Advice requested on starting a website

I am a total luddite when it comes to tech. But, it seems I need to set up an author page now that I have written a few books. Can anyone give me advise me on the cheapest and easiest option for me to build maybe a 3 page website with an email address?

Hi there JC ,
I havn't written a book (congratulations) but have been wanting to have a website too to explain my business.
I have a social media page but find that whole social media world there to be a bit off putting? and not what i'm looking for.
I'd love to hear about "where to start" from a non tech perspective. Free verses paid sites, and where to host the name and such.
an overview of how it works ? what's the fist step...

I use Wix, the free version, for both my farm and artist websites. I find it easy to use and aesthetically pleasing. I also bought a domain name for my art site from a separate provider, which I simply redirect to the Wix site without paying Wix for it.

One site that I really like (and have used in the past) is Carrd. You're limited to one "page", but you can easily break up that page into different tabs/sections that change when clicked, so it will look like three or more separate pages.

It's also completely free, although you can pay for access to some of their more fancy features.

I confess my ignorance, but I'm also very interested.

Is WordPress still a thing worth looking into?

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:I confess my ignorance, but I'm also very interested.

Is WordPress still a thing worth looking into?

WordPress is still around and still very popular - I use it for my "I'm too lazy to code for this" websites, and I've done freelance work for several companies using WordPress for their site.

The biggest thing about WordPress is that you need to remember to keep it up to date (or have a plugin that updates for you), since its popularity also makes it a popular target for people that try to find vulnerabilities.

As a web developer, I can't really speak to the pros and cons of the various "easy" website building platforms out there. I've only used one (Weebly) and felt painfully constrained...I ditched it as soon as I could in favor of writing the code myself (which brought its own challenges, but that's another story).

I use (and like) Namecheap for my domain names. They also offer email and hosting services, but I've never used them for that.

For those with some dev skills (or a willingness to learn), I'm a fan of static site generators such as Hugo - they let you build templates, and plug in themes and data, and generate code that you can put anywhere for free or cheap. GitLab and GitHub both have a "pages" feature that let you host static content for free. There is also Netlify, which aims to bridge the gap between static sites (cheap, easy, secure) and content managed sites like Wordpress (easy to update, but prone to security issues, and more costly to host). I love the concept, but haven't had time to explore it in any depth.

If I had once piece of advice, I'd say "keep it simple." Every page you add, every picture, every line of text, is something that has to be maintained and updated. The big shiny sites look cool, but it takes a lot of time/effort/money to keep them that way.

Hello! Self-taught web designer here (and my partner is a web developer). My absolute favorite site hosting and builder is Strikingly! It is easy to use, creates visually appealing sites with all features you could need, and it is very affordable. There is a free version, but I have the Pro version which is $20/mo and includes all features, as well as up to 3 published sites at a time. Purchasing a domain name online will cost anywhere from $1 and up, but it is easiest to use Strikingly to buy the domain, which I believe is around $20/year. I have used Strikingly to build sites for myself and others since 2016, and highly recommend it.

For anyone stumbling on to this thread who is not familiar with Websites, I want to break it down a little into the pieces that you will need to deal with.

A domain name is what people type in to get to your website (e.g. www.imagreatauthor.com)
A registrar is the company you pay to register your domain name so other people cannot use it. The costs varies depending on how popular that name is and what the ending is (.com, .org, .net. etc), but most are going to be about $15 a year.

Web design is coming up with what the site will look like. Where the menu will be, how big the pictures are, etc. This could be done by hiring a person, doing it yourself, or using a website builder from companies that have already been suggested here.
Web development is when the computer code is written to make the website look like the design. This could also be done by hiring a person, doing it yourself, or using a website builder from companies that have already been suggested here.

Web hosting is where your website lives. Many people will pay a company for some space in a data center somewhere, which hosts their website. Other people, like myself, will run a small server at home and put the website there.

Many companies will do all of this. However, you can pick and choose. There might be a company that has a good website builder, but the domain registration is cheaper elsewhere. Or perhaps you want more control over your website and want to host it yourself, and hire someone to help you set it up. I did some web development and hosting in the past and I always like people to remember that you do not have to use all of the services from a company. And that many of the products are fairly easy to figure out yourself in order to save money.

Imagine your website is like owning your own store front. You can put whatever you want there and no one can tell you otherwise... but you are responsible for all the security and upkeep and maintenance. A social media site is like renting space at Walmart. You get a lot of traffic, but you are limited as to what you can say and do and how things can look. You also have the possibility that Walmart will decide they don't like what you are doing and kick you out. If all of your business is there, with no other way to get a hold of people or places for them to get your product... you are out of business. Use social media, but don't use it exclusively. Use it to drive people to your website.

If anyone wants to create a website and is struggling with figuring out all of the different options, feel free to send me a Purple Moosage. I can give recommendations depending on your budget and the type of site you want, as well as how comfortable you are with the more technical side of things.

Everything from "I have $0 and still try to feed my mouse with actual food" to "I won the lottery and I want to learn every tiniest technical detail" are situations that I can advise on, free of charge!
(if your site is a personal blog or something permaculture-aligned, I might even be willing to offer my personal time to help you get started)