How to set up a Google+ page

It's amazing the things you find on the internet! I was researching a recipe for blackberry ice cream and ended up reading an article about how to set up a Google+ page for your band.

Hmmmm, Until Death as a Band, I wonder what that would look like ...

Okay, now that I have that out of my system. ;)

I don't have a band -- although I've always had a secret ambition to die my hair purple and play the drums -- but what's true for a band page could be done as an author page. Right?

Well, I thought so. If you want to see my Google+ page, click here: Karen Woodward's Google+ Page. It's nothing much to look at. It would be nice if I could use dlvr.it to hook the RSS feed from my blog up to my Google page the way I can with my Facebook page.

Here's the article with information about making a band page: DIY Update: Introducing Google+ Pages and How To Set Up Your Band Page. Good luck! :-)

12 reasons why commenting on blog posts will make you a happier, move fulfilled, person

Okay, maybe not a LOT happier, or MUCH more fulfilled, but I've been fortunate to make quite a few connections to other readers/writers by leaving comments. I've also been lucky enough to connect to some of my favorite authors through leaving comments (yes, I walked around my apartment with a goofy smile for about half an hour afterward; I'm such a nerd!).

But don't take my word for it. Here are Bruce Sallan's 12 most self-serving reasons to post blog comments:

1. Yes Fred, it will make you happier
Commenting is a happiness guarantee. You will have more interaction with people. People will like you. You’ll get auto-post thank yous. But, you’ll also begin meeting really great people because you’re going to comment on great blogs, right?

2. No Sally, it doesn’t take too much time
Every comment does not have to be a brilliant essay! So, stop with the excuse that it’s too time consuming! Sometimes we “desperate-for-any-feedback-insecure-writers” just love an “‘ataboy!” Not me, of course, since I’m totally secure. You like me, don’t you?

3. Yes Robert, you will get more followers
Do you want real followers or just numbers? I know there are some great programs that will increase your numbers, but if you want more quality peeps, start commenting.

4. No Herb, you don’t have to have the answer all the time
A question is posed in a post. You think you don’t have the best answer, so you don’t bother commenting. Just ask a question back.

5. Yes Karen, your Klout will improve
A lot of people measure their worth by Klout. IF you care about this sort of stuff, you probably will get a higher Klout score via commenting as you’ll just generate more of the metrics that they measure, though it makes NO sense to me!

6. No Joanna, it won’t hurt
“I don’t have time.” “If I do yours, I’ll upset him/her if I don’t do theirs!” “C’mon, I have work to do.” What’s your B.S. excuse? It won’t hurt, it won’t deprive you of needed TV time, and in fact you can do it in front of the TV!

7. Yes Jack, commenting is good for your blog
You comment. They comment. Simple. To gain loyal readers, comment on good blogs and those writers will comment on yours. I know this is complicated, but you do for me and I’ll do for you. It’s called Quid Pro Quo… and Life!

8. No Roberta, I won’t stalk you any more than I already do if you comment on my blog
I love Roberta. I follow everything she says and does. She’s afraid I’m going to show up at her home. NOT, NOT. Stop worrying, just comment.

9. Yes Norbert, I learned everything from #blogchat
I’ve written about how much you can learn from Tweet Chats, and I learned the value of commenting from #blogchat. Other than “Content Is King,” that has been the most consistent evergreen recommendation for better engagement. So, listen to the blogging pros and comment!

10. No Cynthia, all the comments don’t have to be how swell the blog is
But, it may be better to be nice. You can start incredible discussions with a probing comment, even a provocative one. I wouldn’t suggest dissing the blog or the writer. It’s bad karma.

11. Yes Carla, it helps you improve your writing
To comment, you have to read. The more you read, the more your writing will improve. You might even learn something. This is called Win-WIN!

12. No Warren, I won’t miss participating in your great community ’cause I’m always commenting
Again, we come back to time management. That is the ironic struggle we all go through with the advent of the computer. It was supposed to ease our burdens. All it did was give us more to do. So, begin slowly. Start by commenting once a day. Make it a habit and then you won’t have to miss your friends!

Okay, ready to comment? Convinced? You can start below. I will respond to EVERY ONE! I always do…
- 12 Most Self-Serving Reasons to Post Blog Comments

The same goes for me! :-)

Amanda Hocking Joins The Amazon Kindle Million Club

Amanda Hocking is the second self-published author to join the Kindle Million Club, the first being John Locke. The other authors are: Stieg Larsson, James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Charlaine Harris, Lee Child, Suzanne Collins, Michael Connelly, John Locke, Kathryn Stockett, Janet Evanovich and George R.R. Martin.

