Why are guest posts important to indie authors?

Writing a book is just a part of your job as an indie author. Marketing your indie books is a huge task that begins after you finish your manuscript and get it published. As an indie writer, it is entirely up to you to get the word out there and get everyone to hear about how awesome it is. 

Spreading word through the social media about your book is just breaking the surface. Ask any author and they will tell you it needs more than a couple of tweets and likes.

It is upon us to reach out to the book bloggers and readers community through every open avenue and guest blogging opportunities are just an extra tool to do that. 

What is guest blogging?

I love writing on my blog and when some other blogger offers me a chance to do that on their blog, it is just more than an opportunity to write that I receive. It means the blogger trusts me enough to let me take over their personal space, which is a huge thing for me. 

I am always looking for book sites to guest post, if you are a book blogger looking for a guest blogger, do reach out to me! I recently wrote on Dani’s Perspective of a Writer on Bookstagram and how it affected my reading habits. 

Let us talk about why you, as an indie author should be spending time on writing guest posts on other blogs. #guestposts #indieauthor #indiepromotion Click To Tweet

But that is not what I wanted to talk to you about right now. I want to tell you that I am currently accepting guest posts from indie authors on Elgee Writes. More about that later, but let us talk about why you, as an indie author should be spending time on writing guest posts on other blogs. 

Why are guest posts important to indie authors?

I know how busy all of you are – writing plots, rewriting plots, editing your manuscript, thinking of miserable ways to kill my favorite characters, seeking out publishers, emptying the wine bottle and ordering Chinese takeout – yes yes, important things! 

But I am just trying to make my case on why you should add guest posts on that list of to do things. Here we go!

Putting your name out there!

There is it. I don’t even have to sugar coat this, do I? Every author, indie or otherwise, is looking for new avenues to put their name and their book’s in front of new audience everyday, and guest post in your favorite book blogger’s site or any other book site would do that easily.

I mean a book blogger will definitely share a similar but new audience as you (AKA bookworms AKA your readers) and what better way to put yourself on a blast than to address them via their favorite blogger?

Reviews are not all that you need

Of course book reviews are critical to your sales and marketing. But they are not all, are they?

Even if you can afford to send a free copy to every book blogger you know, there is no guarantee that they are gonna review your book on their site nor that is going be a positive one. 

But you get to control where and when you are gonna write a guest article and you could schedule it to suit your promotional plans. It is even a win-win for you and the book blogger in that way.

Choose what you talk about

That brings us to my next point – you can decide on what you are writing about. 

Initially the book blogger discusses with you on what sorta content they expect from you, but other than they usually do not interfere in your writing process. Depending on the topic you choose, you can be as informal and friendly as you want. 

Many authors I know choose to talk about their books and their characters and some even discuss about their writing craft. It depends entirely on you to write whatever you want to talk about. 

Lead them to your author website

In the age of social media, having an author website is kinda indispensable. It acts as a hub to your online presence and all your social accounts. 

Linking your guest posts to your website and your articles will increase the number of page visits to your site and thus improved online presence. Of course, higher page hits means more revenue, if you are into monetization. 

Pitch in your guest post ideas!

That brings me to the end of the post, almost. As I mentioned earlier, Elgee Writes is currently open for accepting articles from authors, artists and anyone who is related to the self or independent publishing world. If that is you and you are interested to write a guest post on related topics, drop me a message here.

Pin me!

guest posts important

Let’s chat

Do you do guest articles? What are you favorite sites that accept guest posts from bloggers? If you have any author friends that are looking for sites to contribute, do share this post with them. And as always, let us talk.

16 Comments

  1. UAE Book Publisher

    Book Blogging can play an important role in the promotion of your work. As an indie author, it is good to express your thoughts and work to the reader by posting content on good and related site. The detailed you mentioned for guest blogging are quite helpful for writers in promoting their masterpiece towards readers. Keep sharing good stuff.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thank you for your kind words!

      Reply
  2. jacob noah

    Yes, surely guest Post is necessary for indie authors. Even if they write impressive books they still need to promote it and guest posting is a better way to do it. You mention some important points in your content. Thanks for sharing it.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thank you for your kind words. Happy New year!

      Reply
  3. Jenn @ Bound to Writing

    Thank you for being so supportive of the indie community! I loved guest posting for you and sharing my knowledge with other authors!

    Reply
  4. Kate @ Bitch Bookshelf

    So true. I love featuring indie authors on my blog. especially for guest posts.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Glad we share that!

      Reply
    • Gayathri

      Am sure the authors appreciate your help!

      Reply
  5. Bentley

    Really interesting perspective. I’m not an author, but I can see how expanding one’s social media presence through guest posts on other blogs is important!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thank you! Glad you liked my post.

      Reply
  6. Gemma

    Great post. I’m sure this is very helpful to many people.
    Gemma @ Gemma’s Book Nook

    Reply
  7. Robin Taylor

    This is an excellent article.

    Reply
  8. Dani @ Perspective of a Writer

    Great points Gayathri! Especially to send readers to an authors site! I love checking these out. BUT its quite irritating when these sites aren’t kept up to date. Once a quarter each page should be read over and book releases added. This is a PR portal for you as an author.

    Reply
  9. Genesis @ Whispering Chapters

    I have never thought of this! I’ve seen authors do guest posts but I guess I never considered it for my blog? But wow, this makes so much sense. Just recently, I signed up to review a book by one of my fave authors. And I’m regretting clicking “no” on guest post 🙄🙄 Thanks for sharing this! It definitely helps for the author to get exposure from the blog’s readers.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Well, all the best for your new venture. I am sure you will help out so many authors !

      Reply

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Gayathri

Gayathri

Gayathri has been reviewing books since 2010. When she is not reading books or creating online content, she works as a writer and a digital marketer. Head over to meet me!