What about a website

[ianh]

Is creating your own website any good, as I have done this but wanted to know if it is useful or not to promote yourself

By the way the website is

http://ianhall.freehostingcloud.com

if anyone is interested.

[Captcha]

But - what are you promoting? What do you want people to do, once they see your website?

If you've got nothing published, it makes no sense to have people asking at their local bookstore - they already know the answer.

[Storyteller5]

I think a website can be a helpful tool, but it depends how you use it. If you include a blog on it, you have to pay attention to it and do regular updates to give people reason to come back. No website is better than one done very poorly or one that is neglected. Be clear about what you want to do with your site.

Looking at your website I find the blue hard to read in the middle. There are words spelled wrong/missing hyphens and very little punctuation. I'm not sure this website is helping you.

[ianh]

Thanks for your input.
I have amended the website on advice here, adding a comments page, along with changing the colour of the writing and correcting the spelling as of UK.

[Jessianodel]

I can't connect to the website.

[PinkAmy]

In my experience with websites, you only get traffic if you use your own domain. Free domains are more cumbersome to type out and don't appear as professional. I had my own domain for 10 years.

[JRainey]

Seconding PinkAmy. It is very, very appealing and helpful to have a domain name. Not only helpful to your visitors, but also to you. They are more likely to remember and type in/click a link that is a simple, professional domain name, and that means more exposure for you.

However, I also agree that websites are only necessary and useful if you have something to sell and you keep it maintained, so keep that in mind.

[veinglory]

Auto-paying sound is one of the most hated features of an website :(

Until you are published my personal recommendation would be to start with a blog.

[Anne Lyle]

Auto-playing sound is one of the most hated features of an website :(

Seconded. Think of all those folks in offices having a quiet surf between tasks - and suddenly music blares out of the laptop speakers! Even at home, nothing makes me hit the back button faster than background music on a website. (Well, that and tasteless porn!)


Until you are published my personal recommendation would be to start with a blog.

Although a "dead" blog is equally little use - a huge percentage of blogs are never updated once the initial enthusiasm has worn off.

I would say that if you know what name you are going to publish under, register some version of that as a domain name and get a site up with some basic content relevant to your writing, so that you start racking up Google rankings - mine has been online for over five years, making me the top hit on my name :)

If you want to play the social media game, plan your strategy. Or just start a blog about something related to your genre or main topic. As an unpublished writer, it's unlikely to be of much use in promoting you (unless you are a brilliant blogger), but on the other hand, if you leave it until your book is published, that's too late.

[ianh]

I have modified my web page, again on advice here.
I have now only have the music on the home page.

Check it out

http://ianhall.freehostingcloud.com

[veinglory]

IMHO the music and the counter just aren't a good look for a professional page.

[PinkAmy]

Your website looks amateur because:
a. it's on a free hosting site
b. music
c. graphics and format- it's difficult to read the font with the background, you need a much lighter background or to use a solid color.
d. the writing isn't crisp and clean

In my opinion, the page you have would not promote you well.
I'm sorry, I wish I had something more positive to say, I know you must have put a lot of work into it.

[JohnnyGottaKeyboard]

Seconding PinkAmy. It is very, very appealing and helpful to have a domain name. Not only helpful to your visitors, but also to you. They are more likely to remember and type in/click a link that is a simple, professional domain name, and that means more exposure for you.This is harder for some of us than it is for others...! Every version of my published under name is pretty much taken.

[JohnnyGottaKeyboard]

Your website looks amateur because:
a. it's on a free hosting site
b. music
c. graphics and format- it's difficult to read the font with the background, you need a much lighter background or to use a solid color.
d. the writing isn't crisp and clean

In my opinion, the page you have would not promote you well.
I'm sorry, I wish I had something more positive to say, I know you must have put a lot of work into it.I actually quite liked the background pic and didn't have any problem seeing the text. I didn't think much of the text, but that's another story... (One thing: the second sentence isn't structured properly--it seems to be a statement but then turns into a question.)

As to whether or not it is a good bit of self-promotion, I'd need a keener insight into what exactly you were trying to push. I mean it's creepy. Are you writing horror fiction? It seems more like a paranormal "fact" site (sorry for the quotes but I'm a strict skeptic of all things supernatural). Aesthetically, I'd say move all the facebook/tweet crap to the bottom and lose the counter. And you do realize that the three underlined topics below "questions, questions" -- you know, the ones that look like links--well, they aren't links. (Hey, that started as a question and turned into a statement!)

[PinkAmy]

I actually quite liked the background pic and didn't have any problem seeing the text. I didn't think much of the text, but that's another story... (One thing: the second sentence isn't structured properly--it seems to be a statement but then turns into a question.)

Perhaps I should have prefaced my difficulty by saying I'm can only see out of one eye (botched cataract surgery) so I might not be the best one to comment on reading the text.
Agreed about the text needing refinement.

[ianh]

I have changed the website layout and also the music is only on the contact me page now.
I am now on google as the first one listed when searching ianhall paranormal author.
So thanks for all the advice on here.
All I need now is a new agent and maybe with a bit of luck a book published.

[PinkAmy]

Your new page is excellent! It presents as a professional space from a writer, the other looked amateur. I think it's great!