If you haven't done so, please read the first installment titled Identifying Your Site's Purpose and Audience, Go-Live Date, Your Budget, and Your Technical Aptitude before reading this week's article.

Once you know your website's purpose, your audience, go-live date, your budget and technical aptitude, you're about halfway there.

Now go to Google or professional writer's organizations websites. Search for author sites. View as many sites as you can. This isn't just procrastination, folks. You have to take a lot of notes while you surf. Note what draws you in. Pay special attention to readability, ease of navigation, loading speed, etc. If something's hard to read or access, make a note on why that may be.

Also almost all author sites tell you who designed them. If you see something you like, find out who did the work. Conversely, if you see something fugly, make a note of that too.

I also found the following articles written from reader / bookseller POV very useful:

• What Every Author's Website Should Contain
• The Importance of Easy Access Websites for Authors
• Top 10 Peeves from Booksellers and Readers about Author Websites
• Wondering about Websites
• Websites
• I Didn't Know You Wrote Books Too!
• Eight Things Every Author Should Know About Her Own Website
• Websites: Web-Winners, Web-Weenies, and the Space Between

Now make a list of all the things you want for your site. Start with color schemes, contents (bio, books / projects, blog, etc.), layout (horizontal menu or vertical / left or right sidebar?), etc.

A few rules of thumb:

• KISS: Keep it simple stupid.
• Readability is king: Black or very dark font against pale / light background works the best. Your font should be big enough to not cause eye strain. Remember, your audience — be it agents, editors, booksellers and/or readers — probably read a lot. So be kind to their eyes.
• Fast loading: Too many complex and big graphics will make your site virtually impossible to load. If it doesn't load within 3-5 seconds, people will leave.
• Easy navigation: Don't get cute and label your bio navigation button “The Great Epic of My Life” or some such. People won't get it.
• Google-Friendly: Don't do a ton of flash or other bling-bling animations. Don't do stuff that turns Google off. Google is your friend.
• Be flexible: You may have some “cool” ideas, but the designer you hire may veto it. Trust your designer's aesthetic sensibility. That's what you hired her for.

P. S. While you are browsing author sites, think about whether or not it makes sense for you to have the cool feature you saw on Author Suzie's site. Maybe Suzie has a huge forum. Do you need one if you're a debut novelist or an aspiring author? If you don't need it now, don't put it on the requirement list. It'll only make your site more expensive to launch. Start out with basics first, then move up when you can afford to or need to.

Next week, I'll talk about the actual process of requesting quotes and some of the sites and resources I used.

“All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure.” — Mark Twain

Rather tongue in cheek, but true in many ways.

Look at myself, for example.

I've been thinking today how much I enjoyed writing when I first started. I had no doubt I'd be published and that what I was writing was good.

At that time, I wasn't worried about the market trend. I wasn't worried about making the NYT list. I was interested in who my characters were, what they were doing, and what they were about to face (as I was a sadistic girl back then — I still am, but that's for a later discussion).

I was so excited with my characters and my story that in two months, I wrote a full length novel—all 400 pages, formatted properly in Courier New 12 double-spaced to fit 25 lines per page. During that time, I wrote at least twenty pages a day — single-spaced in TNR 12.

But this was in 1996, and I was writing a futuristic romance novel, back when nobody was buying such things.

Then I discovered the online loops and RWA and everything else.

Many were very helpful and well-meaning. But what I heard the most (and very frequently) was that I was doing it all wrong. You see, nobody writes such things (futuristic or paranormal, etc) because it's just not fashionable to do so. The big NY publishers will NEVER publish them. I'm wasting my time. I'll never be published. Ever.

I belonged to a small critique group, and one of the writers there encouraged me to write category. Why? Because all the big names started there, and that's what I should be writing so I can pay my dues. Harlequin/Silhouette buys more manuscripts than other big single title publishers.

So I listened. I was a newbie. What did I know, right?

I read a lot of H/S, enjoyed many, didn't like some, and got exasperated with the rest. I tried my hands at writing them. I sucked. Big time.

Why?

Because after I decided to write category, the well-meaning CP said I couldn't write about musicians, artists, actors/actresses, sports figures, dancers, etc. She said I had to write something with cowboys, ranches, secret babies, amnesiac runaway brides, matchmakers, and more cowboys. She said there was a formula to writing category, and that I should study it.

When I asked for the formula, she couldn't provide one except that I should have at least two sex scenes and throw in more cowboys, ranches, secret babies, amnesiac runaway brides, matchmakers, and … you get the idea.

In 1997, I entered college. I tried writing again, but it became a chore to write to the “formula” because I couldn't care less about cowboys, secret babies, amnesiac runaway brides, matchmakers…and more cowboys. I have nothing against people who write them — after all, I found some that are really enjoyable. But I couldn't write them.

Sucks to be me.

So I stopped writing when spending time with my characters stopped being fun in 1998.

Then I discovered Dara Joy. But everyone said she was an exception and that I should never ever write futuristic or paranormal because I was never gonna sell if I did, and nobody wrote such things and expected to sell.

I listened.

Again.

I tried another “trend” again.

And failed. Again.

By then, I just gave up on writing romance altogether. I'd think up some other stories — most fantasy and science fiction. Why? Because nobody I know from SFF told me I'd never sell if I write about weird creatures or make up stuff about history or whatever.

As long as my story made sense and people enjoyed it, it was OK.

But I didn't write them because I wasn't sure if I wanted to be a writer at that time. Money was good in consulting although I worked hellish hours.

