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How to Build an Author Website for Free

This might seem like a strange topic coming from us. After all, we make money when someone pays us to build a website.

But not every author is ready to pay for a site. Maybe your book isn’t out yet, or you simply don’t have the cash to pay for a site. Or maybe your book hasn’t yet found a home with a publisher. If you don’t have a product to sell (and some cover art) then it isn’t the right time to pay for a design.

So what to do? Maybe you did some Googling already about free websites, and you haven’t made up your mind.

Weebly vs. Wix?

Nope. Neither one! Why? The free versions look tacky, and the paid versions aren’t much better. Successful authors seeing good web traffic aren’t using the paid versions of these sites, so that is a big clue right there. So that means the real choice is…

An Authors’ Guild website or Blogger / Blogspot?

In our opinion, the two best options are either Google’s free blogging product or the Authors’ Guild’s free websites. The Guild isn’t entirely free—you have to pay an annual membership fee. But it’s the best deal in town. The AG will review your publishing contracts if you ask them to. They have a message board of sage wisdom, and they advocate for authors everywhere.

Furthermore, you can get an AG website for free once you’re a member. This is, hands down, the easiest way to have a presence on the web.

Google’s Blogger platform is also a perfectly good option. You can make a page that’s static and put that as your home page. So it isn’t really a blog unless you want it to be.

Bottom line: if authorship is your business, you’ll eventually need a professionally designed site. Until that day arrives, free options will suffice.

Don’t forget to use the Eight Things Every Author Website Needs post for reference!