What Makes a Good Author Website

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Like it or not, a large part of the world happens online. While this has been the case for quite some time, the pandemic has only further entrenched the internet as a place where we connect, discover, and consume.

Literature is no exception. Many of the in-person ways that authors traditionally connected with readers have been supplanted by online mechanisms. These days, it’s more important than ever for an author to have a strong online presence. And that starts with creating an author website that stands out. 

The team at Allegory Editing has put together these tips to help you build the best author website possible. 

How to create an author website 

Whether you’re sprucing up your existing site or starting from scratch, here is a list of some important items to keep in mind.

Up-to-date content

Make sure the event listings and launch dates on your website are current.

Proofread! Proofread! Proofread!

If your website is riddled with typos, readers may assume your books will be too. If proofreading is not your strong suit, consider hiring a professional.

Image is everything

Write Westerns? Your website shouldn’t be filled with cityscapes. YA author? Make sure your site isn’t populated with only pictures of adults. You get the idea. A picture is worth a thousand words—the images on your website should reflect the content of your writing.

Keep it fresh

Nothing says stale like a website that’s never updated with new content. Routinely add new blog posts, links, and other material to your page so that visitors have a reason to keep coming back.

A designer may be in order

You know what they say about first impressions. If your website is poorly designed and clunky, visitors won’t stay long. Poor color choices, backgrounds that make text hard to read, and too-small font are among the common design errors that result in an unprofessional-looking website.

There are many user-friendly programs out there to allow people with no coding experience to create slick, professional-looking websites. But even these programs require a familiarity with technology and a decent design eye in order to turn out an aesthetically pleasing, functional webpage. Be honest with yourself about your skill set. If you and technology just don’t mix, or you don’t spend much time on the internet and aren’t confident about what a good website should look like, it might be wise to invest in a professional. The cost may be more reasonable than you think, especially if you update the content yourself.

Let’s connect

Make sure to include social media links and a way to sign up for your author newsletter. Not on social media? Don’t have an author newsletter? Well . . . that’s a conversation for another time. ;-)

Your website should also include a way for people to reach out to you directly, either by email or a contact form.

Buy, baby, buy

Your website must include links to purchase your books. End of story.

Get an expert eye

The team at Allegory Editing can help you improve your author website. Contact us today to set up your website review or coaching session! 

In short

Creating an author website that stands out is a must. Whether you’re sprucing up your existing site or starting from scratch, it’s essential to pay attention to the details. By using our list of important items when assessing or designing your author website, you’ll be off to a great start. If you want further assistance, our new Author Website Review service is an excellent tool for ensuring your website is polished and professional.

Tips for Standing out in the Slush Pile

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Querying is tough. It’s disheartening to spend years working on a manuscript only to have it dismissed by an agent who never gets past the first chapter, no matter how “good” the rest of the book could be. 

But agents shouldn’t have to read past the first chapter to get invested in a story.

I’m often asked if writers should send their first chapter or their “best” chapter with a query to agents or editors. This question always brings me up short. Shouldn’t your first chapter be as good as all the rest of the chapters?

Writers sometimes believe that later chapters are “stronger” because the stakes are higher and there’s greater tension. They say, “But my climax is the most exciting event!”

Of course it is! The climax better be the most exciting event, otherwise it’s not a climax. But that doesn’t mean that everything leading up to it isn’t engaging too, just in a different way.

Before reaching the climax, readers have to care about the characters, be drawn in by the plot, and love the author’s voice. All of those things are what agents look for in the opening chapters of a manuscript.

They don’t expect a first chapter to be the most exciting, because that’s not the role of a first chapter. If the first chapter was the most exciting, reading a manuscript would be all downhill from there, rather than ramping up with rising action.

If a writer tells me the first couple chapters aren’t that engaging and that things really get going by, say, chapter three, my first instinct is that the manuscript actually starts at chapter three. Oftentimes, those first two chapters are what we’d call exposition or backstory.

What’s the difference between exposition and backstory? I’m so glad you asked.

Here’s how I use the two terms: Exposition is background information that readers need to know to understand the story. Backstory is information that writers need to understand to build complex characters with clear motivations.

In other words, exposition is necessary information for the reader, and backstory is information the writer uses but doesn’t include in the work.

The first thing a writer needs to ascertain about their opening chapters is how much of the information presented is too much exposition or too much backstory rather than active scenes to engage the reader.

Once it’s clear what readers need to know (exposition) and what the author needs to understand (backstory), cut the pages anyway.

