It’s Thursday and everyone knows what that means! Git yer contest hats on. A bunch of fun stuff this week to get involved with. As always there’s a bunch of Twilight Contests - you Twilight fans are so active - plus, make your own FanLib Fortune Cookies. Cool Huh?
Member contests open for submissions:
These contests will end by next Thursday (which is my birthday) and need your votes.
Class of 2k8 members love Web sites!
Here's few more thoughts on the subject:
Web sites provide author bios.
My favorite part of any author’s site is the Bio page. What can I say? I love checking out the wizard behind the curtain! After checking out the author, I always click over to the frequently asked questions. Not only are they usually very interesting and informative, but because I’m a debut author I need to prepare myself for what kind of questions I may one day be frequently asked.
And since no one has ever frequently asked me anything—except maybe if they could have my book for free—I decided to *steal* some FAQ’s from some of my favorite authors and answer them as best I could on my own site.
~Brooke Taylor, Author of Undone,
http://http://www.brooketaylorbooks.com/
A Web site is a fantastic marketing tool.
People will tell you it's an essential marketing tool these days, but I think its most important role is giving readers a more personal glimpse of the writer, a sense of the personality behind the book… and that can deepen and enrich your understanding of her work, as well as forge a feeling of connectedness between author and reader—and connecting with readers is what writing is all about.
~ Elizabeth C. Bunce, Author of A Curse Dark As Gold,
http://www.elizabethcbunce.com
A Web site adds professionalism.
I have a Web site because I love the idea of having a Web site. But more than that, it makes me feel the part of being a writer. For the past fifteen years, I've designed chips (the kind that go in computers, not in your mouth), so when I started writing, there was a certain part of me which felt like a poser. Like I was pretending to be something I wasn't. And even now, with my first book coming out later this year, it's still kind of hard to identify myself as a writer.
So what does my site do for me? It makes me feel professional. It gives me the opportunity to present myself in a positive way. And it makes others view me as a positive and professional author. Writing is fun; I love it and want to do it forever. It is more than a hobby, and I want anyone who visits my site to see that and understand.
P.J. Hoover, Author of The Forgotten Worlds Book 1: The Emerald Tablet,
http://www.pjhoover.com/
A Web site can be jam-packed with activities.
A Web site is a really good way for me to showcase my books, introduce readers to me, and to pass information on to school librarians about what happens when I come to a school to visit. I also use the site to put up teacher packs, i.e. information, games, coloring pages, mazes, extra websites, writing assignments, that teachers can use with my books either before or after I come, helping to build upon the information I present when I am there.
~Stacy Nyikos, Author of Dragon Wishes,
http://www.stacyanyikos.com
Web sites satisfy curiosity.
I think a Web site gives readers a place to get to know you, learn more about your books and your plans, and maybe try something new.
~Regina Scott, Author of La Petite Four,
http://lapetitefour.com
A Web site is the place to be.
To a writer, a Web site is very important. The Internet is where we all go now...and having a pleasant, interesting presence there can help a writer attract and keep readers.
~Marissa Doyle, Author of Bewitching Season,
http://www.marissadoyle.com/
I actually haven't set foot in one of my favorite bookstores in almost twenty-five years...but I don't think I'd be a writer today if I hadn't gone there frequently as a child and young teen.
The store is The Bunch of Grapes Bookshop in Vineyard Haven on Martha's Vineyard. I grew up spending a lot of time on the Vineyard when it was still a funky, artistic-y place, before it was "discovered". So you got used to seeing James Taylor or Walter Cronkite or Ruth Gordon or Art Buchwald on the streets or in restaurants, and you just ignored them, because on the Vineyard it just didn't matter.
I had (still have!) a wonderful mom who could never say no to buying me books, so a trip to the Bunch of Grapes was de rigueur every weekend we were on the Vineyard. And it was during some of these trips that I found books that I'd never seen anywhere else--books like Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising series and Dorothy Hartley's Lost Country Life and Evangeline Walton's The Mabinogion, a retelling of ancient Welsh myths and a book I still re-read and buy for people to read because it's that good. These books are a big reason why I write YA historical and fantasy fiction today...and I might never had found them at a critical time in my reading life if the wonderful people at Bunch of Grapes didn't have a fabulous children's book section back before children's books were "important".
Thanks, guys, for introducing me to those books.Sounds like she needs to plan an author event on the Vineyard! We'll come to that!
Interesting list! I love looking at websites and often go directly to the bio.
Teri
Okay. I am feeling really bad reading all this great reasons for having a website because.....I don't have one yet. But I will!!!
Get thee to a web designer, Miss Barrie. You will soon be a famous author!