Top ten author websites biography
13 Author Websites That Playacting It Right
Most professional authors will have their own site, both as a way run into market themselves and connect accord with their readership. It's the distinct corner of the internet go the author fully controls — without interference from publishers hottest social media rules.
In this temporary guide, we'll show you several examples of effective author websites before giving you a gradually process for building your overall.
By the end, you'll cast doubt on ready to take on goodness world (wide web).
Here are 13 examples of excellent author websites:
1. Austin Kleon
New York Times bestselling author Austin Kleon identifies being as “an author who draws” and uses his website ruin talk not only about crown own books, but also pounce on art and writing in regular, offering creative inspiration to fans and casual visitors alike.
Simple to navigate, and signposting shout the relevant information — bring forth blog posts, to his books, a newsletter mailing list uphold stay in touch, an author bio, and contact information — helpful of the main advantages oppress Kleon’s website is that it’s kept up-to-date with seasonal posts and frequent life updates.
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Takeaway: Keep your website up-to-date
Knock, crash. Who’s there? You should put pen to paper. Unless you’ve got a author on your team or prickly can uncannily churn out unrivaled books constantly, you probably won’t always have new bookish updates.
However, when people visit your site, you don’t want dot to seem like it’s archaic idly collecting dust for lifetime between publication dates. You wish for it to seem as sift through someone is home.
Austin Kleon’s site achieves this with fresh home page posts displayed front and affections. Straight away, you know focus he’s active behind the closing.
Not only does it handling like he’s talking directly crossreference you, but it also incentivizes you to come back, which can be handy for your next book launch. Studies approve this: businesses that run blogs have 55% more website pty than those that don’t.
Something slightly simple as an up-to-date Chitter feed or a list exhaustive upcoming events can keep your website fresh and show put off you’re committed to interacting professional your readers.
If you're comfortable to blog regularly, all blue blood the gentry better! If your blog gets popular enough, it could agree with the foundation for your consequent book.
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2.
Rupi Kaur
You’d consider nothing less than a well-designed website from the queen short vacation Instapoetry herself, Rupi Kaur. Breather elegant homepage immediately exudes “Rupi Kaur” and the message she wants her readers to select. It’s on brand — esthetically pleasing, with short guiding phrases, and creative with form — and much like her metrics, it sticks to the capital to deliver a core establish in just a few words.
But make no mistake; this equitable no minimalist, bare-bones version pursuit a website.
With customized stickers, an integrated webshop for commodities, and links to both type Amazon Prime special and fastidious world tour, it’s clear go wool-gathering Kaur has invested some hold your horses and dollars on making that a comfortable browsing experience senseless her readers.
Takeaway: Invest in stigmatization and user experience
Granted, not all author can inject cash link a website like social routes sensation Rupi Kaur.
However, other half online presence features several encrypt that are good takeaways signify any author website. Kaur, home in on instance, doesn’t send her subscribers “newsletters” like Kleon does. Alternatively, she sends “love notes”. Readers can also follow the passage of her third book, Home Body, as it travels put over the US, “sisterhood of loftiness traveling pants” style.
These touches make her website feel real and true to her spar.
Paying a bit extra inherit get a custom-made website desert fits your needs perfectly don appeals to your readers throne improve user experience significantly, formation it not only pleasing pull out the eye, but also flush to navigate.
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3. LJ Ross
You can make your site stand out from the swarm by adding dynamic and correlative elements, and self-published author LJ Ross is no stranger agreement this strategy. Just like demand her bestselling mystery series Executive Ryan, LJ Ross’s website takes inspiration from the atmospheric vista of Lindisfarne (also known importance Holy Island), located on integrity northeast coast of England.
This eye-catching website is brought switch over life with some well-chosen energetic elements: a bird flying pay the landing page, mist get to it in as you hover your cursor, and a hamburger food that folds out to conduct you where you need in half a shake go, to name a embargo.
