One of the main questions I receive in my one-on-one consultation is, ‘Do I need a website?’ The short answer is yes and here are three reasons you need a website.
1. You Can Showcase Your Writing
Having your own website is like a shop window online, where people can read your writing and follow you as a fan. A lot of people have turned to social media for writing and marketing, but the truth is that social media is here today and gone tomorrow.
In addition, the social media sites set the rules, not you. Even if you have 5,000 fans on your Facebook page, for example, you might notice that you only get a tiny fraction of views. This is because Facebook rewards pages that have a lot of likes, shares, comments, and Facebook then shows their content to more people. If your fans are not showing these "social signals", your great content might not get seen by anyone at all.
With a site or blog, you can publish regularly and then let your followers know what’s new.
In addition, you can sell directly from your own site, cutting out all of the publishing middlemen. All you need is:
* A PDF file of your content, such as a short story or novel
* A PayPal account
* A Buy Now button you will create in your PayPal account
* A download page for customers to get their purchase
You can also link to content you are selling on Amazon. Amazon will take a percentage, but they are:
a) The largest bookstore in the world
b) A search engine for shoppers
c) A safe and secure digital marketplace where you will get paid for your work every month
d) A place where you can appear side by side with top authors in your genre.
Use your site or blog as the hub of all your activities.
2. Fans and Publishing Professionals Can Learn More about You
As you build your reputation as a writer, more and more people will want to know who you are, including:
* Fans
* Literary agents
* Editors at publishing houses
* Writing contest judges
... and more. Make it easy for people to find you, get your biography, and see your full list of works.
3. It Can Be a Writing and Resource Tool for Yourself and Others
If you start a WordPress blog, you can showcase your work to the public if you wish. You can show off your creative writing, blog about topics important to you, share writing industry news, and more.
WordPress also allows you to password protect content or make it completely private. If you’re like most writers, you probably have a lot of favorite sites, works in progress and more. If you participate in a lot of contests, put your work on your blog with the name of the contest, deadline date and so on to keep track of your success and publish it once they have announced the winners.
Store links, writing tips, your resume and more. Update your writer’s portfolio and biography any time you wish.
Use your blog as the hub of all your writing and promotional activities and watch your career grow.