Author Websites 101

Today, blogging, social networking, and having a website are essential for an author’s increased chances of success. These tools help authors promote their work online, reaching large and diverse audiences from around the world.

Writers know how hard it is to compete today, especially when it comes to getting your book ‘out there’. Look for ways to promote yourself professionally and be noticed. First step? A website.  
Website are versatile and multi-functional, allowing authors the venue to self-promote, offer contact information, and keep readers updated on new stuff. Don’t allow your site to just sit there, however. Keep it fresh and updated. Do this by occasionally making small changes to content or graphics, or, if your blog is connected to your site, post regularly, which means at least once a month.

When you do this, your site is automatically ‘refreshed’ – keywords that attract readers to your blog bring them to your site as well, offering new potential for exposure. Your website and social networking efforts can act like a 24/7 virtual billboard for your clients or readers. Consistently add search engine optimized (SEO) content that will show up in user searches.

Any domain name you choose for your website and/or blog should also be professional and guide visitors to you. Use the right words when creating a domain name, and make it easy to remember and spell. Some authors use their name for a domain name, since it is the easiest way to search, as well as show up toward the top of the list on the search engine. However, keep in mind that unless you’re Stephen King or J.K. Rowling, your sphere of influence will be rather limited.

You’ll have to work hard at promoting yourself. Do this by blogging, tweeting, pinning or posting, leaving a link back to your website wherever possible. (Don’t be obnoxious about this). Include your website name and address in your email signature.

Design your website structure, colors backgrounds and font that make it appealing and professional. Update often and provide new information or accomplishments on a regular basis. Keep it simple, easy to navigate, and most of all, attractive and clean.

Developing Your Author Image

You want to be taken seriously as an author, so it’s up to you to make sure that your website, blog and social networking profiles reflect a professional image. How do you achieve this? Using appropriate colors, font size and of course, content. Remember, you never know who’s looking. Your next viewer might be your next potential client, an agent or a business owner looking for a great writer. First impressions count; they can mean the difference between success and failure. 

Watch out for content that contains too much personal information. Such information can interfere with the persona you’re trying to create. Yes, you want your book readers to get to know you, but does it really matter if you like classical or metal? Is it a good idea to let the world know that you spend hours watching Sponge Bob every week? Keep it professional.

Promote yourself without getting too personal. Avoid content that may seem (in any way) off-putting or offensive to anyone. That goes for content that may have a negative effect on your career.

Business cards are easy to make and distribute today. Keep a stack of cards available to hand out at readings, events at bookstores or any other function you can use to promote your work. Look and act like a professional. If you want people to take you seriously, you need to take yourself seriously. Dress the part. Always put your best foot forward.

Regardless of how you decide to promote yourself or market your work, maintain a professional image. Be approachable but avoid giving out too much personal information or overdoing website colors, font styles and inclusion of personal photos or other items. The idea behind marketing and promotion for an author is to get your name and your work out there. Focus on that, not your favorite movies or television shows or music style. Make an impact – the right way.

Manuscript Submission Mistakes to Avoid

Submitting your finished manuscript for review (either fiction or nonfiction) is not an overly difficult process, but it does take some time and effort. Most authors go through this process for traditional publication. For novel submission, you’ll need a few more pieces of writing, including the query or cover letter, a one-page synopsis and possibly an outline.

The query or cover letter is the first thing that a literary agent or publishing house reader or editor will read. The cover/query letter should encourage interest and encourage the agent to request your novel (or at least some of it) for consideration.

Literary agents and publishing house editors listed their top pet peeves when it comes to manuscript submissions. Unless you're a famous author with several published works under your belt, I suggest you follow the submissions guidelines of particular literary agents or editors to the letter for optimal results.

So here's the list of the most common pet peeves for agents and editors:

·         Long and overly wordy query letters

·         Query letters or proposals that criticize a published author’s work

·         Letters that contain grammatical errors

·         Letters addressed to the wrong literary agent or editor

·         Query letters that claim your book is next “great American novel"

·         Query letters that smell of cigarette or perfume

·         Packing materials (peanuts, shredded newspaper, popcorn, etc.)

·         Queries that suggest an advance

·         Queries that overly friendly

Your goal is to interest the agent or editor in your novel or book, so if you can't create that interest within a couple of paragraphs, how will you convince him or her that your writing is tight and engaging?

Do yourself a favor by putting your best book forward. Don't tick off an editor or agent before he or she has even had a chance to read a synopsis or the first few pages of your novel. Be courteous, double check name spelling and keep your manuscript out of the slush pile by following agent and editor guidelines.

It's not finished until it's been edited...

By the time you type the last sentence of your manuscript, you figure you're done... not quite. The endeavor of producing your novel or nonfiction work is only half over at this point. The next step in the process is to edit what you’ve written.
 

Performing at least one edit on your own is recommended. You, more than any other person, know the motivations of your characters and exactly where you want the plot line to flow. After completing a manuscript, put the manuscript away for a few days or a week or more if possible before going back to it. Then, with a critical eye, reread what you’ve written. Pretend you’ve never read the manuscript before. Doing so enables you to catch multiple typos and grammatical errors.

Reread the manuscript for continuity and clarity in characters, dialogue, and narrative development. Try not to perform an extensive edit this point. This first run-through is to mainly determine whether you’ve accomplished everything you want to with regard to dialogue, plotting points, obstacles, and resolutions.

Self-editing can be challenging. A person reads what they believe they have written, so mistakes are often overlooked. When asking someone to analyze your manuscript, request they read first for clarity, not for grammar and punctuation. Develop a thick skin, because every person who reads the manuscript is going to offer different opinions.

Manuscript editing is more than just looking for typos, punctuation, and grammar errors. It's also a process of looking for flaws and problems within the body of the manuscript. Editing is a much more complicated process than running your manuscript through a spellchecker.

Sentence structure, changes in point of view, character development, run-on sentences, or fixing badly written prose are just some of the things that the editing process will cover. Try not to be too touchy about this part of the process, because the ultimate goal is to improve the readability of your manuscript.

Rewrite and revisions can be quite time consuming, but every author needs to understand that these also are a part of the book creating process. Put your best effort forward in order to enhance your likelihood of a book sale, as well as to improve as an author, one manuscript at a time.