Looking for a great idea for your next article or blog post? The answer is as close as your email inbox.

Many of the posts I write are based on things I receive in my email.  I get so many ideas handed to me this way, it is easy to keep adding content to my sites.

Are you missing out on this useful source of ideas and inspiration? Here is how to tap into it, starting right now.

Google Alerts.
Subscribe to Google Alerts to keep up with what is happening in your field. Set alerts for your top keywords, and when Google runs across a web page, blog post or news item about them you will get an email. I use this all the time for post ideas on my mystery shopper blog.

Sometimes I reference the item and link to it, adding my own thoughts and commentary. This is a recent example of this type of post. If you want a short post, you might just link to the post with a sentence or two. Including a live link to the original article is good netiquette, as well as being useful to your readers, so don’t forget to link.

You might also create a roundup post with links to many items identified through Google Alerts. This is an example of a roundup post from Rhonda Tipton’s blog.

Email newsletters.
I subscribe to email newsletters on a variety of topics, and an article or comment there may get my brain in gear. For example, this post about money was inspired by a newsletter from Paul Myers. Your favorite email newsletters may get you thinking about things you want to share with your readers. Or you may discover a resource that they could use.

Credit your inspiration as appropriate. And never reproduce their works without permission. Simply copying their article onto your web site (even with credit to them) is copyright infringement, and it is wrong. Linking to them is fine.

You might even write a review and recommendation of a newsletter you find especially valuable or interesting and suggest that your readers subscribe. (Maybe a newsletter such as IdeaLady Insider? Hint, hint.  ;o)   )

Questions from readers and clients.
I get a lot of questions and comments from readers who trust me to provide good information. The answer I send them may also be useful to many others, so I use it as the basis for a blog post or article. These questions are a frequent source of inspiration for me.

The next time you need inspiration, take a peek at your inbox, then start writing!