Among the things that came up during the blogging panel of the Catholic Writers Conference Live last week was the subject of guest posting.
One of my favorite authors shared with me after the session that she’s really struggling with blogging. She has REAL writing commitments, paying gigs. Blogging is a distraction, in many ways, from the work she needs to get done.
On the other way, as she pointed out to me, it helps keep her in touch with her readers in between books.
A few months ago, I was a loud proponent of her beginning a blog. (What can I say? I’m a fangirl!) Now, after talking with her and considering her situation, I’m not so sure.
Guest Posting Options
Guest posting is a real option and even an alternative to blogging. In fact, I offer it to anyone who’s interested and can think of a good topic to share at my place: come on over and guest post. I’ve had a number of interesting folks in the past, and I’m happy to share my space with others. Email me!
Lisa Hendey also offered CatholicMom.com to those interested: you can be a regular columnist or write guest posts there as well. You just need to contact her.
I haven’t talked to our Blog Editor here, but I’m quite sure the Catholic Writers Guild blog could always use more guest content as well…so check out the schedule and contact the appropriate person.
Benefits of Guest Posting (whether or not you blog)
1. It gets you exposed to a different audience, or, if you’re not a blogger, to an online audience.
2. It’s a win-win, in many ways. The blogger gets good content; you get a chance to tap into their audience.
3. It might stretch you to write in a different way, for a new subject, or for a set of people you might not have a chance to connect with otherwise.
Should You Blog?
I can’t answer that for you. There’s a discernment that has to happen…but I can point you to a discussion we had before and offer my one-on-one advice.
Related posts:
– To Blog or Not to Blog
– Coming Up with Blogging Content
– Blogger’s Block
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Be sure to check SnoringScholar.com for more of Sarah Reinhard’s antics, tales of rural adventure, and writing updates. Her newest release is Welcome Baby Jesus: Advent & Christmas Reflections for Families. You can also connect with Sarah on Twitter and Facebook.
Sarah Reinhard
When Sarah Reinhard's not writing online at SnoringScholar.com, she can be found on Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, Facebook, or Google +. She's the author of a number of books, including her latest title, Catholic Family Fun: A Guide for the Adventurous, Overwhelmed, Creative, or Clueless.
Scott, I bet we have a handful of TOB enthusiasts here. (I'm one). What kind of guest posts are you looking for?
I'm a big fan of guest posting. From the moment I conceived my site, TOBToday.com, I knew it would only be successful only if I gained the support of my fellow TOB enthusiasts. It's taken some time to gain traction, but in less than a year I now have some regular contributors and interest from others to share as well. I hope to devote more time to the site and gain more contributors in the coming year.
It is much easier to provide new content when you don't have to rely solely on your own inspiration, which I find is often hard to come by. My strength is in the technical and "marketing" side of things. I prefer to promote and build my site, filling it up with the help of those who know much more about the topic than I do. If you're a Theology of the Body enthusiast, please sign up to share your thoughts and experiences…I'd love to have you join us.
Yes! We take guest posts! I'm currently focusing on filling out our Catholic Fiction slots, and have had some wonderful CWG members step forward to help out with that. But any article approximately 500 words or less and somehow related to Catholic writing & publishing is fair game for the CWG blog.
–> Any place you see "CWG Guest Bloggers" on the schedule means I'm looking for writers to fill openings.
Regular columns should be original material, but I'll publish reprints from guest bloggers (you must own the copyright!) on a space-available basis. [Reprints always go to the back of the line, unless they really, really zing.]
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Great topic by the way. One reason I encourage guest posts is because I want to provide an outlet for CWG members to share their work on the blog, without sucking away valuable paid-work writing time.
I'm also switching to heavily encouraging no more than a monthly commitment for our regular CWG columnists. That seems to be a realistic target that still leaves lots of time to write.