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{"id":8922,"date":"2016-11-16T08:00:18","date_gmt":"2016-11-16T12:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buildbookbuzz.com\/?p=8922"},"modified":"2023-12-07T21:36:57","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T21:36:57","slug":"author-website-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandra.oddjar.com\/author-website-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"Guest post: Author website tips"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article offering author website tips is our second guest post from Irish children’s book author Avril O’Reilly, who I met when she took\u00a0one of my book marketing courses. (Be sure to read her first post, “Use surprises to get media attention.<\/a>“) Awesome Avril, the author of <\/em>A Fairy in the Family Again<\/a>,\u00a0is currently building\u00a0a website for her book using WordPress. Connect with Avril on Facebook <\/a>and Twitter<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Author website tips<\/b><\/h3>\n

By Avril O’Reilly<\/strong><\/p>\n

Creating a website to promote your work (and yourself) is scary! There’s no doubt about that.<\/p>\n

Authors worry about the cost, the content, the how, and the when \u2013 there’s a lot to consider.<\/p>\n

We might take a look at author websites in the interests of research. That’s when panic sets in, Looking at the huge, sprawling sites belonging to the likes of Lee Child<\/a>, James Patterson<\/a>, or Karin Slaughter<\/a> can be downright intimidating.<\/p>\n

I have been speaking to the people at\u00a0Frequency Designs<\/a>, the firm behind Anthony Horowitz’s very smart website<\/a>. Based on Ireland’s scenic South coast, \u00a0Frequency Design created this and many author sites.<\/p>\n

I picked up some insights from designer Liam Fitzgerald. He talked me through Horowitz’s site\u00a0— you\u00a0might be surprised to learn how much you have in common with this published author. Fitzgerald\u00a0shared some lessons for authors at all levels.<\/p>\n

First the bad news<\/b><\/h3>\n

I was shocked to discover that writers have to pay for their own websites. The publishing houses do not pay. An author, if lucky, might get a page on the publisher’s site.<\/p>\n

And what about updating a site? I imagined the PR company would add news about events and new titles. Not so. And Fitzgerald says that publishers offer no help with “the technical nonsense.”<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has been a transition over the past 7\u00a0to 8 years,” he explains. “In the past, the publisher would have done a marketing-led site for the duration of the book launch, and then abandoned it. The strategy was ‘Hit ’em hard, hit ’em fast.’ The site was never updated then it would be abandoned. Now writers are left to their own devices.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, Horowitz has to shell out for his own site and update it himself. Not so different from us self-publishers then.<\/p>\n

Now the good news<\/h3>\n

\"Author<\/a>A few years ago, authors showed how professional they were by the quality of their book covers. Writers had to decide between paying an expert or having a DIY cover. Now it seems that we are facing the same tough choice again when it comes to how we look online.<\/p>\n

Still, websites are much easier to develop and manage than they used to be. Website platforms such as Weebly<\/a>, Wix <\/a>and Wordress <\/a>allow people with no design or coding skill to use ready-made themes to put together something good-looking.<\/p>\n

You might decide to go it alone with a WordPress theme. Themes determine the design of your site. Spend some time seeing what is available and what it will cost you. Quality costs.<\/p>\n

If you can afford a web designer, they can show you how to maintain the site yourself. They can also offer a wider range of themes.<\/p>\n

What are the costs?<\/b><\/h3>\n

Google local prices for these costs:<\/p>\n