The Ultimate Guide to Content Planning for Solo Creators
Whether we are considering writing, podcasting, filmmaking, or the one-man pest control company that only has a few hours to spend on marketing, every solo content creator reaches a point just after they decide what to do.
They don’t know how to do it.
I mean, they know how to do it. But doing one thing after another, and making a career of it? It’s overwhelming.
This is going to be a scary ride, but scary is another word for exciting. Here's a look at the map before we take the plunge.
1. Establish the deadline
2. Dip a toe in the water
3. Skipping the brainstorm
4. Trying the schedule
5. Setting fiction levels
6. Defining the target audience
7. Iterating the schedule
8. Content management tools
9. Confront your image in the cave
10. Choose a niche (if you want)
11. Set your goals
12. First day of work
Establish the deadline
If you have read any other guides on content creation, it might look like the steps are out of order at first glance. Once you get to the end you might decide to revise the steps. That's fine, it’s just what I did with this guide.
I'm starting with the deadline because this should be the easiest decision to make.
If you are a solo creator, you are your own boss. You are J. Jonah Jameson, screaming at yourself to get pics of Spiderman.
Even if you imagine yourself as a more forgiving guide, you will need to set guidelines for yourself. The critical guideline, if you create content, is the deadline.
The deadline depends both on what you want to create and your life circumstances.
One or more times a day - Short social media posts
Every one to three days - Blog posts, high-quality photos, short videos
Every week - Long videos (over ten minutes), podcast episodes, songs, high-quality articles
Every month - Monthly publications, intensely researched and produced projects (assuming a dedicated audience)
Whenever it's finished - Books, films, albums, games, other vast projects
Each of the deadlines listed above can be considered a form of torture. However, it will take discipline to get where you want to go.
And that means, at some point, setting deadlines.
Dip a toe in the water
It's time to try the thing.
This doesn't mean to jump into a tutorial or to read some articles. It means to put something into the world.
It probably sounds intimidating to post that first video, or to take the stage on open mike night. If you need to, it's alright to take a smaller step.
Break the process into the smaller steps that will eventually lead to that stage.
For most content creation paths, writing is an excellent place to start.
Writing is the backbone to stage and screen, the lyrics to music.
It is the basic building block of the outline, the email, the text.
Even if you want to have zero presence on social media, you are likely to use words in some capacity. But journaling, in public, will both clarify your thoughts and chip away at your stage fright.
One cool aspect of trying new things this early is that, if you don't enjoy it, you can try something else.
Skipping the brainstorm
The brainstorming stage of development is often a method artists use to procrastinate. It is okay to skip this step.
What you will want to do instead is pay attention to ideas that come later in the process. These could be stray comments, thoughts late at night, or realizations during review.
If the idea is good enough, you will either find a way to incorporate it later in the process, or you will have a good understanding of why it can't be used.
Trying the schedule
If you haven't established a deadline yet, let's consider the alternatives.
You can try to create something without a deadline. You can create only when moved by the muse. If you already have a dedicated audience, maybe they will put up with this. But if you aren't doing big complex projects, and you don't have a regular schedule, you are likely to be forgotten. You'll also have trouble keeping up the momentum to create, or struggle to compete with those that are consistent. Creativity thrives under pressure.
You can also bail and focus on your day job; in which case you won't need this guide.
If you still can't pick a schedule, it doesn't matter too much. Large projects will be broken down into manageable chunks. The work will probably look the same; carving out the time you have each day to write or do other tasks.
Now, think about your day as it is now. Are you working, or otherwise occupied? How much time can you spend on content creation a day?
If you're already thinking that you will be too busy on some days, schedule at least 10 minutes at the beginning of each day to work the project. Consistency is key. Planning days where you don't work either means you're planning to fail, or you don't enjoy the work enough to do it every day.
I almost got a little meaner about working every day, but as I pointed out earlier, you're the boss. It's your call.
Setting fiction levels
For some, this won't take long at all. For others, it will be a constant struggle.
How fictional is what you're creating?
This question is not as straightforward as it sounds.
Maybe you write pure fantasy, but you also maintain a social media presence that is closer to reality. Your horror film might be irrelevant without the implicit social commentary. Your lyrics might imply a world far in the past, or that never was.
Alternately, you might be a relationship columnist who has to write around your current relationship. You might be a political writer who has to avoid the one topic that would make you an outcast to your readers. Or you could be anyone who decides not to publicize a personal tragedy.
The point is that no content creator exists purely in the fiction or nonfiction realm. Each of us needs to constantly adjust the dial.
