Your Author Website: What Pages Do You Need?
Your author website is comprised of multiple pages. However, most authors don't know exactly what they need to have on their website.
That's why I decided to create this guide. It walks you through the most popular pages that an author website needs plus what should go on each page.
Now not every author will need every page in this guide, so I urge you to read through the list and once you know what every page is used for you can determine what pages you will need on your own author website versus what pages you don't need.
Home
Your home page is your main author hub. It's the first page that website visitors see when they land on your website and should be used strategically to direct your reader to what you want them to see/do first.
When I work with an author I like to determine what the main goal of their website is.
Some of the main options for authors are:
Get readers to sign up to their mailing list
Direct readers their most recent release or most popular series
Direct readers to their free first in series book
Get readers to join their Facebook group
Once you've determined what the main focus is you can design the homepage around that purpose.
For example if your main priority is to get readers to sign up to your email list then you can design your homepage with your reader magnet and sign up form above the fold (as the first thing site visitors see before they scroll down the page).
You could then design the rest of the page and potentially have another sign up form near the bottom. That way your website visitors have multiple opportunities to sign up for your email list.
As you can see, determining your website's main focus is the most important part and then you can design your home page to support that purpose.
Books Page
This page is the most important page next to your homepage. When readers head to your website, this is usually the single most important thing they are interested in finding out - what else have you written.
And finding a drop down menu that lists every series or title isn't helpful if they've only just heard of you. They don't know what the Haverfield series is or what the Witches of Northbrook is either.
And if they're confused about what to click on, they likely aren't going to click on anything and instead leave your website all together.
Instead, the best option is to have an Books page. This is one page on your website that shows every single book that you have, separated by series and standalones.
This page should be easily scrollable and shows each of your book covers on it, separated by series.
It doesn't list the synopsis of each book or have the buy links on this page. It's purely to showcase each book's cover.
Then when they click on one of the images they're taken to that individual books page with all of its information - the title, series name (if applicable), synopsis, buy links and an excerpt (if needed) etc.
This way your reader and potential readers can scroll down your page and see all your books at a glance, making it easy for them. They can then decide which of the titles they would like to click on to find out more information.
By making this one long scrolling page you're making it easy for your site visitors who are on both desktop and mobile to see all your books quickly and easily. You've also removed the friction of having to make them click through to multiple pages just to see all of your books and instead they can focus on just the one's they're interested in. Which makes it a much more pleasant experience for your site visitors.
Individual Book Pages
Every single book you've written should have its own individual book page. This page showcases the books cover photo, title, series name and number (if applicable), synopsis, and buy links.
If your book is also part of a series then it's a good idea to have photos of the other books in the series with links to their individual book pages on this page as well. That way anyone who is interested in finding out about the next book in the series will have an easy way to quickly find and access that information.
Examples of other features you may choose to highlight on this page are:
Any relevant information about the book
An excerpt
Spotify playlist
Links to any bonuses
Series Book Pages
Series book pages are only needed if you have a lot of series and want something with a little more information on it than the all Books page.
Whereas the all Books page of your website shows all your series, it shows their book cover only and you have to click into a book to access more information.
Your Series Page lists all of the books in that particular series in one page, along with all their relevant information. It houses each of the books cover photos, title, series name and number, synopsis and buy links.
Whether you have a Series Page in addition to your Books page is a personal preference. You can link to the Series Pages with a dropdown menu in your main navigation as well as have a link to them on the Books page under the relevant series.
However, if you choose to forgo the Series Pages you can still use a dropdown menu in your main navigation with links to each series. You'll just need to link to the specific series on your Books page via anchor links in Squarespace. It's not as hard as it sounds to do and Squarespace has a tutorial showing you how to do it.
About
Readers are a curious lot and want to know more about the person who created a book world that they love. That's what they're hoping to get on your About Page - a little behind the scenes of who you are, what you write and how you became an author.
They also want to know what you look like. So including a photo of you helps them feel more connected to you.
However, if you're writing under a pen name and don't want to include a photo some other options include:
An illustrated representation of you - an avatar
A photo of something you like/are passionate about
No photos just 3-5 minor facts about you that make you more human eg. My day doesn't start well unless coffee is involved, anyone who doesn't like chocolate can't be trusted in my book etc.
You can also include a professional blurb here that any potential publishers, bloggers, reviewers, podcasters etc can copy and paste to use when they are featuring you in their publications and online.
Contact
This page gives your readers either a form to contact you or an email address. Plus it's a great place to put your social media links and if you have a reader group you can link to it here as well.
Shop
Some authors like to sell signed paperbacks of their books. In my experience you either sell these directly on your website or through a third party website like Etsy.
Depending on how you set this up to sell will determine exactly what pages you need on your website.
If you are selling directly from your own website then you'll need to set up a Shop page which shows all of the books you have for sale. Then each book will have its own product page where readers can purchase it.
