I'm searching for info and need more experienced opinion than mine here, regarding building a website...

I'm not sure when my book will be finally in print... (hopefully sometime before the year is over).

Should I build a website before the book is ready?

Need any and all suggestions you can give this newbie writer here, please ! (I know if I have the website up and running, I can add it to the contact info in the book). Also, would like my son to help me with this before he heads out for college again.

Anxiously awaiting...

My humble opinion would be yes, build it now...if you build it, they will come. The main reason I say build it is because of the marketing that will come with the birth of the book. You will want to do flyers, bookmarks, maybe have pens made, posters, whatever....

You NEED to have a web page addy for the public to view, and so they can find out all about you and see what else you have to offer. You never know when an editor might be reading one of your web page addresses on a flyer somewhere, go to your site to see what you are all about, and then write to you asking to see your clips. HEY...It could happen!

So, which comes first? The chicken or the egg?

I say, it's the rooster...

JJ

My recommendation for an addy is your name as it will appear on the book. Don't do book title becsue you will have more books on the future.

I agree with the queen...of course.

Keep asking questions about developing your site because there are many women in here who ahve done the same.

A nuter thing...are you computer savvy? If not, KISS...(keep it simple stupid). I didn't write that, but the words are very true. Don't crowd your web page with unnecessary words and artwork. Keep it simple, but interesting until you've built up a following. And unless you know how to write code, keep things to a minimum...reason being the more artwork and pic's you have on your page, the longer it takes for the page to download and it's been my experience that people will NOT wait. They will close your page and move on. YOU GET ONE SHOT at first time impression...girls, correct me if I'm wrong here, k?

There are places you can get FREE web pages and I've heard they are easy to do. If you can afford to get someone to do you a web page, then hey, go for it...if you cannot, you might want to try and do one on one of the free sites for now. Just a thought.

JJ

Songbird,

I agree with JawJaw in that the simpler you keep it the better. Too many pictures, products, links and such will only clutter and confuse the consumer.

My husband and I use Homestead and have found it to be worthwhile; however, it did take some time-3-4 weeks to set it up and then over a period of several months we added and deleted until we had it the way we wanted it.

Some of it was very confusing and if you're not computer-oriented, JawJaw's idea of a free webpage might be the best way to go. There are several sites on the web that offer free sites; but be careful some of them are not worthwhile.

Thanks Jaw Jaw, Dotsie and Toni.
I'm shopping around for ideas and more. But I do agree that simple is a good idea!

How does a bilingual website sound to you gals?

It sounds so CURRENT! Wow! You go girl! My guess is that it will be way ahead of everyone else with multiple languages. Cool!

You could set the site up so you can take pre-orders on your book. Audiences, viewing or reading, have short memory spans because there are so many books out there now. This way, they will receive the book right after it's released.

Thanks, Dianne! Pre-ordering sounds like a great idea!

JJ- Your enthusiasm is contagious! I apppreciate it so much!!!

anytime boomer...anytime!

songbird, why don't you do a Google search on bilingual sites and see how they look. I spent weeks scouring other sites before creating mine.

Keep a list of likes and dislikes. These can include colors, buttons, placement of buttons, content, organization, ease of use, etc.

And since you are specifying bilingual you may want to make the site your name and bilingual.com. that way when people do searches I believe if they do a bilingual search your site would appear. that alone will give you more traffic.

Make a list of why you want a site and that should tell you how to get started.

just another suggestion for your website is to put an excerpt of first chapter of the book on the site. It will give people a feeling that they're "getting someting" even though the book isn't out yet. And, it should help stimulate more pre-orders.

Like JJ, and the others. Keep the site simple. Don't confuse them with too many directions or links that take them no where.

This is a do what I say, not as I do suggestion. Don't use my website as an example.

Peace.

Funny, Vicki... I WAS looking at your website . But the preview is a definite "Yes"! I believe it's a MUST! Thanks fore the reminder.

Dotise:
Researching bilingual sites...Good idea, will look into it.

When I first decided to make the book, I had NO IDEA of all the work envolved. But I have learned a little here and there as I go .

Re free sites:

DO NOT GO TO IVILLAGE! That's where my jewelry site is and it's been one headache after another. Even their online tech help says she'd never set up a site there. I didn't know better and will eventually set up a new site when I have the time.

No kidding! IVILLAGE is like getting lost in the Internet Bermuda Triangle!

Dianne, interesting comment. I've been searching that site because I'm leaning towards creating a resource page for women on my site.

I've gotten totally lost and can't quite figure out why. I guess it's overwhelming becasue they have too much to offer.

Meredith and Dianne: thanks for your words of caution against ivillage. Good to know what doesn't work out well!

Dots: I've been looking at some bilingual websites, although I haven't found many . I just hate when people advertise of being capable of constructing bilingual websites and I can find horrors in their spelling ! That just doesnt work for me!

Either I am just a weird perfectionist or ... I just think it's outrageous to claim you can write both languages and not be careful enough about your "First Impression", the ad itself!

Hopefully, my son will find some time to help me before he heads out for college... Hopefully, since HE IS SO BUSY! I Just pray that I don't have to hire one of those people whose ads I saw for bilingual websites!

When I was reading Beginner Website Help forum on ivillage, there were regular complaints from people who spent weeks or months setting their site up and IT JUST DISAPPEARED!! ...and 50% of the time, it never came back either.

If this alone doesn't discourage you, I have horror stories galore. Like, for starters, I haven't been able to update my site for over 2 months now

Yes, it is very good business to put up the site with a sneak peak to the book and by all means a nice excerpt. Pre-orders are a great idea - talk with your publisher on how to handle that.

I recommend an author's name site. Check out these established authors for some good ideas on the layout of your site so you are not hemmed in by one book:

Favorite Author Websites

Dian:
Thanks for the link to the authors. Yes, I am planning on using my name for the website and have a preview, among other goodies. I've been looking around at other sites and am taking my time to plan this. It is a challenge, but one I welcome! Thanks for all the positive input!