Website suggestions for Prepublished authors - and published authors too.

I'm going try to start blogging Saturday and Wednesday to talk a bit about my WIPs (or should I say WsIP?) ;)

So check out my website now, and keep an eye out for a blog on new versus old blurbs and things I love about my hero and heroine--and the corresponding changes on my website. Plus, it will be getting a small facelift soon. Keep an eye out for that.

I came across a few good blogs, and I'll link to the ones I got the most info from below. I discovered that it's good for writers to have certain things in certain spots on their websites. 


On to websites -

Your website should be professional. You don't have to pay a thousand dollars to have it done professionally, but it should have professional content presented in a professional way.

Put up a picture of you and an interesting bio. Don't think of this as the bio for the back of your book, think of it like an introduction to your readers. Have some fun with it. Let it reflect your voice and your personality. Don't be afraid to mention personal interests. I mentioned my interest in letterboxing and how much I love scarves.

Your website needs to have links to your social media sites. Think of it as a hub where people can go to connect with you. They should be able to contact you in a number of ways through the site. i.e. Twitter, Pinterest, Email, etc... Also, those links need to be obvious.  If you look at my website, your eyes should be drawn pretty quickly to the twitter bird.

Most readers won't scroll down. Don't expect them to unless they might win a million.  Don't put important information below the break (the bottom of the screen).

Make sure your name and tagline are right there in front when people come to your site. Don't hide them or forget to add them. I remember visiting an aspiring authors site recently and not only did she not have her name anywhere on the site, but she had a silly made up screen name plastered all over. That's not professional.

Be sure your blog and website have content that goes with your brand. Interviews with authors, and similar things are great.

Don't forget to add info about your WIPs. Personally, I think a blurb and a few lines about what makes the work special is enough, but remember to make them professional. You'd be surprised the kinds of impressions you can make in a split second in this industry. You want those impressions to be good.

Links

http://www.chipmacgregor.com/blog/marketing-and-platforms/thursdays-with-amanda-creating-a-website-as-an-unpublished-author-what-content-do-i-include/

http://www.chipmacgregor.com/blog/marketing-and-platforms/thursdays-with-amanda-creating-a-website-as-an-unpublished-author-linking-to-social-media/
http://romanceuniversity.org/2010/05/20/do-i-really-need-a-website/

 http://janefriedman.com/2011/11/28/website-for-unpublished/