Submission Guidelines

If you are awaiting a response, you will receive one within three weeks of the day you submitted your post. Thanks!

Thank you for your interest in contributing to Happiness of Pursuits. I would love to hear your experiences of finding happiness through your pursuits. If you read the blog, daily quotes on Twitter or Facebook, and strive to live with purpose, passion, joy, and mindfulness, we would love to hear from you.

Happiness of Pursuits is a place for community, where people come together to share and inspire each other. Here you can share what you have learned through the pursuits that bring you happiness and inspire others to do the same. Here you can share how you have applied the knowledge you have gained with other like minded readers.

Anyone, of any age, from any location can submit an original post (not previously published anywhere online) with a bio for inclusion on the blog. This is not an elite space, reserved for experts, thought leaders, or professional bloggers. This is a blog for real people who are willing to share themselves vulnerably and authentically.

Before you contact me, please take the time to ensure you read and understand the guidelines below:

Why Contribute to Happiness of Pursuits?

• Gain exposure.  Your post will be promoted to all our readers via RSS/, email, Google+ and our Facebook page.
• Be in good company with like-minded people. Happiness of Pursuits is fortunate to have a highly responsive community of readers who share many interests, like to leave comments on the site the social networking pages. This creates a rewarding experience all round.
• Every post includes a bio with links back to your site. Most contributors note that featuring their writing on Happiness of Pursuits increases traffic and subscribers to their blog.
• As a Happiness of Pursuits contributor, you can update your bio to promote products you may be launching. If you would like to update your bio in the future just send me a quick email and I’ll be happy to change it for you (up to twice per year).

Writing Guidelines:

• Include a quote at the top of your post, and try to keep your post between 700-1,300 words.
• Share a specific story from your life. Happiness of Pursuits is all about personal stories, as these are sometimes more powerful than advice. It’s not just about the lessons and insights; it’s also about how you came to learn them. Make it personal. Please base your post on your own personal experiences. If your post contains only theory I will probably pass on it.
• Offer practical information that will help readers address similar challenges. It doesn’t need to be a list of tips, but the story needs to build to a message and lessons for readers.
• Choose a topic related to personal growth. I look for posts that deal with universal themes that will be relevant to the majority of readers. Choose a topic that isn’t gender-specific, and not related to religion, the law of attraction, productivity, coaching, motivational speaking, money/entrepreneurship, or parenting.
• Be original. Provide original, personal, and honest work. This means your post has not been previously published anywhere, including your own blog, and does not include any sections taken from a previously published post.
• Include a bio. Please include a short bio with up to 2 links that will appear at the bottom of the post.
• Limit self promotion to your bio. If you have a product, course, workshop or service you are looking to promote, please link to these in your bio rather than within the post. Please note that I may delete links within the posts themselves. Links to relevant articles either on Happiness of Pursuits or other blogs within your post are ok.

Please Note:

• Electronic publishing rights. By submitting your story to me you agree Happiness of Pursuits will hold the digital publishing rights to the post if it is published. This includes the right to publish your story in an ebook for sale via this website or online stores such as Amazon. If you story is selected for inclusion in an ebook I will include your name and a link to your website.
• The main image for the post is something I normally select, but if you have a suggestion please let me know. Most of the images I choose come from Flickr. When suggesting an image please ensure it is Creative Commons-licensed and can be used commercially.
• Your post may be edited. I normally leave posts untouched, but in some cases I may edit things such as the title, grammar, format, etc.
• Don’t bother with an HTML version when emailing me your submission. 
• Please allow up to 3 weeks for a response. I aim to read and reply to every guest post submission, but I may miss your email because it went into my spam folder or I deleted it by accident. Also, blogging is something I do in my spare time so sometimes I get behind in reviewing submissions. If you don’t hear back from me within 2 weeks please send a follow up email.

How to Submit:

• Send your post in Microsoft Word, keeping paragraphs to three sentences or less. Include a bio, sixty words or less, at the bottom of the post. Please send the post in plain text, not html.
• A relevant and insightful quote at the start of a story is a great way to grab attention and can help with promotion on social media networks.
• A question for readers at the end of your story is a great way to encourage comments.
• Being available the day I publish your article to quickly respond to comments is good practice. Currently I publish 3 posts a week (Mon, Wed and Fri). If you have a preference please let me know and I will try to accommodate your request.
• Connect your email address with Gravatar.com so that a photo of you shows next to your bio when your post is published. You may also include your pic when you email me with your submission. Also, please include in your email the email address you used for that site.
• Promote and share your story with your own network.

If it all sounds good to you, then send me an email at admin@happinessofpursuits.com. Please put “Guest Post Submission” in the subject line. Please note that I do not accept posts sent from agents, publicists, or assistants. I like to personally connect with everyone who writes for the site.

If I enjoy your post I will write back with a suggested date to publish the story. I may send your post back with questions/comments to expand in parts, and I may edit it/change the title before publishing on the site. Otherwise, I’ll let you know that I’m passing on the submission so you can publish it elsewhere.

Please note: due to time constraints, it may be up to three weeks before you receive a response from me. Also, I normally don’t provide feedback. If I pass on your submission you are welcome to send me something else for consideration.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Thank you for the inspiration and wisdom you share.

Barbara Snyman – Founder and Editor