How journalists write so much, so fast.

Steal a trick to write attention-grabbing first drafts in 20 min.

Using The Inverted Pyramid, the most popular writing structure among journalists will allow you to write the first drafts of your articles in as little as 20 minutes.

Because you’re busy. Right?

And maybe you’re not just busy; you’re also exhausted. So anytime you have a minute, you need to vegetate with a blank stare or pass out on the couch. (Hello, mamas!)

The reality is this: the faster you can produce great content, the faster your business will grow.

So what is The Inverted Pyramid, and how will that help?

This writing structure allows you to write first drafts within minutes using fill-in-the-blank prompts. It also captures readers’ attention immediately and keeps them engaged until the end.

Here’s how it goes.

1. You give us the most important part of the article by answering these questions: Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?

2. The body: includes supporting information, examples, personal story, and/or multimedia.

3. The tail: includes conclusion, additional background, or shows the reader how to proceed.

This is not to say that all stories in the world should be written using this structure.

However, it is really useful to have it in your writer’s toolbox next time when you have an idea for an article but don’t have the inspiration to write it.

If you jot down 200 words for each step of the Inverted Pyramid, you’ll have the first draft of your article in minutes. Then you can leave it be and return to polish it/add texture when you have a bit more energy.

In fact, to maximize my writing output, I often write all or almost all of my first drafts for the week in one day.

Then, on another day, I’ll focus on editing, choosing the best headline, submitting to publications, posting, etc.

And there you have it—one solution to the no time/no inspiration problem we all face as content creators online.

Did you find that helpful? I’d love to know.

Sending you a bucket of creativity,

Maya

PS. Anyone noticed this post was written following The Inverted Pyramid?