There are times I really wish I never heard of the words “market trends”. I wish people wouldn't tell me what the editors and agents are buying (the kind of stories they want) and what kind of stuff I should write so that I can become published.

Perhaps Mark Twain was right. All you need to succeed in life is ignorance and confidence.

This is the first article of the month of September. I'll be discussing how to hire a web designer, esp. after having done it once. :) I didn't do all these things, and I wish I had.

These days, it looks like every writer, aspiring or otherwise, has a website and/or blog. Here's what Kristin Nelson has to say about author sites & blogs:

I cannot stress enough how important it is to have a good website, with solid content, if you are going to have one at all. More on this in a minute.

If you don't have a website, that's fine too. I'll still ask for a full manuscript if I like the sample pages enough. There are pros and cons to footing the bill of a website before you are even published so don't stress about it or run out and get one right now because I don't think it's absolutely necessary.

But if you do have a website or blog and you are currently looking for an agent, or to make your first sale, or what have you, I can offer a couple of words of advice.

Don't have a website/blog unless it can be a professional one. The homemade sites look it and just make me cringe. It won't keep me from asking for your full (or if I like the novel, offering representation) but it's not putting your best foot forward and that's never a benefit.

I don't think Kristin's opinion is unusual. My own agent told me the same thing.

Anyway, let's say that you can't design your own website for various reasons. What should you do? Should you go out and just hire the first designer you find?

Before you ask for a quote from a designer, you must identify the following:

1. The purpose of your website
2. Your audience
3. Go-live date
4. Your budget
5. Your technical aptitude (your familiarity with HTML, PHP, JavaScript, CSS, Photoshop, etc.)

1. The Purpose of Your Website

It's incredible how so many people never consider why they have a website. Don't have one just so you can tell everyone you have one.

What are you trying to do with your website? Are you unpublished and trying to showcase your commitment and projects? Are you contracted for a book and trying to attract readers? Are you published and use your site for self-promo?

Know why you need a website. It'll save you a lot of time and money.

2. Your Audience

This is so important. If you're an unpublished writer trying to land an agent, your audience will be different from a New York Times bestselling author.

3. Go-Live Date

You must know when your site is going to go live. Good designers are very busy, and they have a waiting list. Obviously the longer you can wait, the more designer choices you will have.

4. Your Budget

You must know how much you're willing to spend. Or else you'll end up spending more than you should. (This is something I learned from my years in consulting.)

5. Your Technical Aptitude

If just reading the terms “HTML”, “PHP”, “DB”, “CSS”, etc. makes your eyes glaze over, you shouldn't be coding your own site, unless you plan to devote the next six months to mastering programming, etc.

Also, this may mean you need to hire someone to maintain your site for you after it's been professionally designed and launched. Do not try to do it yourself if you honestly don't feel confident about it. Sooner or later, you'll break the entire site layout.

That's it for this week.

Any questions, comments, tips, etc.? Feel free to share. Next week, I'll talk about identifying your website needs and design preferences, a.k.a. doing your homework.

Some of my writing friends and I have been talking about what makes us hacks. After all, what writer hasn't doubted herself at least once or twice in her writing career? I think Steven Pressfield sums it up beautifully below:

A hack, he [Robert McKee] says, is a writer who second-guesses his audience. When the hack sits down to work, he doesn't ask himself what's in his own heart. He asks what the market is looking for.

The hack condescends to his audience. He thinks he's superior to them. The truth is, he's scared to death of them or, more accurately, scared of being authentic in front of them, scared of writing what he really feels or believes, what he himself thinks is interesting. He's afraid it won't sell. So he tries to anticipate what the market (a telling word) wants, then gives it to them.

— from The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles

Therefore, I told my writing friends that as long as we're writing something that sings to us, makes us really believes in it and allows us to be authentic, then we're OK. :)

I've heard many people say they just want to write something “good enough” to be published. After all, it's not like they're writing a Shakespearean play, right?

Wrong.

How can you be a good writer if you plan to do just enough to get by? How can you call yourself an artist?

Some people actually say, “But it's just romance (or insert any other genre)! With the limitations of the genre and word count, I can't do the story any justice! What's the point of writing something deep and meaningful for just a genre novel?”

If you can't do the story justice in the genre for whatever reason, shouldn't you change your genre and/or write a literary novel? Why show such contempt for the readers and the genre when you yourself can't write the story that they want and expect from you? What are you really afraid of?

We, romance writers, bemoan lack of respect, promotional dollars, ridicule, etc. But isn't that because many of us look down upon the genre ourselves? When you're going for a job interview, do you tell the prospective employer, “I'm the best candidate for the position” or “I'm good enough for the position”?

If we hope to become published, improve the genre's image, and perhaps join the NYT bestsellerdom, we must promise ourselves to do the following:

1. Regardless of the genre — romance, mystery, SFF, etc. — we'll respect it.
2. We'll master the craft so when our Muse comes calling, we'll be able to answer the call with confidence and the right tools.
3. We'll write consistently and regularly — the only exceptions: family emergencies and/or serious illness.
4. We'll always strive to write the best book we can even if it feels like slicing our veins open with a dull spoon at times. There are times you absolutely just love writing, but there will be times when you hate it (because you're revising or whatever). Suck it up because it's all going to pass. (And if it never does….well…then you should probably reconsider your decision to be a writer.)

When we do all of the above, we'll be one step closer to our writing goals. And please don't say you tried. “Tried” isn't good enough.