As with John Locke before her, Amanda Hocking sold the majority of her 1 million Kindle books independently using Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). Since its launch in 2007, KDP has provided a fast, free and easy way for authors and publishers around the world to make their books available in the Kindle Store. In addition to the more than 2 million books sold by John Locke and Amanda Hocking, 12 KDP authors have sold more than 200,000 books and 30 KDP authors have sold more than 100,000 books.

“Our customers love reading all kinds of books on their Kindle, and it’s thanks to them that the Kindle Million Club keeps growing so quickly,” said Russ Grandinetti, Vice President of Kindle Content. “It’s exciting to see both long-time Amazon best-selling authors from the traditional publishing world and independently published authors join the club.”

"I’m thrilled to be a member of the Kindle Million Club,” said David Baldacci. “EBooks are leading the way in more people reading and it’s great to be part of this revolution." David Baldacci is the internationally best-selling author of more than 20 novels that have been translated into over 45 languages and sold in more than 80 countries. His most recent books include the best seller “The Sixth Man” and the Kindle Single “No Time Left.” His newest novel, “Zero Day,” was published on October 31.

"I’m so grateful to everyone who has bought one of my books, and to Amazon, for giving me a place to share my books,” said Amanda Hocking. “None of this would have been possible without you. Thank you!" Amanda Hocking got her start independently publishing her books and is now the best-selling author of 10 books, including the My Blood Approves series and the Trylle Trilogy, which has been optioned for films. Hocking has been featured in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, Huffington Post and Forbes.

"I know for a fact that this is the most awesome club I’ve ever been allowed into,” said Stephenie Meyer. “Of course I owe it all to the readers – thanks for continually making me cooler than I actually am. And thanks Kindle, for making it so much easier to bring 25 books with me on vacation.” Stephenie Meyer is the author of six novels, including the best-selling Twilight Saga series. “Twilight” was named an Amazon.com Best Book of the Decade So Far, and the series has become a global phenomenon that has been published in 50 languages around the world with over 116 million copies sold worldwide. The movie version of the final book in the Twilight Saga, “Breaking Dawn – Part 1,” hits theaters November 18.

Kindle books are “Buy Once, Read Everywhere” – on Kindle, Kindle Touch, Kindle Touch 3G, Kindle Fire, on the web with Kindle Cloud Reader, and free Kindle reading apps for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, PCs, Mac, Android phones and tablets, BlackBerry and Windows phones.
- David Baldacci, Amanda Hocking and Stephenie Meyer Join the Kindle Million Club

Kristen Lamb: Are you butchering your creativity?

Kristen's blog is on the (rather long) list of things that I love, and her last blog post is an excellent example of why.

Not too long ago one of my biggest problems (as a writer at least!) was that I killed my voice during the editing process. I pounced on any deviation from English Grammar -- for instance, a sentence fragment -- and either deleted it or re-worked it. But the result never had as much oomph as the original. My critique group helped set me straight, but if you don't have one, or if you just need a reminder, Kristen's post is a must read!

Kristen Lamb writes:

Premature editing is very dangerous for three reasons:

1. Premature Editing Uproots Subconscious Seeds—Our subconscious mind is an amazing machine. It sees the big picture in ways the conscious mind cannot. As we write, our subconscious mind is planting seeds that, when viewed in a microcosm of one or three chapters, will likely seem to make no sense. Duh. That is like an acorn trying to envision life as a 100 foot tall oak tree.

These seeds need time to gestate. When we edit prematurely, all we see is a hunk of something smooshy. We don’t realize that a possibly mind-blowing idea is trying to germinate and take root in the fertile soil of our story. By editing too early, we can possibly cripple our novel. By the end of the first draft, however, we will be able to look back and see sprouted weeds, which we can feel free to uproot. But the sprouts will be mature enough to distinguish from seedlings that need to be nurtured to their full potential.

This is especially true for those of you who did at least a basic plot of your main narrative points. When we do this, we have basically told our subconscious we need to make it from Point A to Point B (Inciting Incident to Turning Point Act One). Sometimes, our subconscious will want to show off and can dazzle us with how creatively it can make the trip.

So let it alone. Your subconscious could surprise you.

2. Premature Editing Makes Us Mistake Busy Work for Real Work—Premature editing indulges our fears. Many times we writers do not continue forward due to subconscious fear. Deep down we might know our original idea is flawed, or not strong enough, or convoluted, or unclear. We may know that we don’t have a solid outline or framework to support a 100K words. We may realize our characters have problems, but it is going to take work and honesty to fix them. Or all of that might be just fine, but we fear failure or even success. We fear writing the gritty stuff because it leaves us exposed and vulnerable, or we fear writing real conflict because our human nature is to avoid it.

