What Author Websites Do and Don’t Do

You’re writing a book. You want to sell a book. You need a website. Why and what should it do?

WHY YOU NEED A WEBSITE

You might independently or traditionally publish, but either way, contacts can help sell books, and readers buy books. Your website is how readers, and those who want to contact you, gather information in a single space you own and manage. The website, or as I call it, the “Author House.”

FOR THE AUTHOR, NOT THE BOOK

A vintner would not make a tasting room for every type of wine they produce. Readers, like wine lovers, need to sample all your books in your Author House, not via individual sites.

THE PRIMARY FUNCTION

When a reader visits your Author House, how many rooms does it have? You might want to provide information on presentation topics, upcoming events, blogs, book clubs, or other features. At a minimum, every Author House needs five brief pieces of information:

Don’t groan about that last one… Your words are an experience. Readers want to deepen that experience. They want the inside scoop from you, and they’ll hand over their personal email information to get it. Your newsletter sign-up creates a guest list of visitors who adore your Author House, and who are likely to visit (buy) again.

WHAT YOUR WEBSITE WON’T DO

Your website won’t sell books on its own. Until you show readers where your website and book are, they aren’t going to know you exist. Period. Some publishers will help with reader discovery, but too many don’t do much anymore. How to promote a website is part of a much longer marketing conversation, but just be aware that a website is only ONE of many tools.

OKAY, SO HOW MUCH DOES A WEBSITE COST?

No, that’s not the right question. How much do you want to invest in a website now versus later as part of a larger plan to support your writing career? THAT is the question. It’s been my experience that authors who invest time learning about how/why to invest in marketing simply do better. But you don’t need to spend gobs of money in the beginning. Some ranges include:

CHEAP: $0-500. Start small with Wix or SquareUp, and launch a basic site. Best for authors with no book yet or just one. You may need to do more work (or hire your tech-savvy niece).

MODERATE: $500-2000. Freelancers via websites like Reedsy.com or Fiverr build down-and-dirty WordPress or Squarespace sites. Best for your first book, or if you’re independently launching a small series.

MID-HIGHER: $2000-7000. This is the range I work in with authors. We tend to also provide branding and long-term plans. The resulting author’s website is unique looking and integrates with all branded platform tools. This is a good option if you have a traditionally published book, have independently published more than one book (or will), or you are transitioning into writing full-time.

LUDICROUS: $7000+. I personally see little value here unless you’re a massive novelist with a massive following. Even then, more bells and whistles mean more work, so pace yourself, honey.

IN SUMMARY

Your website is all yours to build, grow, maintain, invest in, but also to schedule. Don’t put pressure on yourself to launch a site until it and you are ready. Like that book cover, you only have one time to make a great impression.

Karen A. Chase is an author, speaker, and brand designer. For nearly three decades Karen has worked as a professional designer creating brands for national and international organizations, non-profits, and authors. In addition to two decades running her own freelance business, she launched 224Pages, her own publishing house in 2011. She has spoken with nearly one hundred historical, corporate, and trade audiences in the US and Canada—both virtually and in-person—about history, branding, and entrepreneurship. Her first novel Carrying Independence was awarded #12 on the 100 Best Indie Books of 2019. She helps authors build brands and websites via the Reedsy platform. Learn more about Karen and her work here.