Author Website Design Inspiration 5 Ideas to Build the Perfect Website

Author Website Design Inspiration 5 Ideas to Build the Perfect Website Author Website Design Inspiration: 5 Ideas From Bestselling Authors Author websites are the one place readers get to judge a book by its cover†¦ or in this case, the webpage. We’ve already written an extensive piece with tips for building an effective author website: 10 Tips to Build The Perfect Author Website,  but we thought we could go even further and offer you some actual  inspiration  and ideas to get started on yours.The main goal of your website is to allow you to connect with your readers, and help convert them into loyal customers. It’s obvious that authors are masters of language, but when it comes to the web, some don’t deem it necessary to have a strong internet presence. And that’s exactly where a dedicated reader can be made†¦or lost.  So the author website design inspiration you'll find in this post will be geared towards one main goal: creating loyal readers. Idea  #1: Adding teasers to your author websiteOnce an avid reader has finished a great book, they immediately want to read another; it’s an addiction. So when they make their way to your author website, the first thing they should see on your homepage is a feature on what you’re working on next. Readers want some exclusivity!Nothing is worse than finishing your new favorite book or the first book in a series and going to the author’s website to find out when the next one will be published and there’s absolutely zero information. It’s simply heartbreaking coming from a reader’s eyes and also from a marketing perspective.Case in point? If you're a loyal reader of George R.R. Martin's  A Song of Ice and Fire series (aka  Game of Thrones), you probably want to know when  Winds of Winter is going to be finished. So you head to the author's website, and†¦ you see this.We understand that being a published author means that you’r e extremely busy working on your next book, but creating a separate email account for the sole purpose of receiving feedback from your followers is extremely controlled and feasible. (And if you’re having a bad day, reading a little fan mail should cure that!)Similarly, designing the website so that the "Contact" page is immediately available from the menu is crucial. If people want to get in touch with you, your design should make  it as easy for them as you can.Also, if you’re feeling sociable, make it easy for your readers to find you on social media - Twitter, Instagram, Facebook  - with the help of push buttons. It will be easier to â€Å"like† what they tweet or tag you in and  if they tweet positive feedback, they’re marketing for you!Or you can try Nick Stephenson’s approach to staying in touch: homing pigeons 😉Idea  #4:  Make the best first impressionA reader coming to your website usually wants one thing: to know more about you. The first thing they'll do is click to your "bio" page. We know writers hate writing about themselves (unless you're a memoir writer!), but  you gotta give readers what they want, so feel free to  indulge yourself with  some healthy bragging.But  how do you write the ultimate author bio? The trick is to write more than one. As a writer, rewriting and re-editing comes with the territory. Write multiple versions of your bio blurb until you’ve broken down your shyness barrier and created a bio that truly defines you not only as an author, but also as a person. And continuing our point in idea  #2, continue to keep it fresh by updating it as you move along in your career.Now, since you're here for some inspiration, take a look at  Lindsay Buroker's bio page. It's  a great case in point  for being genuine and true to your  work. She’s honest, witty, and real in her bio blurb.Idea  #5:  The website as  an extension of your bookThere is one question we haven't addressed yet: how do you get  as many  readers as possible to actually go to your website?  The first thing  is to write a really really good book. The better the book, the more the author will want to learn more about you and your other work, and head to your website for that.Then, you need to make sure that you actually link to your website at the beginning and end of all your ebooks. You also need to make sure you pick a simple URL, like "firstnamelastname.com" or "seriesname.com." That way, your website will likely show up as the first result on Google when readers Google you.But the ultimate way to get authors to check out your site is to turn it into an extension of your book, by linking it to one of your characters, or places, or adding more to the story.  Not sure what we mean by that? You'll find some inspiration in ML Banner's story:"I had a character in the book who was a scientist and I thought: it’d be really cool if he had this res earch institute. So I created a persona for him online: a G+ profile, a Twitter account, and a website for the CMER Institute. The key was really to think from my character’s standpoint and see what I would do, in his place, to get the word out about this phenomenon that endangers the world.The beautiful thing about eBooks is the connectivity: you can embed hyperlinks. So I linked to this CMERI website where my character actually offered a free ebook called â€Å"The Apocalypse Survival Guide†. And I actually got over 1,200 downloads of that book. Some people even seem to believe that the CMERI is real, as I got a couple of media inquiries!"You have all the best practices in one: link to the website in the book, social media, free additional content, and a website that truly takes the story to another level. Of course, your author website's design should match the "branding" of your book or series, and ideally  feature  some of the imagery used on the cover. Our b est advice for that is to put  your author website design in the hands of a Reedsy professional.What are your favourite author websites out there? Which ones do you turn to for design inspiration? What other tips would you add to this list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