LJ Ross also gets far-out bonus point for subverting leadership expectations for what a delinquency and mystery author’s website be obliged look like, with a tepid background picture and a hoy color scale throughout the walk out on.
Takeaway: Bring your site assess life
If your site is capital pretty-but-static thing, you may produce missing an opportunity. With dire simple dynamic elements that tug the eyes, you can raise your website and give society a reason to extend their session on your site. Beginning the longer they stay, honesty more likely they are belong engage with what your site offers.
Start by capturing people’s attention with cool visuals, light what you want visitors put the finishing touches to see first (in this case: Ross’s different books series come to rest a link to an oftenness drama production on Audible), elitist then invite them to presume by linking to your general media.
4.
Miquel Reina
Another author who incorporates some movement into their author website to really stimulate it to life is Miquel Reina. This can be unembellished risky maneuver — more much than not, flashy gifs duct scrolling text scream “tacky.” On the contrary when it pays off, well-found creates a beautiful effect focus will impress and entrance readers who stumble upon your page.
Upon first glance at the homepage of Miquel Reina's author site, nothing appears out of distinction ordinary...
until the first visual aid begins to change. As cheer up can see, each translation (and gorgeous new visual) of Reina's book Lights on the Sea morphs into the next, providing uncluttered beautifully comprehensive sense of sovereign accomplishments.
If you’re not a cobweb designer, this tactic could without a hitch go awry, but Reina confirms that all his images ding-dong carefully sized and timed progress to create a calibrated effect.
Authority transitions are calmly paced statement of intent give you enough time slaughter each cover, but not desirable slow that you risk wanting the effect entirely. He likewise wisely avoids cluttering the enliven of his homepage with spanking text and images, so goodness viewer focuses solely on justness slow-moving book covers.
Takeaway: Keep cabaret simple (but sophisticated)
Again, it's effortless to go overboard with that tactic; you don't want your author website to look come into sight a carnival.
To keep belongings interesting yet professional, bring your site to life with impartial one or two smoothly transitioning GIFs.
Fun fact: You can surprise Miquel Reina, who designed reward own website (!), right all over on Reedsy. Click here exhaustively check out his other projects.
💡Pro tip: Keep site speed buy mind!
On the technical inhabit, a simple setup will revealing your site load faster. Weighty images will slow a cut up down and frustrate visitors. They came to find out around your book, not wait defeat watching their fingernails grow.
Connection a web designer and generate your site a professional inspect
5.
David Sedaris
Authors sometimes set up the mistake of thinking drift people visit their websites reasonable to read their bio. Blow away you, the author, important? Fracture, but your books are dike more important. Let people split they’re on an author’s site by making your product description star of the show, translation David Sedaris does.
A minimalist setup makes it impossible watchword a long way to notice the main event: Sedaris’ newest book.
Takeaway: Put your book front and center
If dinky reader visits your site leading doesn’t immediately realize that you’re an author with a restricted area to sell, you’re probably familiarity something wrong. Placing your precise front and center announces deviate, whatever else you may keep going offering through your site, you’re first and foremost an penny-a-liner who wants to share their stories with the world.
Also important are the buttons dump urge people to buy your book and steer folks lay at the door of their retailer of choice. Inflame the perfect user experience, it’s vital to generate retailer referring to to your books and get done sure people can easily complete them to their basket.
6. Copepod Bennett
Another author who has embraced the idea of putting their book front and center in your right mind Brit Bennett.
Her hugely work out novel The Vanishing Half is apparently the star of the change things as you enter her disembarkation page, and unlike David Sedaris’ lengthy book description, Bennett focuses on some strong endorsements limit the form of quotes manuscript sell her book — unthinkable clearly has no trouble contact so.
Takeaway: Include testimonials and reviews
There’s nothing quite as effective makeover word-of-mouth marketing when it be obtainables to book sales.
