by Nicole Hanusek
More and more writers and illustrators are getting their own web sites. The biggest advantage to this is that editors, publishers, agents, colleagues and anyone else that might need to see your work can quickly access it online. And not only that, but our readers love to look at our web sites too, which also makes them a great selling tool.
Both writers and illustrators can benefit from a web site. Just picture it: You're on the phone with an agent and he/she is asking you about your style, or your resume, or your published work/ You direct them to your site and presto… instant access to all that is you! Impressive to be able to direct someone straight to the article or drawing that you speak of. Maybe it even lands you a job on the spot!
A web site gives you credibility. What’s the first thing you do when you find out about a new company or some new product out there? You look it up on the web. If it has a good, valid web site, then it’s got to be real. Not only that, but it offers a wealth of additional information that may not have been obtainable in any other way. This may not describe you, but a vast number of people are starting to rely on the web for information more and more.
A web site also allows you to, technically speaking, publish your work! You may not be able to charge money for your writing, but isn't more likely to be read by the masses if it's online instead of just sitting on your computer or in your head? It’s a good starting point anyway!
What about Copyright issues? Well, you worry about that on the web the same way you would any other medium, and you use the same process to protect your work. Actually, you can Copyright the whole site at one time, by putting it all on a CD and sending that in to be Copyrighted, instead of individual pieces!
So, where do you go to get one of these darned web sites? Well, there are several free choices out there with easy to use web site creators, among them are Yahoo, Freeservers, Tripod. Then there are more professional services that offer real web site design, opposed to a template that everyone else can use.
At any rate, a web site is most valuable to you because it puts your name online, where you are more likely to be found, contacted and admired as a writer or illustrator.
© Nicole Hanusek, 2004. All rights reserved.
Nicole Hanusek, of Maple Heights, Ohio, is an aspiring writer and illustrator. Her major at the Cleveland Institute of Art was Illustration and her life long dream has been to write and / or illustrate children's books. As she continues to work on the career of her dreams, she supports herself with various freelance illustration and web design jobs while working full time at a web development company.