about ideas and church here, here is an idea on how to increase church attendance from Ben Franklin (his idea, not mine!).

A few miles south of Ponder, with the lights of Fort Worth just ahead, I happened to notice an old church bus parked beside the road, and on its side was written: Lonesome Dove Baptist Church. If ever I had an epiphany it was at that moment: I had, at last, found a title for the trail driving book. I promptly went home and—somewhat anticlimactically—finished the book.

-Larry McMurtry, Literary Life (Amazon)