6 Directions for Visual Display of Content

6 Directions for Visual Display of Content 6 Directions for Visual Display of Content 6 Directions for Visual Display of Content By Mark Nichol Whether you self-publish online or in print, or submit to publications in various media, consider not just the cognitive impact of the content but also the visual presentation. 1. Sentences Concise sentences are effective. They convey much information in few words. But a succession of several such sentences is wearying. A string of short sentences is like stop-and-go traffic. Elegance and eloquence in language usage is a key consideration in composition, but so is the flow of language. Be aware of how sentences roll along. You’re likely to find that you are most pleased to read something demonstrating a variety of sentence lengths. 2. Paragraphs Paragraph length is also a consideration. The traditional rule of essay writing is to present a topic statement followed by three supporting sentences and a conclusion. The model essay, according to a similar rule, is formatted in the same way: a topic paragraph, three paragraphs that illustrate the point, and a summarizing paragraph. No composition need be composed so rigidly, and the publication medium must also be taken into consideration. A single-column book format is more forgiving of long paragraphs, but a two-column book layout or a magazine’s page design merits more frequent breaks. Scan-friendly paragraphs, meanwhile, are more suitable for newspapers and for online writing. (Nothing is more off-putting on the Web than a full-width slab of unbroken writing, unless it’s a full-width slab of unbroken writing in red type on a black background.) The argument-support-conclusion is a valid ideal, but consider also the visual esthetics of a paragraph. 3. Subheadings What else can you do to give readers a break? Insert one or more levels of subheadings an especially useful strategy for procedural content like a construction or assembly guide (in which case the subheadings should also be numbered to help the reader follow the sequence). Publications generally vary the style for various levels, as well, so if you’re self-publishing, whether in print, or online, consider capitalizing top-level heads, initial-capping those at the next level, and using italics for the third level, for example. 4. Lists Introduce vertical lists numbered, unnumbered, or bulleted, as appropriate in applicable contexts. Again, this approach is especially useful for instructions or materials lists, but it can also be applied when you introduce concepts you will discuss in more detail later or to enumerate other points. 5. Dialogue When you write dialogue, set each person’s speech off in a new paragraph. Make exceptions for such instances as rapid-fire exclamations in a crowd scene or a quick back-and-forth between new characters, but generally follow this convention for fiction and nonfiction alike; doing so also obviates the need for continual attribution (â€Å"he said,† â€Å"she added,† and so on). 6. Graphics When you self-publish, you can also employ graphic elements photographs or illustrations, or visual information like charts, graphs, figures, and the like to help break up the written content. Another solution is what’s called a pull quote a memorable or trenchant statement from the narrative or a speaker’s quotation. (If the latter, place in quotation marks and identify the source of the comment.) Graphics and pull quotes can take up a full column width or can cut in to one partially, depending on the column width, the point size of the type, and the size and nature of the element, or type can be wrapped around a large visual element. Also, consider inserting a thin rule (line) or a signature object (a flower for an essay about gardening, or an illustration of a hammer for directions about how to build a deck), but don’t crowd such elements too closely with subheadings or other devices suggested above. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Fiction Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Fly, Flew, (has) FlownFlied?20 Words Meaning "Being or Existing in the Past"Quiet or Quite?

