If you write iPhone articles, read them, or are even acquainted with the world of Apple at all, you’re bound to be familiar with the ubiquitous iPhone rumor. Over the course of my Apple fandom and subsequent employment at an iPhone-centric website, I’ve come across more iRumors than I can count. What I’ve noticed during that time is that there seems to be a few essential elements that go into these stories that takes them from mere speculation to full-fledged, fanboy-exciting Apple rumors. It’s a sort of recipe, if you will. I’ve decided to provide you with the ingredients so you can cook up a rumor of your very own!

1. Hot topic – For any iPhone rumor to be successful, it has to center on some aspect of the device or the software that is popular at that moment. No one would really care about a rumor about Apple lengthening the headphones wire by two inches, but take those extra two inches and throw them on the iPhone’s display instead, and you’re one step closer to your very own iPhone rumor.

2. Vague sources – As with any rumor, it has to originate somewhere. Apple is very tight-lipped about upcoming products, so any leaked information is going to come from outside the company. The key here is to cite a source vague enough to remain anonymous, yet close enough to the product in question to be believable. “Someone close to the matter,” and “someone within the supply chain” are both very loquacious about the inner workings of our favorite Cupertino company, so you might want to talk to those guys.

3. Language – Apple rumors are basically hit or miss, and there’s no way to tell what’s true until a products comes out. For that reason, baking certainties into your rumor is a bad idea. Instead, spice it up with a pinch of “allegedly” and maybe a dash of “reportedly” for that not-quite-certain-but-still-exciting flavor.

4. Likelihood – And finally, everyone likes a tasty, new rumor, but the iBaker must remember to keep the rumor within the realm of possibility. If you try to sell a rumor about the iPhone 5 doubling as a fully-funtioning flying broomstick, your rumor won’t attract very many customers. Remember, it has to make sense or it’ll just taste bad.

Alright, now you’re all set to go out and cook up your very own iPhone rumors! Just for fun, leave a comment down below with a quick rumor of your making that uses these ingredients. I’d love to see what you guys come up with!