Guest Posting in 2026: How to Grow Your Audience With Other People’s Platforms
This post was adapted from Writing Off Social: The Podcast, Episode 87. You can listen in here!
Before social media took over everything, writers built their platforms by showing up on other people’s platforms. They contributed, they collaborated, they guest posted. And here’s what might surprise you: that strategy still works — maybe better than ever.
We sat down with writer and podcaster Grace Thomas to talk about how she has used guest posting to grow a robust email list and a real, lasting audience without making social media the center of her writing life. What she shared left us scribbling notes and feeling inspired.
What Guest Posting Actually Is (And Why It Still Works)
If you’re picturing 2012-era blogging culture when you hear “guest posting,” stay with us. The landscape has shifted, but the core idea hasn’t: you write something for someone else’s audience, and in doing so, you introduce yourself to readers who would never have found you otherwise.
Grace has written for dozens of publications — from faith-based sites like Risen Motherhood and Christian Parenting to lifestyle and women’s publications like Verily, Motherly, and Her View From Home. She’s also contributed to Substack newsletters and participates in collaborative blog hops. The throughline across all of it? Writing for audiences that were already reading content like hers.
Her first guest post came out of a deeply personal experience. “My first post was actually with Risen Motherhood,” she explains. “It was about a really traumatic postpartum experience. I just started writing and at one point I thought, I think I want to share this.” The editors were gracious — and instructive. “I tried to cover like 10 things at once. I was trying to talk about work and family and marriage, and they were really sweet and said, ‘okay, let’s pick one thing.'” That lesson in narrowing a topic set the tone for everything that came after.
How to Find Places to Guest Post
One of the most practical questions writers ask is: where do I even start? Grace’s answer is refreshingly low-tech.
She starts with what she already loves. The publications she has pitched are almost always ones she was already reading. “If I like a site, like I really like Journey Women, I’ll say, hey, I have this post. Would you be interested?” When you’re already a loyal reader, you understand the publication’s voice, its audience, and what fits. Your reader is likely there too.
She Googles it. “If I see someone write for Journey Women, just write, you know, Google ‘Journey Women call for submissions’ and then kind of go from there.” Most publications have a “Write for Us” page that outlines topics, word counts, and tone expectations.
She keeps a running list. During a year-long writing mastermind with Ann Swindell, Grace built a list of about 20 places she wanted to write for. That list became a living document — a mix of places she sought out and opportunities that found her, especially through Substack.
She pays attention to where other writers show up. Even with minimal social media use, Grace finds leads organically. “If I do get on Instagram and I see my writerly friends, I’ll click on their story and I’ll say, they just published for this publication. Let me look that up.” She also mentions Exhale, a writing group from Coffee and Crumbs, as a great resource for curated submission lists.
Pitching: What the Process Actually Looks Like
For traditional online publications, Grace recommends studying the submission guidelines carefully — and then actually following them. Word counts, scripture translations, formatting preferences — all of it matters. “Look at examples from that publication,” she advises. “When I started writing that Risen Motherhood piece, I went back and I looked and I said, okay, they started with a Scripture or a story. . . Look at examples, it will be really helpful.”
Substack is a different animal. “Often with Substack, people will approach me,” Grace notes. “They’ll say, ‘hey, we’re doing this poetry collection or this travel series. Would you like to participate?'” The pitching process tends to be more casual — sometimes a Google form, sometimes a direct message — and the invitation often flows both ways, especially once you’ve established yourself as someone who plays well with others.
And when a pitch gets rejected? Grace doesn’t just move on. She uses it as an opportunity to learn by following up graciously — not to argue, but to ask: “Is there something you would change for the future?” More often than she expects, editors write back with useful feedback.
The Substack Question: Do You Need One Before You Guest Post?
We asked Grace whether someone needs their own Substack before contributing to others’. Her answer is nuanced: it depends on your goals. But she was clear about why she maintains one.
“It’s a landing page,” she says simply. “When people read that article on Verily or whatever, where am I going to send them? To my Substack.” Without somewhere to send readers, a great guest post can feel like a missed opportunity — you’ve earned someone’s attention, but there’s no door to walk them through.
We’ve seen this play out firsthand. A guest who contributed to Sandy’s Substack wrote a piece that resonated deeply with our audience — but because she didn’t have her own Substack, there was no natural next step for readers who wanted more from her. Her writing was excellent. The opportunity to convert those readers into her own subscribers just wasn’t there to take.
That said, Grace is thoughtful about not prescribing one path for everyone. Think first about what you want your writing to do. “Do you want to get more visibility? Do you just want to share more vulnerable, private things? Either is totally fine.” The Substack can come later. But if audience growth is the goal, having a home base matters.
How Guest Posting Grows Your List (And Makes You a Better Writer)
Grace uses a few concrete strategies to turn guest posting into list growth:
- Lead magnets tied to your bio. At the bottom of her contributor bio, Grace links to a freebie — a seasonal resource, a gratitude journal, or in one case, a list of 20 places to submit writing. That final line in your bio is prime real estate. Use it.
- Giveaways. Grace mentions these as especially effective for short-term list growth — readers submit their email for a chance to win something, and you gain subscribers with genuine interest.
- Collaborative blog hops. One of her favorite Substack strategies is hosting a blog hop: a group of women all write on the same prompt or word, then link to each other. “Someone from another email list would eventually come to my email list. And even if they don’t subscribe, at least they’re getting a little taste of your work.”
- Substack’s recommendations feature. “Find a friend and say, ‘hey, let’s both recommend each other.'” Grace has gained dozens of subscribers this way — organic, relationship-driven growth that compounds over time.
But beyond strategy, she keeps coming back to something simpler. “Think of the general reader and just be a blessing. Whatever you do, whether it’s Substack or a guest post — even if people don’t follow you, you’ve blessed them for that day.” The numbers, she’s found, tend to follow the quality of the writing and the authenticity of the connection.
What About Social Media?
Grace uses social media, but she keeps it small. She turns off all notifications, doesn’t scroll intentionally, and checks in mostly to share her work or respond to messages. “When I’m ready, I will log on,” she says — a deceptively simple discipline that many of us have tried and failed at.
The good news for those of us who want to opt out more fully: she finds that most publications don’t require a robust social presence. “Sometimes they will ask you to put it in your story and tag them. But most of the time it’s actually the opposite — they will post and then they’ll tag me.” The expectation, she’s found, is rarely a hard line.
A Final Word of Encouragement
We wrapped up our conversation by asking Grace what she’d say to a writer who is weary of building a platform on social media and wants a more sustainable path. Her answer was gentle and grounding.
“Develop your vision and your mindset first,” she says. “Is writing to make money? Is it to process thoughts, to give a family update? So once you have your vision — and the vision can change — you go with that and be content.” She pauses, then adds something that stayed with us: “Just view it all as a blessing. Whatever you do, whether it’s for money or family updates — we can do it with a happy heart. And the numbers will work out.”
We agree.
This post was reformatted from our original transcript by Claude and edited for accuracy by Mary K.
