Whether you are a freelance, fiction or poetry writer, a website is a vital medium in which you can promote your writing. A website will allow potential clients to learn more about your writing services, along with anybody else who is interested in what you are working on.
How to Start a Website
Starting a professional-looking website for your writing doesn't need to cost money or require knowledge of HTML. There are many free services, such as blogspot.com or wordpress.com, that allow you to create a blog-style website. With these services, you can create separate pages or sections to display portions of information. Free website services also offer templates, so all you need to worry about is the content for your site.
Introduce Yourself as a Writer
Including a brief section about yourself and your writing is crucial. You can write as much or as little about yourself as you feel comfortable with, but the main thing to include on your website is what you write about. You can also include your education, your influences, how you began writing, or what your goals are.
Include a Portfolio of Your Writing
To give website visitors an idea of your writing style, include a portfolio section. Include as many publishing credits as you feel are relevant; any reviews your writing may have received; writing awards you may have won; and excerpts or samples of your work. Use already-published samples or link to external sites where your writing appears, and include a copyright notice to prevent plaigiarism.
Provide Contact Information on Your Website
Allowing website visitors a way in which to contact you is vital for your writing website. Many blog-style websites, such as those on wordpress.com, allow visitors to leave comments directly on pages or entries. This is a quite public way to get in touch with you. One less-public way to allow your website visitors to contact you is by providing an email address.
Ways to Promote Your Writing Website
- Comment on other websites or blogs and leave your URL in the Website field. Be sure to comment in a genuine and relevant way. Leaving a comment that is unrelated to what the other website's topic is about can be considered spam and lower your credibility.
- Join social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon and Digg to promote your website. As with other sites, take care to not over-promote your writing website on these services.
- Include a link to your website in your email signature.
- Put a link to your writing website in your signature in online forums where you post.
Protecting Your Privacy Online
- To prevent spam, write your email address in a format that spambots cannot recognize. For example, replacing @ with the word [at] is an effecive way to disguise your email address. Alternately, use an email address that you create specifically for your website, so spam will not overwhelm your regular account.
- Consider using a pen name instead of your real name. If you are concerned about your real name being linked to your writing on the internet, a pen name is a useful way for clients to still be able to find you. Remember to choose a pen name that is still professional.
- Do not reveal too much personal information. Do not include your address or home phone number on your website. Including a picture of yourself on your website is optional, but many people do not feel comfortable doing so. If you have a blog on your website, be cautious in revealing any personal information such as vacations you are taking, children's names, where you work or stories about people you know.
- Do not write anything on your website you would not feel comfortable telling those close to you. Anybody can see what you write, and things that you put on your website can be difficult to permanently remove later.
A well-made, professional website can increase your exposure and credibility as a writer. Whether your website comprises a few published writing samples or pages of information, it will afford you a valuable and effective way to find clients and promote your work.
Samantha Garner - Samantha Garner is a fiction and freelance writer living in Alberta, Canada. She has been writing both online and for print publications ...
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