A Call For Guest Bloggers
Do you know something about photography? Would you like to share that knowledge with others? Or maybe you have your own photography website or blog and you'd like to promote it to other photographers and get your name out there? Then how about a guest-post here on the Epic Edits Weblog?
Based on the feedback from a previous poll, the majority of the audience would like to see more featured articles and quick-tips. So to keep up with demand, and to give others the opportunity to showcase their knowledge, I'm offering up guest author positions to those who are interested.
WHAT AM I LOOKING FOR?
I'm open to anything that would fit in with the other featured articles or quick-tips. Topics can include, but are not limited to:
- Composition
- Equipment
- Flickr
- General Tips
- Inspirational
- Interviews
- Lighting
- Macro
- Post-Processing
- Travel
Or if you have something that doesn't fit into any specific category, just run the idea by me and we'll figure something out.
WHAT DO YOU GET?
At this point in time, I can't offer any monetary compensations — but I may be open to that idea somewhere down the road. What you will get is:
- A place to write about photography without maintaining the entire site.
- A contributor account in my WordPress admin interface that allows you to manage your own profile and submit articles for review.
- A link in your author bio (at the end of the article) to your homepage.
- The ability to leave comments without having to fill out the form every time.
If I get a few people interested in doing this, I'll set up an author page that lists all of the contributing authors and I'll make it visible on the main menu bar. Also, for the comments, I'll work on getting things set up so that your comments will be formatted differently from the non-author comments — that way they stand out a little better.
WHAT'S THE FIRST STEP?
If you're interested, send an email to me at [blog at epicedits dot com] stating your intents for a first article idea, and a square cropped picture of yourself that will be used in your bio at the end of your posts. I'll set you up a contributor account and give you the required login information so you can get in there and start writing.
The contributor account allows you to write an article through the WordPress interface (just as I do), and when you're done you can submit it to me for review. I'm going this route so I can copy review the articles, offer feedback and suggestions to make it more effective, and to publish according to my typical schedule.
And no, I'm not planning on posting nothing but guest-posts from here out. I'll still publish the same number of articles I have been, I'll just be adding a few posts here and there from guest-writers if there's any interest.
Lisa
November 12, 2007This is really interesting. I’ll try to think of something, although I’m running out of topics for our blog as it is. 🙂
Brian Auer
November 12, 2007I know it… some weeks I’m on fire, and others I can’t write two words without giving up and plopping myself on the couch.
Neil Creek
November 12, 2007Very interesting move Brian 🙂
I’m going to ask a couple of up-front questions, because I’d like to know more about how it would work and what it would mean for me as a “struggling” blogger, but please don’t be offended, I’m not meaning to be confrontational 🙂
– Do you expect exclusivity? Would you accept an article that I also posted on my blog?
– If you wanted exclusivity, would a great article that I write do me more good on your site, bringing you traffic, than it would for me on my site? You have the much bigger audience, which may be sent on to me from my profile link, but my blog needs original content to attract more readers.
Essentially I suppose my questions are selfish. As much as I love writing and want as many people to see what I might write as possible, I want my own blog to grow and giving away my work might seem to go against that goal.
I was considering emailing this to you, but there may be other small blog authors out there with the same questions. I’m interested to hear your opinion!
Brian Auer
November 12, 2007Great questions Neil, I know exactly where you’re coming from — as I’ve had the same questions and concerns in the past.
Exclusivity is probably a must-have item. Repeated content can hurt both of us more than it would help. The search engines will see that we have the same content, probably penalize both of us, then toss one of the articles out the window in the SERPS.
I see your concern about posting original content on somebody else’s blog, as I’ve had the same concern myself prior to guest-blogging for others. The first guest-post I wrote for digital Photography School made it to the front page of Digg — which was my first Digg, and the article wasn’t even on my site! Another guest-post I did at Martin’s site also made it to the front page of Digg. Looking back, I’m not at all disappointed that the articles were posted to other blogs — the long-term benefits of those posts far outweigh the short-lived Digg traffic… and by “benefits” I mean more than just traffic to my site.
Take a look at this article about smarter blogging. Read item number 3 about the author of Skelliewag.org. Skellie has built herself up by heavily utilizing guest-posting on other blogs, and she’s even got a part-time position at Problogger.net.
Will a single guest-post bring you fame, fortune, and lots of long-lasting traffic? Probably not. It will probably get you a handful of new loyal readers, in addition to giving your site more exposure than you would have otherwise had. Take at look at Problogger’s “How to be a Good Guest Blogger” article for a few more insights on the guest-blogging thing.
Honestly, though, don’t feel pressured to do it. If you want to keep your content on your own site, you’re certainly within reason to do so.
Bryan Villarin
November 12, 2007I’m interested, but lacking solid ideas for full-fledged articles at the moment. (I wonder if I’m in a position to write photography articles to begin with!)
Is that still okay?
Brian Auer
November 12, 2007Bryan, you may be surprised at what you have to offer. I’m sure you could teach most of us a thing or two. Start coming up with some ideas and I’ll help you hash them out.
Neil Creek
November 12, 2007Thanks for the informative and reasoned response Brian! I feel a lot better about the idea of guest posting 🙂 I’ll have a read of the links you recommended and have a good think about what kind of meaningful contribution I could offer.
Brian Auer
November 12, 2007Cool. Just remember it’s an offer, not a demand. Seriously, no hard feelings if you choose not to — I really don’t expect everybody to jump all over this.