The most effective guest blog posts are the ones that capture the reader’s imagination. Posts which are basically a book cover, blurb and/or excerpt are not good form (unless it’s specifically what the site have asked for). It comes across as lazy and doesn’t give the site visitors anything they can’t find on the book’s buy page.

Ideally, the blog topic should be something you can think link back to your book – so it’s not purely promotional, but you can then easily get in a mention of your book. For example, if a particular place or person inspired you, you could talk about that in terms of ‘How X inspired my story, X.’ That way, you’re giving a real insight into you and your work and hooking people in. After the guest post, you can then include a blurb and your bio, along with buy links, which gives the reader a call to action.

Example blog post rundown:

• Topic title by Author Name
• Introduction
• Guest post which links to book you’re promoting
• Book blurb (cover will be inserted by blog host) including buy links
• Author bio, written in the third person. Include links to your website and social media profiles if you have them. The more ways you give people to engage with you, the better

Some sites may prefer to do interviews with you, which is fine. But to keep consistency, always include your bio and links at the bottom of your interview answers – unless the site requires otherwise.