Social Research Methods Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Social Research Methods - Case Study Example There are various reliability measures which include observer reliability, test reliability, parallel reliability, and consistent reliability. This involves the efforts to establish where their observations are consistent with the others, example a study involving the interview of two individuals then there is a need to compare the two observations and establish whether the results from both observations are consistent and therefore reliable. In test reliability we try to establish the correlation between studies undertaken in two time periods, it is evident from research that given the same sample and undertake the study after a short time period than the higher the correlation but if we took the same sample and the have a longer time period then the lower the correlation. This involves testing reliability using any set of questions that tend to yield same results, in a study questions can be split into two where the second part tends to establish the same results as the first part, this way the similarities will help establish whether the results are consistent and reliable. This involves establishing a single measure of consistency on a group of participants at the same time and try to establish whether the results are consistent, this helps in determining whether a study undertaken on the group will be consistent. All the above methods are used in establishing whether the results of a study are reliable or not, however, the methods have their strength and weakness but they are important in determining reliability. The validity can be defined as the best approximation of truth of inference, however, the validity of a study does not depend on the use of good study design or even use of good samples in the study. Validity measure is divided into four including conclusion validity, internal validity, construction validity and finally external validity. Conclusion validity involves comparing the results of the study and the conclusion, for example, if in a study we want to establish the relationship that exists between variable A and B and that A causes B then if we conclude that A causes B then the results are valid.

Case Project Assignemnts Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Case Project Assignemnts - Assignment Example The project entailed performing the following instructions as stated in the task details. In this particular section, Adobe Acrobat version 8.0 was used given that the version 6.0 and 7.0 has been rendered obsolete for higher versions of windows. The snapshots below showcase the procedure: The procedure requires saving the file in a PDF version that is later opened by the adobe acrobat software. Once this is done the subsequent procedures are showcased below to aid in the creation of a digital certificate key. Experience and Findings: The course of generating a personal digital certificate is relatively simple given the instructive procedure displayed in the coursework assignment. Adobe Acrobat 8.0 pro avails the features for creating a digital certificate quite easily and ensuring its security by storing it on the Windows certificate store. Additionally, managing the certificates has been made easier by the available personal certificate management feature on the acrobat file setting dialogue box. The project entails the exchange of public keys and e-mail messages with your colleagues. The procedure requires the installation of the PGP desktop encryption client which is readily available in the website – pgp.com. Please make sure you have outlook configured and connected to a Microsoft exchange server before implementing the PGP. Experience and Findings: The PGP program provides an easy install and configuration dialogue box that easily connects to the Microsoft outlook program to enable you encrypt your files and informative data alike emails sent within an organization. The assistant console helps one generate keys easily and that can be emails to classmates, recipients or colleagues as can be viewed on the above dialogue box option. Intrusion detection systems provide the needed support for system administrators to efficiently

