Work Your Writer Website

What’s with all the talk about websites for writers? How important are they, especially if the writer isn’t published yet? How do you best work your writer website?

One of the first things an editor or agent will do when considering an author’s proposal is check out the author’s website. Consideration of the writer’s project might stop right there IF:

• The website doesn’t “match” the writer’s personality or project. Think bunnies and tulips in the website header of someone who writes psychological thrillers. The mismatch may cause the editor to wonder if the author has a good handle on who they really are and who are the readers they hope to reach.
• The website is hard to navigate. How far into the website does the agent need to dig to discover what matters to the author and what kind of books they write? Is an image of the author present and reasonably up-to-date? Can the editor easily find where to click to discover past releases? Or how to sign up for the author’s newsletter?
• The website information is no longer accurate. If the bio reads like it was written in 1997 and unchanged since then, if the latest news is decades old, or even months old, if the website announces an upcoming release that is now history, or if no-longer relevant material hasn’t been removed…
• The website doesn’t look professional. It doesn’t have to be fancy to be professional. But it does need to show the author realizes a website is a business calling card.

Put another way, your website is the equivalent of the wreath on your front door of your writing career. What does it say about you?

Does it communicate that you welcome readers, that you care about them, that your website is a true invitation into learning more about you and what you write, but more than that, what you offer readers through your writing?

Consider this wreath image. One would expect to open that door and find a fun-loving homeowner/writer, a bright and colorful atmosphere, a writer addressing topics like finding joy in the everyday and making the most of what’s at hand. An imaginative, bright, cheerful interior for books and other writing projects that are written with that flavor.

It’s a genuine disconnect if the wreath–the writer’s website–isn’t a reflection of what’s inside.

What if this (pardon me) “vibe” led to an interior of heavy antique furniture, dark drapes covering the windows, a funeral-home atmosphere?

It’s jolting to think about, isn’t it? That’s what agents and editors and readers feel too if the writer’s website seems contrary to who the writer is and the writer’s style and topics.

Contrast that with this door’s wreath and the message it conveys even before the visitor goes any deeper into the home.

What does it say without words?

The surroundings seem humble, but the wreath is welcoming, full, abundant. It’s lit to reveal that even in a world of darkness, there’s safety and hope inside. Can a wreath accomplish that much? A website can. Again, not fancy or elaborate but telling.

Here’s another below that seems to say the author’s “welcome wreath” is out of proportion to the size of their career…and that the career needs some work. A little sanding at the very least.

This might be the equivalent of a website with scuff mark typos and repetition that makes it feel battered, or a text-heavy website that makes the reader have to work extra hard to tug it open and find what they’re searching for.

And note the super-modern handle on the ancient, weather-beaten door. Antique-looking header but you write contemporary romance? Or the opposite–modernistic header on your website but your primary projects are Regency mysteries? You might have chosen the header or theme of your website because it was popular, or because you liked the image, without considering the message it conveyed about you as a writer and the work you produce.

Or the header may have at one time fit well, but you’ve switched genres.

Either way, be aware that editors, agents, and readers will consciously or subconsciously register the dichotomy as “Am I welcome here? I’m not sure.”

Regarding websites that work for them, writers often wrestle with questions like the following.

Do I need a website if I’m unpublished?

Yes. If you’re working toward publication, don’t wait until you’re ready to submit your project before investing in a website. It is part of the expense of operating a business. Simplicity done well creates an atmosphere of welcome for those you’re building connections with prior to having a book to talk about. What else CAN you talk about on a website? Who you are. What you care about. What moves you. Serve your potential readers appetizers while they wait for the meal. And note that an appetizer is never a small portion of the meal about to be served. A good appetizer or amuse bouche (waking the tastebuds) is always distinctly different yet related to the meal to come.

Should I focus my website on the projects I’m working on?

No. See above about not serving an appetizer of mini-burgers if the meal on its way is burgers. It’s natural for writers to want to put out information about the projects that are as yet unpublished. But that can create a wealth of trouble. If it’s years before that project finds publication…or never does…what does that say to repeat visitors? When it comes time to market a book that does get a contract with a publisher, what will be left to say? Your potential readers already know what the book’s about. They may know a lot from what you’ve said about the characters. Or in this age of blatant and ruthless information piracy, you may inadvertently give the unscrupulous an idea they can run with and steal the thunder before your book releases.

How can authors “work your writer website” to its best advantage?

Don’t ignore it. Don’t launch it and forget it. Check for broken links…and fix them. Periodically check to make sure you’ve updated any changes. By all means, add any new writing awards or “represented by” if you secure an agent. Pay special attention to your author bio. If it sounds like a resume, reword to sound more like introducing yourself over coffee (unless your writing is all academic or corporate). And if you bought the “bells and whistles” package from the web designer, ensure that doesn’t make your website slow for readers to load or impossible to read on a phone. If your website has been static for a while, consider a refresh.

Ask yourself what your website communicates? “Stay away? I don’t really know who I am as a writer, so…” Does your website sound apologetic or attention seeking or boastful? Is that the tone you want, and if so, are you willing to bear the consequences of what those approaches will mean for editors, agents, and readers who knock on the door of your site?

So many writers consider their website last on their priority list–like a homeowner who accidentally leaves the brown-needled balsam fir wreath on their front door until July because they forget about it and only company uses that door. Don’t be that writer. If you wonder what your website communicates about you and your work, ask a trusted and honest author friend.

Or your agent.

Approach what’s on your writing front door as if you’re a visitor or stranger. NOW how do you feel about it?