“But wait!” you say. “I thought exposition was necessary information!”

It is. But that doesn’t mean readers need it all at once or right at the beginning. Try this instead. Identify what in those opening chapters is necessary for the reader. Highlight that information or put it into a separate document.

Then cut the opening chapter(s) until the point where the manuscript takes off. That’s your new starting place.

Then, as you move forward, when you identify a place where the reader needs the exposition, sprinkle that information in.

Don’t do it in a long expositional paragraph or “info dump.” Instead, add the bare minimum through action, dialogue between other characters, or internal thoughts by the viewpoint character, letting that information come in as naturally as possible.

For example, rather than an entire chapter devoted to telling readers about a character’s divorce, consider this instead: 

 Jane walked into the bakery to discover her ex-husband and his new girlfriend standing at the counter. The girlfriend looked about twenty, and Jane wondered if she could legally buy a cocktail at one of the many restaurants that she and Robert used to frequent.

 Robert looked startled when his gaze landed on Jane’s face. “Nice to see you.” It was clear from his body language that he didn’t mean it.

 Jane turned on her heel and walked out. The last thing she wanted to do was exchange pleasant chitchat with the person who broke her heart and the woman who helped him do it.

With these few short lines I have shown the reader that Jane went through an ugly divorce because her husband started up with a younger woman. That’s all readers need to know in the moment of this scene.

 That’s what we call exposition, and it’s likely far more engaging than getting an entire chapter that discusses the divorce. As a writer, I might want to know more about the divorce, but the reader never needs to know as much as the author does about events that take place before the manuscript starts.

Further, we feel empathy for Jane because we have all likely experienced that moment of running into an ex when we weren’t expecting it, only to find the wound still raw. It’s show, not tell.

First chapters are not the most exciting chapters, but agents know that is not the purpose of first chapters. First chapters must pull readers in, with all the clues in place to show them that the ending will be worth the wait.

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Image ID: Elena, a white woman with a dark blonde pixie cut is wearing a black jacket and looking into the camera. She is smiling with her chin resting on her fist.

Elena Hartwell Taylor is the Senior Editor & Director of Programming at Allegory Editing. In addition to working as a developmental editor and writing coach, Elena is a published author. Her most recent novel, All We Buried, appears under the name Elena Taylor. The Eddie Shoes Mystery Series appears under Elena Hartwell. Prior to writing novels, Elena worked extensively in the theater as a playwright, director, educator, and designer. She has taught writing and theatre courses at the college/university level for more than twenty years. She holds a PhD in dramatic theory and criticism, a Masters of Education with an emphasis in teaching theatre, and a BA in Mass Media Communications. For more information about Elena, you can visit her website and read her blog about authors, new books, and the writing process. You can contact her at elena@allegoryediting.com.

When Should a Writer Use an Editor?

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We’re so glad you asked! We get this question a lot here at Allegory. The truth is, writers can use editors anytime during the writing process, but here are a few suggestions to help you determine when it might be right for you.

Working with a developmental editor usually starts after a writer has completed a first draft. Keep in mind, this may take several passes through your manuscript, so “first draft” is more like “first complete and partially-polished draft.” Listed below are some checkpoints to use when deciding if your draft is “done.”

• Clear beginning, middle, and end.

• No big jumps in plot.

• Reasonable formatting. Chapter headings are clear, material is double-spaced, and the author has proofread to the best of their ability. (Stay tuned for a handy-dandy formatting guide from Allegory coming soon!)

• Author can’t identify any other places to rewrite or make changes. You may have a good idea of some “problem areas,” but if you feel like you’ve gone as far as you can to fix things on your own, it’s usually a good time for another set of eyes.

How is developmental editing different from copy editing?

Great question! A developmental edit focuses on story structure, character arc, dynamic dialogue, and other big picture issues. Depending on what level of developmental editing you hire us for, we may focus on sentence-level details as well, but it is all done with the goal of supporting the issues listed above. This is a distinct process from a copy edit.

So, when does a writer need a proofread or copy edit? Are those the same thing?

Another excellent question! The terms proofread and copy edit often get used interchangeably, but they are two different things. A copy edit is to make sure the writing is clear. This encompasses things like passive voice (“. . .the book was read . . .” Wait, read by whom?) and timelines glitches (“George drank a glass of water, he went over to the sink and filled it.” Wait, shouldn’t he have filled the glass first? Or did he just get a second glass of water?)

