The Absolute Truth: Do I Need an Author Website?

October 23, 2023

Do I Need an Author Website?

I see authors ask this question all the time in writing groups, and the answer is always YES.

Yes, you need a website… even if your book hasn’t been published yet.

Yes, you need a website…even if you only have one book out.

Yes, you need a website…even if you have a large following on social media.

Yes, you need a website…even if you plan to work with a traditional publisher.

Yes, you need a website…even if you think you don’t.

Having a website is essential for marketing your book and yourself. I know it seems intimidating to create an author website from scratch, but don’t let trepidation of the unknown stop you from building your online presence or author platform.

Keep reading to learn all about the essentials of an author website, and why the answer is YES when you ask, “Do I need an author website?”

4 Reasons You Need an Author Website

1. You own it.

Everything you post on your website belongs to YOU.

Did you realize that the content you create for social media, while technically owned by you, can be used by the platforms in any way they want?

Social media platforms are incredibly useful to building your author brand, but they shouldn’t be the only way you market yourself. It takes a lot of time to create quality content for social media…and most people never see a piece of content after the algorithm has already showed it to them.

If you create quality, evergreen content for your website, that same content can work as a book marketing tool for you for YEARS helping to increase traffic to your website.

2. It establishes you as a professional.

When authors ask me “Do I need an author website?” I always encourage them to think of their website like a business card. It shows who you are, who your audience is, and why readers should purchase your books.

As a professional author (if you are writing a book…you are a professional author!), you need to use your website to convince potential readers that they should trust you with their time and money. When your website is cohesive, branded, and clear, people are more likely to stay on it for longer periods of time.

I suggest putting a few glowing reviews of your books throughout your website to use as social proof. That social proof is another way to establish yourself as a professional writer and build your credibility.

You may be wondering why your social media accounts don’t serve the same purpose. Here’s why: Social media is free. Anyone can create an account and say whatever they want. A website is an investment. Having a professional website signals to visitors that you are serious about your writing and about your career as an author.

3. Your sales will increase.

If you google “How do I increase my book sales?” all of the returning answers will point toward developing an author website. Yes, it is that important for marketing—even if you are signed with a publisher!

You have the opportunity with your website to promote all of your books, all at once. On social media you may only be promoting your most recent published novel, but on your website, you can link to all of them, as many times as you want. Plus, your website helps you build your email list. You know what you promote in your emails? That’s right…your books!

A website can help increase your sales as long as you include links to purchase throughout your website. This makes it easy for people to add to cart!

4. It will help you build an email list.

Collecting email addresses for your email list is one of the best reasons to have an author website. Without a mailing list, you can’t contact your audience. Without an email list, you can’t let anyone know about your upcoming releases or projects.

It helps you grow your community. Your email list is a form of communication that you have complete control over.

What Should You Put On Your Author Website?

After you have decided that YES is the answer after asking yourself, “Do I need an author website?” you need to figure out what to put on yours!

A good website is, above all else, consistent. Consistent brand colors, consistent fonts, and consistent navigation tools. Keep your website simple when just starting out so you don’t get overwhelmed during the process.

Choose your branding elements (like fonts and colors) first and then begin building your website. Website builders like WordPress, Wix, and Squarespace all have templates you can utilize if you do not have experience with web design, but if you have the budget you can also always hire someone to assist you!

When choosing a domain name, it is always best to go with your first and last name (or your pen name). It is much easier for people to remember that way!

I suggest having your newsletter signup on each page of your website so that is as easy as possible for people to subscribe.

Make sure your website is optimized for mobile devices. This will improve the user experience for website visitors—which will ensure they stay on your website for longer than a few seconds!

One of my best website design tips is to resist the urge to over design. Leave lots of white space, don’t include a lot of animation, and keep your text blocks short and sweet.

**Web design tip: Breaking up large text blocks into smaller ones helps to make your content more easily skimmable by readers, and they will be more likely to stay on your page for a longer period of time. Did you know that most people only stay on a webpage for about fifteen seconds? If they click over to your site and only see large block of text…they aren’t going to stay to try and read it!

Home page

Your home page should contain a minimal amount of information. It exists to establish your brand, introduce you, and help visitors navigate to different pages.

Your home page should include a photo of you, a quick description that tells visitors who you are (think of it like an elevator pitch!), and one or two reviews from readers.

That’s it! You don’t want to overwhelm visitors with an avalanche of content. Keep it simple, make it easy for them to know who you are and what you write, and make it easy for them to navigate to the rest of your site.

About page

This page should have a short bio and a headshot. Link to all your social platforms and include a place to subscribe to your email list.

Your author bio should be around 300 words and should tell readers who you are, what you write, and what makes it universal. Jane Friedman has some great tips for writing an author bio, but my favorite one is that she instructs authors to create a longer bio for their website and then tells instructs authors on ways to adapt it for different places like social media, press releases, and book jackets.

This is your chance to show potential readers your personality. Have fun here and don’t be afraid to be yourself!

Newsletter Sign-up

One of the most important reasons for you to have a website is because it allows you to collect email addresses from anyone who wants to subscribe to your newsletter. An email list and a newsletter are some of the best marketing tools you have! Want to let people know about an upcoming release? Put it in your newsletter! Want to run a giveaway in exchange for Amazon reviews? Handle it through your email list!

Emails allow you to stay in touch with your audience. I love a lot of authors, but I don’t keep a running list of all their release schedules. The newsletters they send out are incredibly useful to me. If I didn’t have those reminders, I would probably forget to purchase their new books.

Your newsletter doesn’t have to be something that takes you hours and hours each month. It can be as simple or as complex as you make it. If you’re interested in learning more about what should go in your newsletter (and how to get more subscribers), check out my blog post: 5 Secrets to Growing Your Author Newsletter and Email List.

You need to make it easy for website visitors to sign up for your email list. I suggest placing the sign up form on a banner that lives either at the bottom or top of your website. This way, it is always in the same place and people never have to go searching for it.

Published Works

Create a page that shows off all the writing you have done! I suggest having a picture of your book cover(s) with the blurb text next to it. Include a link to purchase each book.

If you haven’t published anything yet, that’s ok! The answer to “Do I need an author website?” is still YES! It’s still important for you to have a website. You could make this page a “Coming Soon” page until you publish your first novel.

Contact page

Be clear with your website visitors about how they can contact you. Many platforms like WordPress or Squarespace will have a template for this page you can utilize.

I do not recommend combining your Contact page with any other pages on your website because people typically do not want to have to scroll or dig around for information. Just like your newsletter subscription form, your contact form and page should be extremely easy for visitors to find and use.

Blog or Shop

Both a blog and a shop are optional for your website. Some traditional or self-published authors really enjoy connecting with their community via blog posts. They also utilize SEO (search engine optimization) to bring in more potential readers by creating blog posts that target keywords similar to their own genre and published books.

You may find, after publishing a few books, that you would like to open a shop on your website. This is a great way to make a little extra revenue with branded merchandise. You can sell signed copies of your books, stickers, art prints, coffee mugs (although the shipping costs on mugs are sometimes prohibitive), or clothing all centered around your characters and books.

"Do I need an author website?"

Yes, the answer to the question “Do I need an author website?” is absolutely. You definitely need an author website, even if you are a new author or have not published anything yet. An author website will help you grow your community, make more sales, and establish you as a professional author. If you found this blog helpful, please let me know! If you are ever in need of an editor, please contact me. I would love to chat about your project!