Three major causes of the French Revolution Essay Example for Free

Three major causes of the French Revolution Essay The French Revolution had many causes. Some of the causes were dealt with political, social, and economical reasons. Out of the three estates, the third was the most dissatisfied with the conditions. The ideas of the Enlightenment lead to new views of the government and society. In this essay three causes of the French revolution will be discussed. One of the major cause of the French Revolution was the clashes between the diverse types of social classes in French society, first, second, and thirds estate. The third estate demanded changes from the French government. As stated in document 3, three changes were to reform the abuses and tyranny of letter de cachet, the tax on land should be equally paid by all classes, votes of the third estate should be taken by head. The largest group of the third estates was the rural peasants. Some were prosperous landowners who hired laborers to work for them. The bourgeoisie sat at the top of the middle class. They consisted of prosperous bankers, merchants, and manufacturers. It also included the officials who staffed the royal bureaucracy, as well as lawyers, doctors, journalists, professors, and skilled artisans. The poor people of the estates were extremely poor indeed as told in document 1. There is an inequality in taxes the each group must pay. Lands owned by the nobility are taxed lower than the lands owned by commoners. The price of bread had risen too high for the poor people to pay. In the third estate the urban workers were the poorest. They earned miserable wage. The slightest rise in food could lead to hunger or starvation. Peasants were forbidden to kill rabbits that ate their crops, but the nobles could. Peasants were angry when nobles hurt by rising prices tried to reinstate old manor dues. The middle class had knowledge of the ideas of the enlightenment. This caused them to want reforms. As quoted from document 4, which is an excerpt from The French Revolution, by Albert Mathiez, The Revolution came from them the middle class. The middle class asked for a lot and they wanted equality. Due to the pressure for reforms, the king summoned an Estates General. Louis XVI had all three estates prepare cahiers listing their grievances. This way the estates got to put down in righting what the wanted  changed or revised. Many cahiers called for reforms such as fairer taxes, freedom of the press, or regular meetings of the Estates General. The third estate had probably made most of these reforms. As seen above the middle class had a lot to do with the French revolution. Some were extremely poor and some were wealthy but they were all treated the same. This applied to all the estates. Clashes between the diverse types of social classes in French society, the poor people of the estates being extremely poor, and the middle class knowledge of the ideas of the enlightenment, were all causes of the French Revolution.

Napoleanic reign :: Napoleon Bonaparte

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jason fish Napoleon Bonaparte was a genius, but above that he was a ruthless tyrant, who sought global conquest through waging wars against all of Europe, starting with the smaller European countries.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Born in 1769 to a family of nobles, he was in a position of power since birth. Perhaps one of the deciding factors in his thirst for military conquest was the fact that his father placed him in a military academy at the ripe age of 10, and received his officer’s commission. At roughly the age of 20 he was an officer in the French revolution. As the revolution came to a close, he was an acknowledged officer, and held much authority over the population of France. By giving the church more power he gained much prestige with the people of France.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Once he attained enough power he appointed himself the emperor. Under his rule all authority would be placed in the hands of paid officials. He also implemented a merit based payment system for the people. His rule of the Napoleon Code is well known for the many changes that it implemented. The Napoleon Code brought the recognition of marriages that were not preformed in the church, as well as divorces. It removed political rights of women that they had worked for over the last few centuries. Finally the code set a policy for the judicial system that convicts were guilty until proven innocent, which is the contrary of the stance in our current government.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Up until this point he had the general public’s approval and was embraced by the majority of its citizens. His popularity fell as he began waging war after war on Frances neighboring countries. At the battle of Cape Trafalgar he attacked Britain with the aide of the Spanish forces. This was the first major loss for Napoleon as both the French and Spanish militaries were defeated by Heratio Nelson, the commander of the British army. This did not stop Napoleon from continuing his ongoing war with the rest of Europe. After his defeat at Cape Trafalgar, he began winning several wars against such European countries as Sweden, Germany, and Russia. While continuing to move his army throughout the eastern continent, he imposed his beliefs amongst all those he conquered, by abolishing serfdom in all areas which he had defeated. After years of war, even his faithful followers were becoming tired of the constant battles which he waged.

