We've taken that still broad idea of potty training and broken it down into four smaller pieces, each of which can stand on its own as an article. Depending on the topic, you might be able to boil it down one more time and still have a good article. Be careful, however, not to take it too far and risk querying an idea for which you won't be able to deliver an article because the subject is too narrow and there isn't enough to say about it. This line of thinking can paralyze new writers. You don't need to know it all.
Research is a beautiful thing.
Don't let your own lack of knowledge keep you from pursuing hot article assignments. As long as our writer is willing to interview experts who know about potty training and talk to other parents who have dealt with the related issues, she has four great ideas with which to work. Take your topic, whatever it is, and run it through your mental distillery to develop a multitude of viable article ideas. All rights reserved.