Reading the boards at BackWash and deciding that I should leave there once I finish making back up copies of the newsletters and columns I have written. There seems to be a two year itch for most websites I have written for. BW made it a bit past there but it's definitly showing signs of implosion now. Dying from petty back biting from inside. So, I may as well get out.
The question is... where to next? Always another adventure around the next corner. :)
Here are my ideas about making a writer's site an asset to you and a resource for others to come to. It's a bit scattered as I am leaving for Ottawa tomorrow and have some family stuff ongoing. But, I wanted to share the ideas while they were brewing around in my brain.
I think blogs are a great way to go. They take over a lot of the grunt work and are still fresh and creative. Avoid going the LiveJournal route though. Your blog should look like something you have done, not a clone from another site. Getting your own domain is a huge assest, if you can afford the cost. This will also give you an email address which does not include the words Yahoo, Hotmail or AOL.
The best thing about a blog on your website is keeping your site freshly updated and making it interactive without too much fuss on your part. You can update daily, or a few times a week. Just add an inspirational quote, a writing tip you've found that works, jot down a new publisher/ market you've found, scan a sketch or photograph you've come across and add it to your blog.
However, a blog doesn't have to be the focus of your site. Make it a sidebar on your main site, a secondary page or a secondary site. It really does help to keep traffic to your site if they can expect to have something to read when they get there. Avoid link rot, stagnating pages and a bland site in general by adding a blog. Be creative, that's what we do!
Also, blogs run on text mainly. If you are not a great graphic artist a few simple text graphics are really all you need. Look for a font you like and make a banner to head your blog. Keep the colours simple and easy to read. Add some smaller text graphics as navigation links if you have more than one page. Include a text graphic with your email address. This will foil spam bots as well as they can't read graphics, only HTML.
Check out other writer's sites and see what they come up with. Avoid copying anything, instead make your own unique version of the idea. Turn it around to suit you and your own site.
Monitor your traffic cause it does give you a nice ego boost to see people actually coming to your site. Keep a guest book or some form of message boards available. People are more likely to leave a quickie note than send an email. Especially if they can leave a link to their own site behind, self promotion. When you get feedback, answer it as soon as possible.
You can boost your ratings/ rankings with Google by getting your site linked to on bigger sites. So email the webmasters and ask for a linkback. Explain who you are, what your site offers and always offer to link to them too.
If you go with the blog plan and turn your site into a resource of some kind (for writers, for hobbyists, or for the topic you write about) you will find it easier to get linkbacks as you are offering original content. Webmasters and directory editors want original content with simple navigation. If you create it, they will come.
Consider ways of going out to your readers, catching them at home. Send out an email to subscribers each time you update your site. Give a preview of what you ar updating with. Start a newsletter with your best content of the month/ week, depending on how much work you can put into it.
Work on the webring idea. Make yourself part of a chain of sites. When you submit your site to web directories suck as Dmoz send the listed editor an email. Be polite and courteous. Add your URL to your email signature and make a point of joining relevant email lists, forums and newsgroups. Post when you have something to add to the chat, not just to self promote. If you seem interesting people will click on your signature links. Leave comments in guestbooks too. Even if only the site owner sees your link he/ she could be a contact to cultivate. After all, you came to visit them.
Offer free content to ezines relevant to your genre. Set yourself up as an expert on your topic/ genre. Always include your byline with linkage (also known as a resource box) at the end of each article. Stage chats on your site and make sure you are there on time for however long you set the chat. Or moderate your message boards, don't leave questions unanswered. Set up surveys, quizzes and personality test type things. People seem to be addicted to clicking those. It doesn't have to be rocket science.
Give freebies of some sort. If you are graphically inclined offer desktop wallpaper. If you write books offer desktop wallpaper of the cover art from your latest book. Link to sites you have found useful. Either handy web gadgets for writers or something useful for people interested in your topic/ genre. Keep these links checked and eliminate/ fix link rot right away.
If you can, offer a coupon or discount on the purchase of your book. Better still, give them out to those who come to your webcasts (web chats) or subscribers of your newsletter.