Premature editing gives us a false belief that we are being productive, when in fact it is sabotaging our work and reinforcing our fears by permitting us to procrastinate. Fears can only be conquered by facing them, and premature editing keeps us “busy” and gives us justification to stay mired.

3. Premature Editing Can Discourage and Keep a Writer from Finishing—This is another reason that traditional critique groups can be counter-productive. Again, other writers are seeing our work in a microcosm, and that limits how well they can critique. This is why I suggest using the techniques we discussed earlier. Just make notes.

Our fellow writers are invaluable, but we have to appreciate that they are seeing our work from a limited point of view. Their opinions may be dead-on (We HATE your protagonist and hope he dies), but they could be far off-base and serve only to uproot those subconscious seeds we discussed.

If we continue to go back changing things chapter by chapter, changing, changing, changing, either due to critique group feedback or our own self-edit, what happens is that we KILL our forward momentum with a big ol’ red-penning, back-spacing bone saw. Do that long enough, and it becomes hard not to be discouraged and ultimately give up. If you have been reworking the first act of your book for months, it can very easily end up in the drawer with all the other unfinished works.

When it comes to NaNoWriMo, the point is to write 50,000 words in thirty days. That’s it. You can’t do this if you over think your work. If you hit a wall, just keep writing. Sometimes our brains are like water pumps. We need to prime them and get through the goo before the creativity flows. Just write. You can fix it later. Or, you can start over.

Doesn’t matter.

This is an excerpt of Kristen's article, which I would encourage you to read in its entirety here.

SiWC 2011: Character and POV: The Voice of Your Story, by Bob Mayer

I love Bob Mayer's writing! I've read his (excellent!) blog, Write It Forward, for the past year or so and was eagerly looking forward to taking this workshop. I was not disappointed.

I should apologize in advance; my notes are sketchy in places because sometimes I put down my pen and just listened.

As always, any mistakes and distortions in the following are completely my fault, not Bob Mayer's.

"I'm convinced fear is at the root of most bad writing."
Stephen King

How do you get great reviews? Great blurbs for the front of your book? You network. Networking is very important.

Also, character is everything.
- What is your character's core need?
- What is their pathological maneuver?

Emotion is more important than logic.

Your characters must want something concrete. This concrete thing, though, can in turn illustrate an abstract need/want.

Motivation
- Every character thinks the story is about them.
- Everyone has a core motivation. Motivation can be anything.

Peel away what the character wants and then find out what they need.

The protagonist goes up Maslow's hierarchy while the antagonist goes down.

Both your antagonist and protagonist need blind spots. Needs produce blind spots.

Do not name a character unless the character is important.

What if your protagonist fails? The answer will tell you what is at stake in your book.

Your protagonist has to overcome their fear even though their fear is their primary motivator.

(Book recommendation: How To Write The Breakout Novel, by Don Maass. KW: This book was recommended at almost every workshop at the conference.)

Character Description:
- Keep it brief and distinctive
- You're not writing a personal advertisement
- Don't have your character look in a mirror when it comes time to describe what they look like! One thing you can do is use other points of view to describe other characters.

The stages of change:
- Denial
- Anger
- Bargaining
- Depression
- Acceptance
=> Have your character go through these stages, don't have them suffer a loss and, the next moment, be okay with it.
=> How do we know when someone, say a friend, has changed? We see it.
=> At the end of the story we need to see our protagonist do something emotional they weren't able to do at the beginning of the story. This will show that they've changed.

Point Of View
1st person: I am sad.
2nd person: You are sad.
3rd person: She was sad.

The 2nd person destroys the 4th wall.

One advantage of 3rd person limited is that you can't info-dump.

What voice should you write in? The voice you enjoy reading.

What should you write about? Write about the thing you're most afraid of. Put it on the page and out there for people to see.

When should you break the 'rules of writing'?
1. Know the rule.
2. Know when you're breaking the rule.
3. Take responsibility for breaking the rule.

That's it! Hope you found something useful. :)

These are my notes from other workshops I attended at the SiWC this year:

- Don't Flinch, Robert Wiersema
- The Psychology of Plotting, Michael Slade
- The Inner Journey, Donald Maass
- Getting Started and Heading in the 'write' direction, by Robert Dugoni
- SiWC 2011: Writing for the Web, Rebecca Bollwitt

SiWC 2011: Writing for the Web, Rebecca Bollwitt

This post continues my series ... I suppose I can call it a series, but that makes it seem rather more serious than it is! These are my notes from the (wonderful! awesome!) workshops I attended at the SiWC this year. You can find my other notes here:

- Don't Flinch, Robert Wiersema
- The Psychology of Plotting, Michael Slade
- The Inner Journey, Donald Maass
- Getting Started and Heading in the 'write' direction, by Robert Dugoni

Rebecca Bollwitt is Miss604 and has a very popular site about all things Vancouver. I was lucky to be able to take her workshop.