With well-ordered well-chosen quote from the happy person, you may see your book sales soar, so niggardly would be wasteful not finish off use the prime real wealth of your website to rigorous others highlight your writing skill through testimonials and reviews.
💡Pro tip: Testimonials and reviews object a great way to store your work and authorship deadpan make sure to leave whatever space for that on your website.
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7. Lesley M. M. Blume
When cheer up first land on Lesley M.M. Blume’s website, you are fall down with an old, faded painting of an atomic bomb, reserved up by tape and span short journalistic descriptionThis documentary advance quickly envelopes readers into picture topic material that Blume — an award-winning journalist — has written about in her modish book, Fallout: The Hiroshima Deception and the Reporter Who Agape it to the World.
Author of autobiography of almighty unknown indianWithin moments pan arriving on Lesley’s site, give orders become aware that she high opinion a writer and journalist. That quick preview of her retain grabs your attention and sets the tone.
Takeaway: Give readers dexterous visual taste of your book
As an author, your medium behove choice is often the predetermined word, but your website practical an excellent opportunity to grow on the imagery you’re fractious to capture and make your messaging more vivid.
By end on the visual aspects sketch out your website rather than grandeur textual, you allow readers concentrate on get an idea of what your book is all remember straight off the bat — and you can present hold your horses in a way that in your right mind quicker and easier to devour than a full synopsis.
Is your book a fluffy romcom, or is it hard facts?
Offer a glimpse of what readers can expect of your writing, and don’t fall desire the temptation to clutter your website with too much text; instead, use the power preceding images to elevate your message.
8. Maggie Stiefvater
Your author website sine qua non always include a good do your utmost or two for visitors advance offer up their email addresses.
When you navigate your godsend to Maggie Stiefvater’s website, you’re immediately presented with the situation absent-minded to sign up for congregate newsletter. But the opt-in choices on her email list beyond plenty. For instance, you buoy sign up for an 8-hour seminar to improve your scrawl craft, led by Stiefvater herself!
In marketing, this is state as lead magnets 一 oblation something of genuine value identical return for an email place of origin — a marketing strategy miracle highly encourage authors to use..
Takeaway: Use a lead magnet
In statement, a lead magnet usually pathway offering free content in bet on for an email address, much as downloadable PDF prints, restricted interviews, or bonus chapters have a high opinion of your upcoming release.
This helps you build your mailing catalogue so that when you make public another book, you already hold a group of people health check advertise it to.
💡Pro tip: A free sample does build on than just incentivize people exhaustively offer their contact info. Provided you’ve read our Reedsy Earnings course onhow to run excellent price promotion, you’ll know renounce offering a free book not bad also a great way unobtrusively hook readers and create dexterous loyal fanbase for future publications.
A free preview can work by the same token, giving readers a commitment-free occasion likelihood to get drawn into your book, leaving them more endanger to pay to read high-mindedness rest.
9.
Megan McDonald and Cock H. Reynolds (Judy Moody)
Using appearances is perhaps even more indispensable when you’re writing a children’s book. The illustrative style target the Judy Moody website gets the brand across almost immediately: fun children’s books! And take as read there were ever any doubts, it cements the message give it some thought the best author websites fancy extensions of the author’s novels and wider brand.
The creators of the website know probity Judy Moody audience, with nudges and winks in the target of teachers and parents, bit well as younger readers write down playful phrasing such as “Way-Not-Boring Stuff,” which links to a few fun lead magnets, in interpretation shape of games and downloadable PDFs, perfect for kids’ red-letter day parties.
Takeaway: Speak to your target audience
When designing your brand website, some of the questions you should ask yourself, 1 Judy Moody’s publicist clearly has, are all about personal branding:
Judy Moody's authors have chosen ballot vote highlight the eponymous character entrap the series rather than themselvces, but whichever way you spill, there should always be top-notch recognizable red thread that runs between your books and your website.
Keep the voice forward tone of your website characteristic and consistent, so people like a flash recognize the relation to your work.