If you make appearances or attend events keep a schedule available on your site too. Of course, keep it updated. You can also keep readers up to date with what you are working on. Let them know you are writing a fresh chapter, proofreading copy, mailing out an article, hearing back from that promising editor, etc. Also, write about professional organizations you are a part of, as they relate to your work. Let your site become a news portal for them. This is especially nice for hobbyists, crafty types and such. You can become their guide to what's going on. Not so tough for you since you will already be keeping track for your writing.
Make sure you also include all your essentials for self promotion. Contact information, clips, the services you offer, and so on.
Writing is a business, not just an art. Happy webbing.
"Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does." William James.
What's in your package?
Do you have:
and
Plus, of course, your work itself. All organized in clips, articles, or the books themselves (depending on which medium you use).
Do you have a package?
Of course, we all have a package to present to the world. But, have you done much with yours? Have you put effort into making it professional and available?
You can have a home office. Something simple, organized and some kind of oasis where you keep clutter to a minimum and your writing time separate from your business time. Yes, you do need some time for the business of writing.
Business cards and stationery are part of an office set up. They don't cost an entire arm and a leg. You know you can go for good paper stock and save bucks on less fruity fonts. Just keep it simple and very easy to read.
Business cards and stationery can be mini-brochures. Space is strictly limited (especially on cards) but you can give out the basics: name, address, website, email, phone number, a logo or illustration from something you have done, office/ contact hours, sales or prizes worth bragging about, your upcoming project, quote from a great review, professional degrees or memberships in professional organizations, the name of your business and the year you started. Eliminate some and add others depending on your niche and your special talents and ambitions. But, on the business card you really want to keep it to a minimum - it's a card, not a book. Save your long winded guns for the brochure itself.
Of course the website is a brochure too. I'll save that for the next WordCraft newsletter.
"Do you want to be the statue or the bird?" Frances Weaver
Originally posted to Adult BackWash: Saturday March 20, 2004
I review sex blogs, journals and resources for sex blogs and journals. You might think that was a lot of fun, pretty stimulating too. Mostly it's on the dull side.
Sites are all too often hard to navigate, full of links to paying sites and no content of their own or they just don't interest me. I will list most of the sites that fall into the realm of bloggishness. Not the spammy ones or those not updated more than every now and then when they get a round tuit. If you wouldn't read it why should it be listed? That's my theory anyway.
Today there were 3 sites submitted to the adult journals category. Of the three one was last updated August, 2003. An obvious spam for a phone sex service. Deleted, with a note added in case it is re-submitted. Saves me some time and clicking.
The other two were worthy of consideration. One was a blog service type of thing. Not really all that interesting but I listed it anyway. It did seem to be getting updated and for someone browsing the web it would be useful. The other site was an actual sex blog, with a journal and everything. I listed it and skimmed along myself. I did not get turned on. But, did check out her links before leaving. From there I found one other good site and listed that too.
So, now you know. All the perks of being a sex blog reviewer. One nice plus is finding links to add to BackWash. What? You thought I just found them all by my sweet little self? No, I think most of them come from browsing one site to the next. You never know where you will end up. Of course, another interesting way to find links is to randomly type something in to a search and see what oddities come along. Usually I can find at least one unusual and interesting site that way.
Not a very interesting journal this time. I'm just not feeling up to it. But, I thought you might be missing me. We dragons do have our egos.
What tricks can you do?
How well do you know HTML? Can you work with scripts to vamp up a web site? Do you know how to make an ebook? Do you know how to make an HTML file into a text file if your ezine needs both versions? Have you considered a blog versus the standard website? All those and many other tricks should be in an online writer's arsenal. How many can you claim?
I'm not a shining example. I know HTML well enough to pick out what I want to copy when I see a great idea on another website. (Not that I copy it exactly, just use the idea as a base). I know how to make HTML into text, though I expect there could be easier ways if I dabbled a bit more with software downloads. I know what a blog is and I've kept a few versions of them.
I don't know much about ebooks and I wouldn't claim to be comfortable around scripts. I can figure out how to use very simple scripts on my website but I'd be reluctant to work with anything more advanced than mouseovers and the like.
We should know more than enough to get by. There are a lot of us out here and more writers are coming online every week. Already we aren't that unique. Soon we'll be pretty ordinary and eventually you won't be able to find any writer without an online presence, at the very least. Even a dead writer can have a website! They just can't do the coding themselves.