Improve Own Practice in Learning and Development Essay

Why L&D practitioners must engage in reflective practice and continue CPD. Analyse own values, beliefs and attitudes and the impact on their practice. Engaging in Reflective practice is associated with the improvement of the quality of care, stimulating personal, professional growth and the closing gap between theory between theory and practice. J Dewey was among the first to consider the questions of psychology and the theory of knowledge, I liked Brookfield (1998) as his concept explained discussing and talking and contemplating through the learner’s eyes. The appeal of the use of reflective practice is that as teaching and learning are complex, and there is not one right approach, reflecting on different versions of teaching, and reshaping past and current experiences will lead to improvement. Schà ¶n’s (1983) reflection–in-action assists practitioners in making the professional knowledge that they will gain from their experience in the classroom an explicit part of their decision-making. Research base practices strongly supports the importance of the teacher/ facilitator being a highly trained, reflective professional. The importance of reflecting on what you are doing, as part of the learning process, has also been empathised by many investigators, for example the second stage of Kolb’s (1984) learning cycle, reflective observation. Reflective observation can be an important tool in practice based professional learning settings where individuals learning from their own professional experiences, rather than from formal teaching or knowledge transfer, maybe the most important source of personal professional development and improvement. Another way to look at it is through Lewin/Kolb’s single-loop learning, and the Argyris and Schà ¶n concept double-loop learning which were mapped from the works of Ashby (1960) while working on cybernetics. Single-loop learning is like a thermostat that learns when it is too hot or too cold and turns the heat on or off. The thermostat can perform this task because it can receive information (the temperature of the room) and take  corrective action. Double-loop learning occurs when an error is detected and corrected in ways that involve the modification of an organization’s underlying norms, policies and objectives. Double loop learning uses feedback from past actions to question assumptions underlying current views. Davies (2012) explained the benefits to reflective practice Increased learning from an experience for situation Promotion of deep learning Identification of personal and professional strengths and areas for improvement Identification of educational needs Acquisition of new knowledge and skills Further understanding of own beliefs, attitudes and values Encouragement of self-motivation and self-directed learning Could act as a source of feedback Possible improvements of personal and clinical confidence . There are a number of ways to monitor your performance regularly, capturing incidental/experienced learning by keeping a self-reflective journal, by reading it over and over again I can begin to analyse achievements however small they seem and develop a greater level of self-awareness. This is where I try to recognise the needs to enhance my own learning so that a bigger benefit for the learner to progress and achieve something in their future. Firstly I identified my own preferred learning style as everyone learns in different ways. There are many ways to establish your preferred way of learning and as supported by Reece and Walker (2009), â€Å"All students are individuals and no two students learn the same way†. To move forward in life, we all need to improve our ideas, broaden relevant knowledge and skills. Getting constructive feedback (for example, learners, peers, mentors and colleagues) are important aspects of reflection. Performance indicators of the organisation are identified, it shows whether I am current with the ways of facilitating and is it having an impact on learners. It will also show how I am performing, what is going well and where I need training or guidance i.e.  learning Microsoft office at college, enabling me to have computing vocational skills. Utilising the S.W.O.T analysis where I am able to identify my strengths: Supportive Judicious Communication skills Imaginative and observant I am able to identify my weaknesses: Inability to refrain from helping Being too talkative Too altruistic This ensures me I am performing to the best that I can and that I am meeting all the standards and expectations within the organisations policies and procedures. The guidance of a mentor is an advantage for they have had similar experiences and understanding of their issues with self-development. There will be times when I will need support and advice to move my career forward and achieve life goals, so it is best to have an effective relationship. Some factors that help to build an effective relationship; Mutual respect Honesty and direct communication Acceptance and flexibility Commitment Trust Some shared values Willingness, to work through obstacles â€Å"Mentoring is to support and encourage people to manage their own learning in order that they may maximise their potential, develop their skills,  improve their performance and become the person they want to be† (E Parsole, The oxford school of coaching & mentoring) I believe that all individuals are created equally, thus all have the ability to learn equally. Resisting from a classroom culture of control, with the correct amount of care and tutoring, learners would be able to participate in classes with simplified understanding. Providing adequate feedback is an important aspect, I always try to rephrase a question with learners so not only do they understand and try to answer correctly, they feel great when they receive feedback which motivates them to learn. When I provide learners with time and space to be aware of their own knowledge and their own thinking, student ownership increases. Research shows that metacognition can be taught (Visible Learning, 2009). Using reflective practice I am able to instil values that the learner can use in their life and work.