I actually voted “Not a fan” over at Uncle’s poll, even though I was one of the mentioned guest bloggers, because I’m actually kind of wary of the group blog concept. I’ve seen some people make the transition from solo to group pretty well, but I’ve seen other blogs head downhill fast when they went that direction. Group blogging can work if you have the right mix of people. I think Eugene Volokh has done a pretty good job of that over that The Volokh Conspiracy, but few people could replicate his enviable “staff”.
Given Bitter’s recent burn out with trying to keep The Bitch Girls up all by her lonesome, I’ve given some thought as to how I would try to ride a busy period. I think the key would to bring in different guest bloggers to feature maybe for two posts a day for a few weeks. If I found someone that was doing pretty well, I’d ask them to come on as a regular contributor, maybe just a few posts a week. I see contributors as a way to fill in gaps, rather than contribute to the fundamental “voice” of the blog, which I think one person has to retain some degree of control over.
That said, I do think that group blogging can work, you just have to be careful about how you go about it. I think it works best when you pick contributers you know pretty well, and know will help to fill in gaps, while not changing the fundamental tone or style of the blog.