Love is in the Air ... and in the Vacuum of Cyberspace by Steph Beth Nickel

First, I must say, “Thank you, Glynis, for the invitation to post regularly to TWG blog.” Guest blogging is, indeed, something I love to do, thus, the title of today’s post.

Guest posting … there are conflicting ideas about the wisdom of inviting others to post on your blog. After all, don’t readers pop by to read what you, the blog owner, have to say?

That certainly may be true if you are the author of several books with a following of thousands or tens of thousands. However, many (most) of us are not at that point.

Plus, some blogs, like this one, are set up with the intention of having a number of different contributors.

Here are six things I love about guest posting:

1. I don’t have to come up with a topic. Sometimes my eclectic interests make it a challenge for me to zero in on my target audience and what I should write about for my own blog and website.

2. People I wouldn’t reach otherwise read my words—and hopefully, are encouraged.

3. By writing for others and seeing how they lay out their site, I get ideas for my own online presence.

4. I am becoming increasingly adept at using sites such as pixabay[dot]com and picmonkey[dot]com to create graphics to include with my posts.

5. As is the case for many writers, a looming deadline serves as a great motivator.

6. As a result of guest posting, I have developed friendships with those for whom I blog and others.

And six things I love about inviting others to guest post on my blog:

1. It provides encouragement to other writers who do not have their own blog.

2. It validates those who question the relevance and worth of their words.

3. It gives timid writers the opportunity to connect with an “audience.”

4. It gives these writers the opportunity to encourage my readers.

5. It gives my readers the opportunity to read something unique, something with a different voice.

6. When I was blogging regularly, it gave me a break.

So, to my fellow TWG members—and others—who welcome me to their blogs regularly, “Thank you! The vacuum of cyberspace is anything but dark and dreary because of you.”

If you have a blog, do you invite others to guest post? Regularly? Every now and then?

Do you guest post for others? What do you love about doing so?