I recently spoke at a writers' club and, of course, came back with a stack of business cards and bookmarks. I am giving all those authors applause for having cards or bookmarks, but after visiting their Web sites I was so disappointed!
Many of them had no way to contact the author. Their main Web site page is only a marketing page and the link takes visitors directly to a sell page on Amazon or elsewhere). One didn't even include a review. None included a media room.
This kind of inaccessibility violates one of the most important Web site rules for authors. It appears on one of the first pages of The Frugal Book Promoter. That is: " Don't pretend that people have come to your Web site only to buy a book."
A free page at AuthorsDen.com is better than something like this. AD doesn't have the ability to offer a media room per se, but an author could just offer a media kit using e-mail.
But more heinous even than no media room is that there was no way to reach the author. Sometimes there was no e-mail address even on their business card!
Authors! These are your READERS. Or your future readers. Let's treat them with respect. If you are one of those who are doing this for security reasons, for heaven's sake, get an e-mail address separate from your personal one. Put it on you business cards, bookmarks, Web site and everywhere else you can. Your readers will respond with book sales and with compliments that can be used as blurbs or endorsements.
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Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of This Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Stories Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of poetry; and how to books for writers including, The Frugal Book Promoter: How To Do What Your Publisher Won't; The Frugal Editor: Put Your Best Book Forward to Avoid Humiliation and Ensure Success; and Great Little Last Minute Editing Tips for Writers . The Great First Impression Book Proposal is her newest booklet for writers. She has three FRUGAL books for retailers including A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store Promotions: How To Increase Profits and Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Some of her other blogs are TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com, a blog where authors can recycle their favorite reviews. She also blogs at all things editing, grammar, formatting and more at The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor . If your followers at Twitter would benefit from this blog post, please use the little Green widget to let them know about this blog:
Sunday, October 24, 2010
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Hi Carolyn, Just found this post and I have to say I agree 1000 percent. In 2010, there's hardly any point to writing and offering a book for sale if you aren't going to have a proper website. It doesn't have to be super detailed or fancy, but it does need the vital components that tell the reader you are a professional or at least you care very strongly about your project if it is mainly a hobby endeavor. Bottom line, if your site is seriously lacking, what do you think people will think of your writing?
ReplyDeleteHi Carolyn .. not linking up all the dots - web pages etc etc .. is a hienous crime as you so rightly say .. a basic error.
ReplyDeleteWe need to have a strategy via our research to give ourselves the best shot at promotion .. I'm not there .. but I sure pick up ideas as I go along ..
Thanks excellent thought to help us all & trigger other 'omissions' .. have a good week .. Hilary