I began this blog almost four years ago. At this point, there are now 305 articles about raising bilingual kids, but so far only a handful of these (13, to be exact) have been guest posts.
Until now, my call for guest posts at Bilingual Monkeys has been limited, but for two key reasons I think it’s time to make a broader invitation…
1. Three years ago I opened a forum, The Bilingual Zoo, and this lively community, with 3,588 posts produced to date, has made it clear that there are a lot of people out there with stories to tell and suggestions to share—stories and suggestions that could form helpful and engaging blog posts.
2. Honestly, I think it would now be healthier for this blog—and for me, personally—if more people were involved. After writing hundreds of articles myself, a greater number of guest posts would not only add richer variety to this site, it would enable me to keep a saner schedule and pursue other projects, too. (High on my list, for example, is creating videos more regularly for my YouTube channel.)
So if you might be interested in writing a guest post for Bilingual Monkeys, please read on!
The benefits of guest posting
Although I’m not yet able to pay for guest posts, there are several other benefits worth mentioning…
- Your experience can be of significant value to other families, empowering their bilingual journey.
- By writing about your experience, you can help boost your own bilingual journey. (A point that I stress in Do This One Simple Thing and I Guarantee You Greater Success On Your Bilingual Journey.)
- Your guest post can include a link to your site, product, or service. Because Bilingual Monkeys and The Bilingual Zoo currently generate almost 100,000 page views a month (combined), this is a potentially large audience for your work.
What I’m looking for
Naturally, there’s a difference between making a post at The Bilingual Zoo and making a guest post at Bilingual Monkeys. Generally speaking, a guest post at this blog must be a longer, more polished piece of writing. In other words, I want to publish good-quality guest posts, somehow related to the subject of raising bilingual children, that include both strong text and images.
Please understand, too, that I often play an editor’s role with guest posts, providing suggestions both in form and content to help make each post as strong as possible. So it’s important that those wanting to write a guest post be open to revisions, as needed, through the editing and rewriting process. (And before it’s published, I promise to share the final version of the post for the writer’s approval.)
What I’m not looking for
Even though my call for guest posts has, until now, been limited, I regularly receive offers that aren’t at all suited to this site, such as a guest post about the merits of recycling (really!). Why would people contact a site like mine and suggest writing about things that have little connection to the theme of bilingual children? Because they simply want a link back to their site. They don’t really care about the guest post itself—it’s merely the means to the end of getting that link, that exposure.
Well, let me say this plainly: Please only propose a guest post that you truly care about and that has a direct connection to the topic of raising bilingual children. The priority must be on creating a useful and relevant post, not on getting a link. As I mentioned, I’m happy to include a link, too, but only if the post itself is a good-quality article that will be of interest to other families on a bilingual (or multilingual) journey.
Want to submit a proposal?
To propose a guest post, just follow these two simple steps. (And English doesn’t have to be your first language, either. As long as you can express yourself clearly in English, I can help polish your writing.)
1. Look closely at the guest posts made to date to get a good idea of what I’m looking for.
2. Send an email to adam[AT]bilingualmonkeys[DOT]com, with “guest post” in the subject line, that contains this information:
a. who you are, particularly your connection to bilingual kids
b. a description of your proposed guest post and why this article could be of interest to other bilingual/multilingual families
c. a description of the image or images you could provide for the article, if available
d. any links to other posts you’ve made online
e. the URL of the site you’d like me to link to, if any
Please make your proposal as clear and complete as possible so I can quickly understand your idea. And, again, please do not email me with suggested topics that are not directly related to raising bilingual children.
After I receive your message, I’ll do my best to respond within a day or two.
Thank you for your interest! 
