As an author website designer I often work with clients who are facing one of two scenarios in their career: They've written books, maybe even a series, across multiple genres. Perhaps they have books for children, and also adults. Or, maybe they've written romantic fiction and also thrillers. Being an author is one part of their expertise, but on top of that, they are also Read more...
Have you read the book, Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown? I devoured it back in 2015 and it changed some fundamental things about my thinking. Namely, how to weed out distracting and unproductive thoughts so that I can focus on making a lasting and meaningful contribution. I've applied this to various aspects of my life, including the work I do in Read more...
Back in 2012, I wrote an article for this site titled, "Author & Book Websites: What to Include?" Lots of things have changed with the internet with respect to author websites over the last six years, so I thought it was time to revisit the topic! What do you include in an author website these days? And how is it different than what I wrote Read more...
It's a big deal to find the right person to build the best author website design for you! You've worked really hard on your book, and also on getting it to the point of release. And you're all set to work hard marketing it once it's available to the world. If making a living as a writer is a goal, you certainly want to set Read more...
Sometimes you'll hear people say things like, "the only legitimate way to be an author is to find a big publisher to get your book out there." This word, "legitimate," has always been troubling to me. It's a bunch of baloney, most of the time. Sure, the only legitimate way to be a physician is to go to medical school, but there are a whole Read more...
Throughout my career I've been lucky enough to create author websites for some well-known folks. In some cases, I've worked directly with the celebrity author and, in other cases, I've created a site for a new book release or specific writing project via their publisher. Regardless of who I'm working with, there are some elements that remain the same across all author website projects, but Read more...
I am an author website designer. And I imagine like dentists notice people's teeth, and cobblers notice people's shoes, I notice people's websites, especially author websites. And something that stands out to me more than it should is that people bury the lead on their sites ALL THE TIME. What do I mean by this? I mean that I visit websites all the time & Read more...
Self-published author websites have different needs than websites for authors with traditional publishers. As a self-published author you might be looking for a traditional publisher, an agent, and/or to create a community of readers interested in your existing & future work. Or, you might just want to go the indie route because it appeals to you. There are lots of reasons for self-publishing your work, Read more...
Many of the author websites I create are for authors who write as a second career. Sometimes it's something completely different than how they earn a living and they love that it balances their day job -- the financial advisor who writes historic fiction for example. Other times it's a segue to retirement and something they've wanted to do for a long time. And for others it's Read more...
I give lots of advice on this blog to authors on the web. It's because I make my living building websites and recommending how to create successful author platforms, so I've seen lots of examples of what can be successful and what might not work as well -- and I like sharing information for the sake of others. Many of my blog posts are based Read more...