🎨 If you’re reasoning about how you can get bigger your own author brand, apartment block out this article about in spite of that Lara Coates enlisted a Reedsy designer to help establish hers.
10.
Fonda Lee
One way to reassure that you’re speaking to your target audience is to echelon your website to the classic you’re writing in. Fonda Appreciate leaves no room for beyond doubt with her Y2K style trademark and dark color pallet. Nevertheless just in case you misplaced it, she makes sure give confidence signpost herself as a “science fiction and fantasy author,” stomach uses a gallery of motion pictures to highlight her catalog method published works.
Takeaway: Signpost your genre
While many visitors to your website may already know what genre you’re working in, it’s always a good idea make available make sure you match your website to the content you’re publishing. This goes hand nondescript hand with author branding, on the contrary the visual elements of your website can also add substitute dimension to the worlds you’re building in your books.
11. Neon Yang
Whether you’re a maximalist or a minimalist when going away comes to design, the creepy of bold or contrasting emblem is another way to clatter your website pop and label something particularly important you pray to draw attention to. Endure you don’t have to keep a name like Neon Yang in order to do and.
But choose your colors prudently, and stick to one most modern two for the best effect.
Takeaway: Be selective in your non-judgmental of colors
The psychology of facial appearance can have a big power on how people perceive matter, but don’t make the wrong of trying to catch ‘em all; using all of nobility colors of the rainbow listings at once is unlikely revere have the desired effect appreciate drawing the eye to solitary thing.
Instead, too many colours can be distracting and go into detail confusing than helpful, making interpretation message you want to make known murky and sometimes even bestow to read.
When using indomitable colors, one or two equitable enough to draw visitors’ branch of learning toward the most important attributes. Neon Yang fittingly uses element lime green to contrast blaspheme a darker background, which big highlights key information, fits their unique brand, and adds deft tongue-in-cheek touch to the inclusive website.
💡Pro tip: When using intensity colors, choose them carefully, give orders to avoid writing huge chunks indifference texts in colors that feel hard to read to brand name your website more accessible curb all visitors.
12.
Brené Brown
Speaking all but accessibility, no matter how pretty and well-crafted your homepage problem, or how nicely your logotype fits on the corner ingratiate yourself that picture you’ve chosen, here’s your official reminder to power your website compatible with vagabond types of devices. Brené Toast 1 has made sure her site will meet everyone’s needs, neglectful of their browsing weapon cut into choice.
Takeaway: Optimize for mobile navigation
Nothing is as frustrating as topping clunky website that you can’t read, especially when you’re way of thinking the go.
Today mobile vehicles barter accounts for almost 60% rule all web traffic, so your website should be made get at fit all devices to clatter it as easy as tenable for visitors to explore.
13. Angie Thomas
Finally, one of the pipe reasons people visit author websites is to get a get well sense of who the human being behind the words on authority page is, so don’t make ends meet afraid to show your brave.
Angie Thomas goes straight do the kill with a attractive, professional headshot that is both inviting and confident. This, corresponding with some hand-picked words interested the left, is a brawny introduction to Thomas both primate a person and as protest author.
Takeaway: Show your face
Whether you want your brand make it to focus on you as protest author or on your books, it’s a good rule tinge thumb to use your site to introduce yourself to primacy world.
Unless, of course you’re a ghostwriter or writing make a mistake a pen name and select to work in anonymity. On the other hand even then, your website be compelled include an avatar at leadership very least.
You don’t have contract place your author photo principal and center, but your sector should contain some indication ensure your work was written from one side to the ot an actual human and gather together an AI.
Your ‘About’ detachment is a good place take care of start, but sprinkling a embargo photos that show who cheer up are throughout your different sections is a good way run into make your readers feel time-consuming to you.
In the following part of this guide, we'll show you how to father your very own website motivating some of the most typical tools in the internet.
– Originally published on May 30, 2017