If you haven't already done so, please read the first and second installments titled Identifying Your Site's Purpose and Audience, Go-Live Date, Your Budget, and Your Technical Aptitude and Identifying Your Website Needs and Design Preferences a.k.a. Doing Your Homework before reading this week's article.

By now you should know what your site to have (at least have some ideas) and know which designers have worked on your favorite author sites.

It's time to write out your requirements to send to potential designers. Write out the timeline (when you want yours launched), the type of technical solutions you seek (CMS, WordPress, Joomla, template only v. installation included, maintenance needed or not, etc.), and deliverables (graphic files, actual codes, Photoshop files, training if any, other documentation, etc.).

Once you have this, you can email designers and ask them for quotes.

In addition, you can also use a site called eLance to get quotes from other web designers. The registration is free, and there's very little risk to the people who hire freelancers there.

Here's a list of designers I found by surfing author sites. The list is nowhere near exhaustive. If you're a professional designer and want to be included, leave a comment with your designer site info and/or where people can find your portfolio. I will not include you on the list if you don't have a portfolio and/or experience.

Disclaimer: I'm not endorsing and/or promising anything by listing designers here. The only designers I've worked with are Frauke from CrocoDesigns and Tara O'Shea, and I like them. If you want to ask any specific questions about either of them, contact me.

• CrocoDesigns — Frauke from CrocoDesigns did my site. She has a waiting list for WordPress templates and/or full site design, although she still has some open slots for print and/or MySpace designs. (If you need a site launched ASAP, you can contact her and ask if she can do it. If you have a very good reason, she may work with you.)
• Tara O'Shea — She made the cover for my free serial A Happily Ever After of Her Own. She is very professional and punctual.
• Hot Damn Designs
• Rae Monet
• Clearly Computers
• Austin Designworks
• Rock the Rock Design
• Amberwing Design
• Waxcreative Design
• Swank Web Style
• Dream Forge Media
• Web Crafters Design
• Twilight Industries
• Elle Media
• Nytshadow Designs

Next week, I'll talk about evaluating quotes and designers.

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.

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.

…is now up.

What do you think? :)

…my new site that is!

I hired Frauke (CrocoDesigns) to make a WP Template for me. I saw the preview of it, and was very happy. I called my agent to her and to get her feedback should she have any, and she was very complimentary.

I hope I didn't scare Frauke with my epic novel…I mean, er…feedback. And I really wish she didn't think I hated the design, because that wasn't true at all. I was like “Squee!!!! WOW!!!!” I used to write 400+ pages' worth of feedback for one website, etc. for my corporate client projects. Even though I quit four years ago, the habit seems to have stuck.

I can't wait to have the new design go live. *squee~*

P.S. I'll be posting about the designer selection process in September.