(Disclaimer: These are my notes of Rebecca's talk and so may be in error. If so, my apologies!)

Here are the highlights:
- Best word count for a blog post: 250 to 1,000 words.
- Include photos in your blog posts, photos that are personal in some way. E.g., a photo of your desk, the view out your window.
- Get your website graded at websitegrader.com. (I tried it, it's fun!)
- Register your blog with technorati.com, a site that is to blogs as Google is to everything else.

How to get readers for your blog:
- Read other blogs and leave comments.
- Link to other blogs.
- Use social networks such as YouTube, Flicker, Twitter and Facebook.
- Get out from behind the computer and go to meetups.

If I'm series about growing my blog, how frequently should I blog?
- The important thing is to blog regularly. This may be once a month, once a week, once (or twice, or three times, or ...) per day. The important thing to post regularly.

That's it! You can find Rebecca Bollwitt over at miss604.com.

Joe Konrath on Self-Publishing

Joe Konrath has come out of temporary retirement a second time to talk about self-publishing, and I think that what he has to say is well worth reading, so I've re-printed some of it below.

I'd like to mention, though, that I don't agree with Joe 100% on this one. I'm still a huge fan of his but I think that self-publishing is one option among many equally viable ones. I agree with him that it's wonderful to have the option, but I don't think a writer is foolish to go the traditional publishing route. Not in the least! That said, I do think it's silly not to consider self-publishing when weighing one's options.

Okay, without further qualification here's what Joe sez:

I've always stated that is important to set reasonable goals in your career, and to separate goals (things within your power) from dreams (things that require a "yes" or "no" from someone else in order to happen.)

Your dream could be to get published by a legacy house. That means your goals should be to write a terrific book, then send out ten queries a month to top agents. If stars align, your goals can help you reach your dream.

Then, once you have a legacy deal, your next goal could be to write another book for that house.

But is this really a worthy goal in today's publishing climate? Is it even a worthy dream to begin with?

Many authors defend legacy publishing without fully understanding their reasons for doing to. They don’t back up their opinions. They don't feel they have to. For the past 100 years, we writers haven’t had a real choice if we wanted to earn a living–it was legacy or nothing. So we pursued legacy.

I see that attitude still being expressed, even though there is now a choice. And based on everything I know, having been on both sides of the issue, self-pubbing is a far better choice.
- read the rest here: Guest Post by Barry Eisler

Kristen Lamb: 3 kinds of social media platforms for writers

Kristen Lamb a savvy writer on any social media topic, and her latest post is no exception. It is a must read for any writer, whether traditionally or independently published. Even if you're thinking of publishing your work, you'll want to read this article.

First, Kristen Lamb talks about different kinds of platforms:

The Traditional Author

If you are agented and likely to be traditionally published, you have the backing of a publisher, an editor, an agent and people hired to help your books succeed. Thus, the burden of sales and marketing doesn’t rest solely on your shoulders. Focus on writing the best book you can write.

But, is a good book alone enough? No. And it never has been. How can I say this? I like to cite the BEA statistics of 2006. 93% of all books published (traditionally and non-traditionally) sold less than 1000 copies. So, for traditional authors, even with all those people working in your favor, the failure rate can be sobering of you rely solely on a good book alone. Historically, a writer had no control over changing these odds. Now, we have social media so we can help spark word-of-mouth. We are no longer forced to gamble, and that rocks ;) .

Also, what we need to always keep in mind is that social media has changed demands placed on traditionally published writers. Many times the publisher will expect the author to help with her own marketing and promotion. This is easier to do if when your first book is published, you aren’t trying to pull a platform out of the ether.

For the traditionally published author, you don’t need to do as much. If you want to blog and tweet and Facebook, then go for it. I think the stronger your platform, the better. My opinion? Being traditionally published does have advantages.There really isn’t a need to have a social platform the size of a self-pubbed author unless you want one. A great author to follow who has THE BEST advice for the traditionally published author is Jody Hedlund. Another fountain of wisdom in this crazy world? Anne R. Allen. Bookmark their blogs and listen to every word they tell you. These ladies will keep your head straight.

