I started this blog as a way to share tips and ideas that will make our lives easier. Not only have I learned a ton, but 25 million visitors have stopped in and hopefully enhanced life a tad.
If you have an interest in helping people or if you simply want to get your name out there, don't hesitate to send in an article. You don't have to have a website, a blog, or any alternative agenda. All you need is a little fire inside that wants to help the average person's life become easier.
Getting Started
I receive about twenty articles each day and it's difficult to go through all of them. But I do. Guess what, quality wins every time. Grammar, topic, format, spamminess, etc., are all things that weigh in on my decision. If you look at all of the articles on DLM, you'll notice that we're big into giving the reader good, honest, actionable advice. That's what I'm looking for.
Before submitting your first article. I highly recommend that you participate in this guest blogging course. Graduates of this program automatically get to the top of my queue because I know that you've got a strong foundation behind you.
Here is a short list of A-List bloggers that scraped their knees on Dumb Little Man when they were first starting out. Why not join them?
Ali Luke (Ali Hale)
Leo Babauta
Celestine Chua
Henri Juntilla
Abhijeet Mukherjee
Srinivas Rao
Here is a note from Ali:
Writing for Dumb Little Man has been a huge boost to my career. I can't count the number of times that I've had an email or comment saying "I found you through Dumb Little Man" -- and several of my best clients have been people who first read my posts there. DLM has been my biggest, most consistent referral site for years (only StumbleUpon has sent more visitors, and traffic from there is much lower quality).
When I'm coaching fellow writers, I often recommend DLM as a great place to guest post -- Jay's editorial skill and the huge, friendly, DLM audience make it a fantastic place to get experience, whatever stage you're at as a writer. I still remember how Jay patiently edited my post introductions when I started out writing for him, and this really taught me how important it is to "hook" the reader at the beginning of a piece -- a hugely valuable lesson that I use in every single post I write today.
Not bad right?
I am telling you, persistence in blogging and writing content pays off. You just really need to follow the tried true advice of those that have already succeeded.
As another helper - here is a link to a totally free tutorial on how to get your blog off the ground:
When you're ready
When you feel that your foundation is built, let's get moving. Write an article and send it over! Here are the general guidelines:
- I am not a master at grammar so don't assume that I'll catch errors. It's your name so be sure to send me good clean copy.
- No pictures needed. I will handle that aspect of the post.
- There may be times when I edit the title of your article to help others find it easier. This is a good thing and will help promote your article. So don't be alarmed if you see a new title to the article you submitted.
- If you are quoting a medical study or any external reference, link to the source.
- Send a short bio and picture of yourself! If you look at any recent article on this site, you'll see a "written by" section. Use that as a guideline.
Cheers!
- Jay White
All submissions should be sent to tips@dumblittleman.com.