Book Trailers (tm) & Author Web Sites discussion

I very frequently counsel people who want a site for whatever reason to use a blog instead of a normal website layout. For most people it's probably the best choice.

Blog templates and plug-ins can do almsot anything a site design can do these days. If you are running WordPress you can have static or dymanic pages and a bevy of widgets and plug-ins helping you, not just a sequence of posts.

The big advantage, of course, is that you need no special skills to update the site: just add posts or pages. Which can contain images, videos, java scripts, tables...anything a site can show. All handled in an easy, intuitive manner.

Another advantage, you can just push a few buttons and change your template or theme and have a whole new look...or even a new functionality. You aren't stuck with a give design.

Your first task in setting up a blog-driven site is choosing a theme that works for you. DON'T choose by pretty colors and pictures. You can change all that and really need to. Do you really want to have a site with the same images of other ones?

You're looking for layout and functionality. Do you want two colums? Three? Menu on left? Banner across the top? Checkboard of modules showing different info and/or feeds? There is a theme that will do it for you.

You want "widget friendly" Because widgets are your friends. They can do amazing things or just look cool. People spend a lot of money of flash pages, when people will goon out just as much on a rotating tag cloud that can be installed in seconds...and DOES something.

There is a vast support group for WordPress, there are thousands of free themes out there, hundreds of widgets and plug ins doing everything from table of contents to ad programs to news feeds to playing music and videos.

Take your time, poke around. Try out some different themes...once installed they can be changed with a click. Look into the css files... you can modify them. Not that hard, and there's help online. The css for a website is more complicated.

You end up with a site you can use and update and modify, an easy source of RSS feed for your fans, a powerhouse of changing news and static menus and pages.

Before you write a site, or pay some designer...take a long look at the state of the art of blog software. There is an excellent chance it's what you need.

Maybe it's just me but I like having my blog and my website separate. My publisher suggested American Author for web hosting. The affiliation between the two makes it easier for me when each new novel comes out. All I have to do is ask the publisher to send the files, inform American Author and they update my site as soon as the files are sent.

I've been very pleased with the customer service. Although I have complete access to change anything they're happy to fix what I mess up--like the time I accidentally chopped up the 'Buy the Book' page. At the same time they fixed another problem (created by my publisher) that I'd forgotten to mention.

I have links to my blog on my website and vice versa. I can also test things out on the blog without downtime for my website.

I'm talking about using a blog AS a website.
Frankly, I don't see much use for blog-blogs. But anybody who likes to do that can certainly do it on blog software. And it's very easy to keep daily entries apart from static content (pages)

What I am talking about is software that allows somebody with no particular skill or knowledge to get a website up and running quickly, smoothly and without any trouble updating it.
If you've got somebody doing the work for you, there'd be no point in your trying to save effort.

I'm completely ignorant about Internet things - web sites, blogs, twitter! I set up a blog because my kids said that was the best thing for a numb brain like me to do. I've managed to set it up and add one post so far. As long as that's all I have to do, I think I'll manage. I wouldn't know where to start with a web site.


http://mariannenishibayashi.blogspot....

You're on your way, Marianne.
It looks beautiful and sounds like it has potential for being a wonderful book.

Thank you, Linton!

Forgive me if you're way ahead of me here, Marianne, but your task now is to spread out all over the internet and link to that blog.
Inititially, just as you did here. In future, as it grows, you might want to link to individual posts.

The blog becomes your "landing site" for that book. And VERY prominent should be the "buy point" link. Don't be shy. You're a published author and want people to read your book...that's what the blog is for.
Your First link should be to Nezu Press. And the URL it links to should be
http://www.nezupress.com/mydearestosa...

Now do what you did on Goodreads, but on authorsden and redroom and a jillion other sites. Building bulk for your site address (and your Google search results)

Consider a page for the book on FaceBook, perhaps even LinkedIn, if you like "social networking".

Search out groups and forums with an interest in Japan and other themes of your book and post there.

Here is a page with a LOT of good information and lists on marketing your book.

http://www.bauuinstitute.com/Marketin...

It might seem intimidating to see a list of dozens of sites for press releases and signups, but the way you do it is just budget what time you have for promo and use that time initially to go around and be everywhere, then later to follow it up with posts and discussions and what not.

I'd very much suggest you get in with the Published Authors networks, both on Linked In and the forum site at http://www.publishedauthors.org/index...

Good luck
Lin

(BTW I was born in Occupied Japan and have an affection for the images of the era. I recently re-read "December 6" by Martin Cruz Smith, a masterful novel about a scion of missionaries in Tokyo on the eve of the onset of War)

Wow! Thank you, Linton! Thank you for going to so much trouble!

I will definitely add links and join more sites. Absolutely! I will have a great big dig around at the BAUU Institute site.

I have a lot to learn!