“Start a blog,” they tell us. “It’s a great way to build your brand and get your name out there!” Alas, marketing your first book by starting a blog is no longer the easy step forward. The blogging industry has become just as saturated, at least, as the book publishing industry. Instead of helping you market your books, a blog just gives you an extra thing to market. But that doesn’t mean you can’t market through blogs! The magic wand you’re looking for is called guest-posting.
Guest-Posting: a building vs. a billboard
I once attended a writers’ conference in which author Chuck Sambuchino compared blogs to buildings and billboards. The point he made was this: which is easier? To build a whole building from the ground up, or to slap your billboard on the side of somebody else’s skyscraper?
If you have something you need to say, and you have a lot to say about it, starting a blog could be a great idea. If your goal is purely to market something else through that blog? Then starting a blog means giving yourself a whole new chore (and not a small one, either). We’re talking about frequent deadlines, constant SEO editing, branded image creation. And all of that AFTER you pick a narrow focus and build an actual website and figure out all that formatting stuff.
And none of that guarantees your blog will have actual traffic. I hate to sound like a naysayer, but all the SEO editing in the world won’t bring readers by itself. You’ll have to be constantly sharing through Pinterest, social media outlets, your newsletter, and anywhere else you can think of. You’ll also be learning how to add tracking pixels and analytics, so you can see which shares and links are actually bearing fruit.
It’s not that you can’t do it. It’s that there is a much easier, much simpler way to get your name in front of eyes.
The advantages of guest-posting on blogs like MWW
Maybe you have something to say, but you can’t keep vamping about it for years on end. Those words don’t have to be wasted.
Maybe you have a really successful blog already, but there’s a topic you want to touch that doesn’t fit the brand you’ve built. Or, maybe you recognize the advantages of tapping someone else’s to increase yours.
Maybe you want to experiment with topics and see what you find easiest to write before you put in all the effort of building your own blog.
All of these are excellent reasons to try guest-posting first! In fact, several of our admin members have guest-contributed at major blogs like Her View From Home. They have even been paid for their submissions! Now, MWW can’t currently pay money for guest submissions; our entire staff works on a volunteer basis. However, there is a more important advantage of guest-posting here instead of somewhere else.
Loyalty, community, and support (yes, maybe even sales).
Moms Who Write is somehow at once both a very large and very tight-knit community, as far as internet tribes go. Our members are fiercely loyal, and value supporting other writer-moms as we all face such similar struggles of balancing life with our passion.
So while MWW can’t pay you for your guest-post, we can introduce you to a unique audience– one which genuinely only needs to know your name to want to lift your career! As you’ll see on our submission form, you’ll have the chance to sign off every guest post with a brief bio. In it, you are encouraged to include links to your own blog, social media, website, or even where a reader can purchase your work. And, unlike at those behemoth blogs posting tens of articles a day, this is a place where your name is much less likely to be lost in the crowd.
Plus, the fact you’re reading this is proof that the blogs we’re looking for are right up your alley!
What kinds of guests posts are we looking for?
If you are a mom who writes, share your wisdom! Tell us how you landed that agent. Tell us which ads program worked for you. If you’ve read a book by another MWW author, please– submit a review! The author (and the MWW admin team) will love you forever.
Don’t sink endless hours into something you don’t have to. Save that time for writing your actual books, spending time with your family, and the things you enjoy.
About the Writer: Kathryn Tamburri (@KathrynTamburriAuthor) writes clean YA epic fantasy novels which seethe with slow-burn romance. You can find more of her writing tips on The Devo Blog at KathrynTamburri.com, and learn from her publishing journey by subscribing to her fun author newsletter!