There is no correct path. Just keep in mind that the audience will respond to your choices, these responses can't always be anticipated, and you have to decide what is correct for you.
Oh, and the more professionalized your image, the more everyone understands that you are presenting fiction. This is okay. People like fiction.
Defining the target audience
Your audience is a moving target. Plan accordingly.
A common suggested path is to lean on friends and family for the early audience, do something unique to get a foothold, and eventually pivot to something more mainstream.
However, there are many paths up the mountain.
Creating unique or controversial products may be more important to you than a large audience. Loyalty may matter to you more than size. The wealthy may desire something the majority doesn't. Parts of your audience will reject changes in direction.
Despite all this, there are some things about your audience that you need clarity on.
Who are they? What traits do they share? What problem are you solving for them?
Most importantly, can you imagine a younger version of yourself in this audience? If not, figure out why, and fix it if you need to. Audiences are usually quick to pick up on contempt, and even if you fool them, selling to an audience you don't respect is a lonely existence.
Iterating the schedule
Now that all the plates are in position, you merely have to keep them spinning.
What are you doing each day? Is it sustainable?
How are you making money? Does this strategy need to shift?
Are you meeting your goals? If you plan to leave your day job, is the path clear?
Are you spending enough time marketing? The grind of networking and sending out letters of introduction is where many people bail on the process.
Can you come up with additional questions, based on your unique situation? If the questions are relevant, add them to your review.
The eternal limitations are that there are so many hours in the day, and you must make more money than you spend.
A month from now, ask yourself these questions again. Make a habit of kicking the tires.
Content Management Tools
This advice will be highly dependent on what you create, as well as personal preferences.
Make a list of your needs.
You likely need a scheduler to plan your days. You probably need outreach tools like a phone, email, and social media. You probably need a strategy to block out the distractions of the phone, email, and social media, since this is vital to achieve a state of deep work. You may benefit greatly from AI and automation tools. Other tools specific to your field may be needed, such as video editing software.
Now double-check the list of needs. If there is a need that is costing you a lot of time or money, you can go ahead and implement the tool. If one would be fun to try, and you can afford it, add that one too. Put off using the rest; you have gotten this far without them.
Confront your image in the cave
Don't half the Star Wars movies have a character enter a cave to confront their doppelganger? I don't pay attention to all that nerd stuff, but this hits on something that content creators have to wrestle with.
Everyone who has ever updated a resume has a phantom version of themselves in the ether. This image is kind of like you, but much of it is frustratingly out of your control. It often doesn't have much correlation to your internal experience.
Your image can be improved in certain ways. You can learn public speaking. You can get a gym membership. You can avoid being cruel to others. You can tell some jokes.
There are also a range of behaviors that will improve your image for business purposes, that you are resistant to do for other reasons. Your sense of internal ethics may compel you to advocate for an unpopular cause or avoid certain selling tactics. You might swerve away from a profitable choice for aesthetic reasons, like avoiding ads on a personal webpage.
This is all fine, as long as you are aware of what you are doing.
The problem is that most of us aren't aware of what we are doing.
This is why it is important to step outside ourselves, to truly confront the image. It is necessary, at times, to consider criticism. It is beneficial to obtain advice from friends, or therapy. We might resist this for egotistical reasons, but if your business is built in part on your reputation, this is a cold business decision.
Choose a niche (if you want)
A lot of career advice will list this as the first step. Having a unique audience in your sights is an advantage when planning the other aspects of your career.
But if you're like me, and you need a detailed guide for the whole process, this might be a difficult decision for you.
This is why I put this step near the end. Presumably, at this point, you have created a lot of.... something. So, look back at your works. Can you spot common styles or themes? Can you fit it into a genre?
If so, it might help you to lean into it. You're the guy who writes B2B copy about printer ink. You're the girl who directs heist films set in the 1860s where the main character might be hallucinating the plot. You are the synthwave gothic cowboy.
You can always change it up if it gets too boring.
First day of work
Alright, have you figured out your regular deadline schedule? What your average workday looks like? The actual creation process? You might be ready to begin.
If you are doing news, or something informal like a blog or react channel, you won't have time for much of a review process. Everyone else needs to take a day, and look at their work with fresh eyes before hitting submit.
It's probably a good idea to have some completed works in the hopper, in case of emergencies. You want an idea repository, at least. Store as much as you require for peace of mind.
The last bit of advice is to let go of perfectionism. Once you have your creation at 90%, it is time to send it into the wild. No one ever reaches perfection.
Alright. You know what to do next!
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