Five Must Have Elements For Your Author Website

The easiest way for a fan to check out an author is by hitting the Google and seeking their website. And when I receive a book review request through email from an Indie author, I do the same. I seldom accept a request without trying to know a bit more about the book and the author. 

There are very few requests that come with a sample chapter making it hard to guess how their writing style would be and if I will enjoy it. Also the author website has now become a sort of home base or platform for all the internet activities. Thus my visit to the author website becomes inevitable. 

The stronger the message your website sends the more interested and hooked your readers would be. But again, not every author can have a dedicated blog that is updated regularly, as much as we readers would like it. They may not have the time or even just not their cup of tea. 

Must have elements on your author website

But it is vital that every author website should have the minimum elements to make a lasting impact on your readers. Let us discuss some of them, alright?

1) An easy to use design.

It goes without saying that any website, be it an author’s or otherwise, has to have a clean and attractive look. It doesn’t matter what platform, whether it is self hosted, or even if it has regular updates. 

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Clean and professional


It could be just a static website with a minimal look and it would still work. 

2) Show us who you are.

In an author website, YOU are the product. YOU are the brand and the product. Any visitor who arrives at your website or blog is there to know about you and then your books. So make your ‘About me‘ page as interesting as possible.

I personally love funny, quirky information about the authors but it could be direct and professional as well. Include your social media accounts along with your accolades and other places where we can find your writing, if any.

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Paul Mathew’s funny author profile


3) Tell us about your book(s).

An author website acts a sales funnel to your books, so they need to be positioned prominently. The page can contain testimonials from other magazines or reviewers. 

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It is alright if you don’t have anything to add


When I receive a mail from an independent author that I have never heard of I definitely check out their other books and try to see if it matches my taste. So I usually land up on this page right after reading the about me page.

Some authors leave an excerpt as a freebie for the fans and followers on their website. 

4) Keep us updated.

A website or blog can be treated as your own bulletin board and you can make your visitors ‘in’ on the news. Some of the updates that you can share are:

  • You can share the first hand news about your book releases, cover reveal etc. 
  • You can talk about your work in progress. 
  • Another great way to keep your readers updated by posting your book signings and tours, virtually or in real life. 
  • Some authors call out for early reviewers through their websites
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Keep the site updated

You can even ask your readers to sign up for more updates. Of course, no one likes spam, so make sure you do not send them too many mailers. 

5) How to reach you?

Do not forget to leave the contact information on your blog.

Nothing frustrates a reader or blogger than searching for a contact information especially when they want to leave a feedback. 
You can leave a secondary mail id, so that you won’t have to worry too much about the spam and dodgy requests. 

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‘I’m afraid the doctor can’t see you today. You could visit his web page instead.’


You can also add a press or media kit that is available for download. You will never know when it will turn out to be useful. Some of the information that you can include in the kit are:

  • Basic bio data
  • Professional head shot
  • Book cover image in good quality
  • Relevant information about the book like synopsis
  • An Excerpt
  • Testimonials, if any

I have come to know many bloggers who have turned to authors, and be successful at that. And it may not come as a surprise that from the point of view of booksellers and publishers they have a platform established with a sizable number of following, which means selling more books and better outreach. 

If you are an independent author who is looking to be traditionally published, or even if not, an author website has become a bare minimum. Do you have these elements in your website?

What are those things that you look for in an author’s website? Did I leave any of the things that are important to you in an author’s website? Let us chat.

Elements

26 Comments

  1. Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard

    I agree with all these points, and would add: the author website needs to be kept up-to-date. It doesn’t have to take a lot of time (or money—authors can hire someone to take care of their website on a part-time or as-needed basis), but if you’ve got a book about to come out, or one that recently came out, I’d better be able to find it on your website. I’ve seen author websites that were literally several years and several books out of date.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      YES! Some of those websites are so old that it breaks my heart.

      Reply
  2. Dani @ Perspective of a Writer

    Love this post Gayathri! I agree with your points. Sometimes author sites are so antiquated that its frustrating to even go there and try to hunt and find what you need so any easy layout is a must!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      You are spot on right.

      Reply
  3. Marcia

    Very informative list!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I hope so.

      Reply
  4. VIDYA TIRU

    love the list and i am sure not just authors, but even book bloggers (and all bloggers) will benefit from this list

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Yes I agree!

      Reply
  5. Eline

    Wonderful list! I think you’ve covered it all 🙂

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Glad that worked out well.

      Reply
  6. Tasha

    Great advice.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Glad you think so.

      Reply
  7. Shana

    Great suggestions! I like to know the author so like the about part

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Yes the about part usually draws us to them.

      Reply
  8. jennifer gaarder

    great advice!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thanks

      Reply
  9. DJ Sakata

    Excellent recommendations

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Sure Thanks.

      Reply
  10. Stormi

    Wonderful post! I think a lot of this applies to bloggers as well.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I totally agree!

      Reply
  11. Allegra

    This is a really good post and so true. I’ve been so many authors websites looking for information about them and found that their website was horrible. Also, if I get send a review request and I check out their website and it’s…lacking, I’m less likely to review. It’s not difficult to create a decent and well designed website now adays, with no coding experience, so there’s no excuse! Fantastic post!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I concur. But an incomplete website is better than none at all.

      Reply
  12. Jenn @ Bound to Writing

    Wonderful post! I’ve been wanting to set up a separte author website from my blog, but haven’t had the time to set it up the way I’d like to. I’m definitely going to be considering these tips when I do set it up. Thank you!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Glad I could be of help!

      Reply
  13. Sophia @ Bookwyrming Thoughts

    Yes to all of this! Like you, I peep on author websites to get a sense of who they are as a person and what their book is about before accepting or declining (if I feel their book might be the perfect fit from the initial email). It’s easy to look up information on the author if they have been around for awhile, but if not, a website is super helpful in getting to know them! Otherwise if I find nothing, I don’t know if they’re a good fit… much like them looking on our blogs to see if we may be a perfect fit for their book. It’s a two-way street.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      You put it perfectly. It is a two way street.

      Reply

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Gayathri

Gayathri

Gayathri has been reviewing books since 2010. When she is not reading books or creating online content, she works as a writer and a digital marketer. Head over to meet me!