However, if you're using a third party like Etsy to sell your books then you won't have a shop page hosted on your own website. Rather you'll link to your Etsy shop from your website and sell there.
Just remember, if you do use a third party to sell from, that when you link out to them on your website make sure to choose the option to 'open link in a new page'. That way when visitors click the link it opens the shop in a new window but they still have access to your website and can get back to it easily.
Extras/Bonuses/Freebies
This page is where you offer any freebies you may have. This can differ slightly depending on what you have available. Some common options are:
To list the books you have for free on retailers
To list the free book you offer for newsletter subscribers
To list your free novella you offer for newsletter subscribers
To list your bonus scenes
To list any bonus epilogues
Whatever your bonuses are - you can create a page that links out to each of these extras. This makes it easy for readers to find and access it so they can try out your freebies and hopefully read more from you.
These bonuses can be linked to something like Bookfunnel so that a reader has to sign up to your email list to access them. This way you can build up your email list.
Or you can simply list them for immediate access without signing up.
The choice is up to you and what you need.
However, you only need this page if you have multiple bonus offers. That way there's an easy way to house the information which makes it easier for readers to access and for you to link to.
If you only have one offer, then you likely don't need this page on your website.
Blog
A blog is a great way to build authority for your author website. However, it only does that if you use and post consistently on your blog.
Having a blog on your author website isn't for everyone and that's ok. In fact, I often discourage people from having a blog if you publish infrequently, often going for months without posting at all. In those cases, the negatives of having limited blog posts or out of date information is higher than the potential SEO benefits.
But if you know that you can commit to a consistent posting schedule with content that's relevant and interesting for your readers then add a blog to your website.
Some topics that authors like to blog about include:
New releases
Blurb releases
Cover art updates
Writing news
Upcoming releases
Behind the scenes
Events
This page lists all of your upcoming in person events and dates. It's optional as not all authors do in person events and need to have this page.
If you do need to have an event page then I implore you to make sure you keep it up to date.
I can't tell you how many times I've clicked this link on an author's website only to find that all the events listed are completely out of date, which is extremely annoying for your readers.
It's much better to remove the page entirely if that's the case, rather than needlessly annoy your readers.
If you do events infrequently but need to have an Events page then having the link in the footer section is a good option. That way the information is there and accessible for those that need it but it doesn't detract from the main focus of your website - your books.
Series Reading Order
A Series Reading Order or Suggested Reading Order page is just that. It's a page on your website that suggests the best way to read your books if your readers want to have the best reading experience and go in order.
These pages are especially helpful if you have a long running series, multiple series, interconnected series within the same universe or where your characters cross over into other novels.
These pages can help your readers understand the overall structure of your book world and where each book fits in.
I always suggest having your book covers on this page as well as the links to the individual books as a lot of readers find the visual element easier to remember than the book title by itself.
Instagram Links Page
If you use instagram as an author, it's a good idea to have an Instagram links page. As you know instagram only allows you to have 1 link in your profile and you can't add any links to your feed posts.
As such it's become common practice to use something like Linktree to showcase multiple links via your one link. That way you can link out to different things like your latest book, your email signup, your website etc all while using the one link for instagram.
However, you can create the very same effect by creating your very own Instagram Links page on your website. This way you don't have to potentially pay another provider to do this and you can keep all of your SEO potential on your own website.
404 Page
The 404 page is your error page. This is the page that your website visitors see when they have clicked a link that doesn't work anymore.
Instead of having a generic error page here or the boring default one that Squarespace has you can make this a fun branded page instead. You want to make it relevant to your readers and have the same tone of voice that your books do.
A good 404 page includes a way for your user to find their way back - via the main navigation or having a search bar on the page. But you can also use this as an opportunity to direct them where you want them to go.
Perhaps you have a popular series that gets great read through - showcase the series here.
Maybe you want them to join your email list - offer them your freebie here to sign up.
Got a blog post you want them to read - link to it on this page
The choice is up to you just as long as it works for your brand.
Privacy Policy
Having a privacy policy on your website is required by law. Every website MUST have one.
Your privacy policy explains in simple terms exactly how you use a website visitor's personal data.
If you're collecting email addresses, using cookies to gather information for Google Analytics or Facebook advertising, then you need a privacy policy to outline this.
Affiliate Disclaimer
If you’re an affiliate you may need to have an affiliate disclaimer on your website. These disclaimers and where you have to place them can change depending on who you are promoting.
You might need either an entire affiliate disclaimer page which you can link to in your website’s footer or you need it in your footer so that it’s accessible to all your website visitors.
Make sure to read the terms and conditions so you know exactly where you need to place it on your website.
Now that you have a better understanding of the pages your author website might need, you can create a better plan to design your website.
And if you need some help with design, make sure to check out my Squarespace website templates. These come pre-designed specifically for authors and make building a website a breeze. All you need to do is pick out a design you like and simply replace the photos and text with your own.
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