How to be a Good Guest Blogger

Guest Blogging is so important in this day and age, with the internet being the go to place for people to find information and ultimately to find you as an author. It is a great way to share your writing skills, your personality, find new people and to let readers get to know you but it is also about helping to attract more readers to that blogger’s website. Guest blogging should benefit both of you. It is not about you writing the article and then expecting your host to do all the marketing and awareness for it. It is up to you as well. In fact, it is in your interest to do all that you can to drive traffic to their site.
There are a lot of websites that are willing to host guest bloggers. If you are looking for a blog who does host articles, check out blogs that do book reviews. Most of them are willing to host you. Please note though that they are busy and get a lot of requests, so be patient and respectful. If you don’t hear from a blog within a few weeks, move on. Send out at least five to ten a week and move on to the next thing while you wait for the response. Most blogs are more than happy to host a guest.
If you are thinking about being a Guest Blogger, there are some things to find out and to keep in mind:
1. Before you send out a request, look over their website. Is it the type of website that fits with your book, your style and who you are?
2. Send an email to the owner of the blog and ask if you can do a guest post for them.
3. When they tell you they’d love to have you guest blog, ask what topics they might like to have you write about or do they have interview questions for you to complete.
4. What date could they host you and by when do they need all of your information? Also make sure you’re clear on what of your information they are willing to post. Most will put your name, your bio, your picture and even your book but find out.
5. Get them your article and other information well before they need it, you want to make it easy for them to put it up on their blog. Remember they are doing you a favor.
6. On the day your blog appears on their website, make sure that you post a link to it all over the internet, in as many social sites as you can and if you have a mailing list send that out. You can also create an event on many of the social sites and invite people. It is also a good idea to post it more than once, especially on sites like Twitter.
7. Interact with your host on one or more social networks.
8. Make sure you thank your host on their blog and on social networks.
9. If you have a blog, reciprocate. Let them know that you’d be more than happy for them to guest blog for you if they’d like to. Or maybe there is something else you can offer to them.
Guest blogging is fun, a great way to make new connections and find new followers. What are some things you do when guest blogging?
Maggie Thom was born and raised in rural Alberta. She made the hard decision to leave her successful, twenty year career in management, to write full time. The leap was easy, the freefall was adventurous and very enlightening. Give her five free minutes and you'll find her busy scribbling down ideas. She lives in the real world but loves to get lost in the lives of her characters - who live, love and laugh and are all figments of her imagination. She is thrilled to release her first novel - Captured Lies - filled with suspense, murder, mystery and romance - available October 2012. She is busy writing her second novel, Tainted Waters, to be released, spring of 2013.  Website http://www.maggiethom.com/. More details about the book

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