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Web sites…
Most authors have them, need them, or want them. But are they truly necessary? For the rest of this week, members of The Class of 2k8 will give you their innermost thoughts on being part of the World Wide Web. Stay tuned for some great insight, and be sure and check out each member's site.

(Drum roll, please.) Let’s get to that list: 28+ Reasons Why You Need A Web site.

A Web site is where people go to find out information.
The first thing I do when I finish a book that I love is visit the author’s Web site. Here, I learn more about the author, what other books he published, where she was born. A good Web site makes me feel closer to the writers I enjoy, and much more likely to buy their next book. I hope readers who come to my site feel like they’ve gotten to know me a bit, and have found some way in which we connect.
~Jenny Meyerhoff, Author of Third Grade Baby
http://www.jennymeyerhoff.com

A presence on the Web means being a part of a community.
For me a Web presence isn't just a matter of advertising, it's a matter of community and process. So many essays have begun as blog posts, and soooo many of my friendships and professional relationships have started the same way. I've also had old friends find me through my online life, and I've been approached by publications like Salon.com, as well. So, really... I have to say that I think I'd still be waiting tables if it weren't for the Web!
~Laurel Snyder, Author of Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains, http://www.laurelsnyder.com/

A Web site brings people to your site.
It's really fun to see what kind of search brings people to your site. Let's see, some of the phrases that have brought viewers to my site include:

"didactic stories read"
So, you want to read a didactic story, and if so, may I ask why?
"sleeping babies"
Ah yes, with a picture book titled, Baby Can’t Sleep, I get lots of parents wanting the secret to getting your baby to sleep. Guess what? There is no secret. Babies simply don't sleep as much as people have led us to believe. So, buy my book and have a laugh over it at the very least.
"slush pile garbage"
Yeah, I think editors would agree, there's a lot of garbage in the slush pile. Are you trying to figure out what defines garbage? I think it's pretty much anything that's not so fabulous an editor wants to snatch it up the second he/she reads it.

See? What a fun game! Get a Web site, and find out what fun phrases bring people to your site.
Lisa Schroeder, Author of I Heart You, You Haunt Me, http://www.lisaschroederbooks.com/

Our Totally Important Post for today is about Lisa, as well.
T.I.P.
Kids are loving I Heart You, You Haunt Me! Check out what this blogger’s daughter has to say.