A blog is probably the single greatest way to drive traffic to your site. This is true no matter what type of business you have, what your creative passion is, or what your website is about. Blogs that are consistently updated with new, relevant content are the best way to nurture an audience into a following.

But, it can be super difficult to come up with good topics week after week (or day after day), especially if your creative pursuit doesn’t mesh well with being written about. Even bloggers whose topic choices come with a wealth of built-in post ideas struggle from time to time to come up with fresh content. What can a creative entrepreneur write about when she has no idea what to write about? Here are seven good places to start.

Behind the scenes

This is a blogging stand-by. Readers love seeing behind-the-scenes moments from their favorite creators. Why? In a word, relatability. Showing off your office or creative workspace makes readers feel like they know you. You’ve invited them into a piece of your life, and in many cases, your home, and so they have a better understand of who you are, not just what you do. Use your blog to give them a virtual tour of “where the magic happens”. This will likely spawn even more post topics as they ask about certain items in the space or how you achieved a particular look.

Favorite tools/supplies

Chances are, even if you’re new to entrepreneurship, you’re not new to creativity. You’ve been pursuing your creative passion for a while, and have had the time to try out and evaluate the tools of your trade. Whatever it is that you do, there is someone else out there who is looking for recommendations on products to try. Personally, I’m always looking for insights on new drawing papers, colored pencils, markers, etc. You could even make this an in-depth blog series, really exploring each type of tool or supply, and comparing different brands or manufacturers.

Works in progress I

This works particularly well for visual artists, but all creatives can run with the idea. Our audiences might prefer to believe that everything we do comes into the world fully formed, but that’s far from the truth. Mistakes, false starts, descending muses — all these and more make for a wild and woolly path from idea to creation. Share that journey with your readers. Explain and explore your process. Vent about the obstacles you overcome. Let them see the person behind the creative. You can mine this topic for a lot of blog posts, and build a sense of community and trust with your readers at the same time.

Works in progress II

Use a blog post to explore the creation of one piece from start to finish, with lots of images to show the journey. Showing the progression of work lets readers feel like they have a greater stake in what you’ve made. They might relate to your inspiration, or they’ll marvel at how you’ve managed to make something from nothing.

New finished works

Whenever you get ready to launch something new into the world, take a moment and evaluate whether it would make for interesting reading. Pieces you especially love, or especially struggles with, often make the best stories. Creatives put a little bit of themselves into everything we do; share that with your audience to manifest a deeper connection.

Techniques and Tutorials

You have a lot to teach your readers, and, unless you’ve developed a super-secret proprietary technique, it won’t take away from your income stream. Do a series of short tutorials on techniques you use on a regular basis. This gives your readers an inside look at your process, as well as insight as to what makes your work valuable. The more people know about what you do, the skills you’ve developed, and the time and effort required, the more they will value what you do.

Inspiration and Motivation

How did you get started? What inspires you to keep going? Where do you get your ideas? (Seriously, that last question is asked of creatives all the time.) Answer these kinds of questions to keep readers interested and coming back for more.