A proofread is that final, careful read to check for typos, punctuation errors, grammatical errors, or specific mistakes, such as changing a character’s name from Bill to Stan halfway through.

Both of these types of editing are very important, but only matter after you have a solid manuscript. So how do you know if you’re ready for a proofreader or copy editor? Below are some identifying factors.

• You are ready to query agents and editors, but you are not good at catching grammatical errors or typos. No shame in this! You may want to have a solid proofread and copy edit done before you send your material out. If you’ve worked with us for a developmental edit, we will mark any grammatical errors and typos that we catch, but it is up to you to fix them. And of course, after you address the structural issues that we point out, additional grammatical errors, typos, etc. are bound to pop up. This is totally normal. After you rewrite to address the feedback from a developmental edit, your manuscript will need a very thorough read through specifically for these details. If you aren’t confident in your own ability to catch these types of errors, (again, no shame!) then a professional copy edit & proofread is a good option.

• You plan to self-publish. Self-published authors should have both a copy edit and a proofread prior to uploading—potentially even more than one round. No matter how strong a writer is at proofreading, we rarely catch all our own mistakes.
  

An outside eye is so important for writers and hiring a professional editor is the best way to get high-quality feedback on your work. We hope this article helped clear up some of your questions on when (and how) to utilize editors. If you have additional questions or want to find out if your project is ready for an editor, reach out to the team at Allegory Editing.

What Makes a Great Comp Title?

Why are comps important for publishing?

Comps, or comparable titles, are an integral part of the process of getting your book to its readers. Using comps to figure out how your book fits into the publishing world helps an agent pitch it to publishers, a publisher to decide if it fits in their catalogue, and booksellers to know which shelves to put it on so that readers can find it. The right comps steer your book to the places where it will be successful.

What should I look for in a comp title?

Great comps fit your genre and subgenre, so it’s important to know your genre well, and identify all the factors that make up your book. What a comp title has in common with your book can vary. Maybe it’s characters, culture, time period, setting, theme, or treatment. Also consider the qualities that define you as an author and look for comparisons there.

Let’s say you’re writing a memoir. It’s easy enough to google “Memoirs published in 2020.” But brainstorming deeper can help you find books with more connections to yours than just genre and publication date. Define the elements of your book and expand your search. Perhaps you should also look into memoirs set on vacation, memoirs with a protagonist going through a divorce, books set in Hawaii, books by female authors, books by former CIA operatives, memoirs set in the 1970s, or whatever elements might match. Not all of these books will be comps, but learning how others have addressed those elements can help you identify differences between what you’ve written and what is already out there.

Look for comps published between two and five years from your publication date. A lot can change in five years, making older books just not that relevant to the current market. Likewise, a recently published book hasn’t proved itself yet. You want to show agents and editors a comparison to a strong, proven winner.

Find comp titles written by an author who has a similar publishing history to you. If your book is a debut, look for comps from debut authors. Books from up-and-coming authors are good choices. Don’t compare yourself to big name authors who have had more time to build their businesses. Show agents and editors that you have done the research and looked beyond the Jodi Picoults and John Grishams.

You want comp titles that have sold well. “Best of” lists can be helpful. Magazines like Publishers Weekly and Writer’s Digest publish interviews with authors of books that are getting notice. Talk to booksellers and librarians to find out what’s popular. Check out the length of waitlists on popular titles at your local library. Pay attention to what’s featured in the media.

An excellent comp is a book you’d be happy to be compared with. You’d be happy to sit on a panel next to this author, and if you saw them in person, you’d have honest, nice things to say about their book.

It’s crucial to deeply read every comp you decide to reference, and it’s also important to look at how other readers see the book. Read reviews. Learn what readers liked and disliked about it. Reading one- or two-star reviews can be enlightening.

Putting the effort into understanding comps now will help you make the right choices when you pitch the book.

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Christine Pinto is a Developmental Editor with Allegory Editing. As a developmental editor, Christine draws on her experience as a fiction writer and writing instructor. She holds a Certificate in Writing for Children and a Certificate in Editing from the University of Washington. Over a decade of experience teaching writing to children and adults, she has gained a deep understanding of the craft of writing and strong communication skills for sharing that knowledge with writers. Christine’s own journey as a writer informs her editing work with deep empathy for writers preparing a manuscript for publication. Her interests include historical and contemporary fiction, memoir, romance, fantasy, non-fiction, technical, business writing and writing for children. You can reach Christine at christine@allegoryediting.com.