The Hybrid Author

Some of you might fall into the traditional category. Ah, but you have a bit of a wild side that likes to write essays, poetry , short stories, death threats, or manifestos. Now, in the changing paradigm, there is finally a cost-efficient way of getting these types of works to the reader. Ten years ago, no publisher would have taken a second look at a book of poetry because it might only sell 500 copies. It just was a terrible investment with dismal returns for the publisher and even the author.

Now? Just e-publish. Those 500 copies that looked so depressing before, now are darn spiffy sales numbers if you’re keeping 100% and putting out only time, effort, and a minimal cash investment. So, if you are wanting to try your hand at selling some self-published items, you need to have a larger platform and a greater presence to drive those sales. Pay attention to Chuck Wendig. He makes the second-oldest-profession-in-the-world look good and is not above showing a little leg.

The Indie

Yes, for the sake of brevity I am lumping a lot of stuff together. Indie has a lot of different flavors and I highly recommend listening to Bob Mayer and Jen Talty. Take one of their workshops because they are the experts when it comes to all the different publishing options in the new paradigm.

If you are an indie author, you have the backing of a small independent publisher. There is the upside of not being completely all on your own. I am with Who Dares Wins Publishing and I am blessed with a lot of expertise I don’t even know if I have the smarts to learn.

But, we need to point of the pink elephant in the room.

As awesome as indie presses are, logic dictates that most of them won’t have the manpower to help us in promotion and marketing like Random House or Penguin. We don’t get book placement in major chain bookstores or WalMart or Costco. We need a VERY LARGE PLATFORM. Sure, the indie press will help, but the lion’s share of the burden is ours.

Many new writers are carving out a career path by starting indie in hopes it will lead to traditional publication. Yet, here’s the deal. NY will want to see high sales numbers. Our social media platform is critical.

The Self-Published Author

Some of you love being in control of all aspects of your career. Web design, book covers, uploading? No sweat. There have been some tremendous success stories that have come out of the self-publishing world—Amanda Hocking, H.P. Mallory and John Locke are three that come to mind. These folks didn’t already have a name branded by traditional publishing. They rose out of the nothing with their own hard work….but boy did they WORK.

I was blessed enough to meet H.P. Mallory and listen to how she sold a bazillion books in six months and I needed a nap. John Locke? He is a MACHINE. I read his How I Sold a Million Books in Five Months and I thought it could be retitled as How to Kill a Writer in Less than a Year. The amount of work, planning, strategy was incredible (and I say this with the utmost amount of respect awe and yes…jealousy).

Yet, I do need to point out that Hocking, Mallory and Locke have all since signed with traditional/larger publishers. I think there comes a point when the workload is too much to maintain alone and long-term, but that might just be my opinion. Would have to ask them.

Thus, when we start thinking about our writing career, we need to be really honest about how much work we can do. Too many new writers think that self-publishing is a panacea, that all they need to do is upload their genius and people will buy.

Um…no.

If we look at the self-publishing success stories, the harder they worked, the luckier they got. Same with indie. If you are considering any kind of publishing outside of the traditional route, then ask the hard questions.

Can you write and maintain a blog and a social media presence? Can you do guest posts and blog tours and contests and create groups? Can you do all of his without the quality of your books suffering? Can you keep writing more books? In indie publishing and self-publishing, it is becoming clearer and clearer that those writers who can turn out books and quickly create a backlist are the ones that are the most successful.

What is your background and what do you bring to the table? Do you already possess a lot of technical expertise? H.P. Mallory left a career in Internet sales. She built her own website and uploaded, formatted and designed covers for all of her own books. If you don’t have the tech savvy, do you have money to hire people to do it for you? John Locke did. What is your background? Both Mallory and Locke came from a background in sales. That is a driven and fearless personality.

If you are writing under three pen names because you fear your family will find out you want to be a writer, then this might not be the best path. Things like time, money, background and personality all need to be considered when it comes to tailoring the right platform to the right publishing choice.

It is a wonderful time to be a writer and the sky is the limit. There are all kinds of generous people willing to offer time, help and expertise. My favorites are Jane Friedman, Porter Anderson, and Bob Mayer. And if you are an unpublished writer?

Feel free to start with the Snuggie, but eventually? Yeah, you will have to hand it over lest it become your Lazy Blanket.

The above is only a part of Kristen Lamb's excellent article, I would encourage you to read the entire thing. You can find it here: Beware the Social Media Snuggie -- One Size Does NOT Fit All.

Your YouTube Video: Turn it into a video game!

I was watching a John Green Truth or Fail video yesterday, for the first time, and was amazed when I found I could interact with the video! "What strange new world is this," I thought. (Really! I sometimes think in Shakespeare quotes, it's strange, I know.)

If you have no idea what I'm rambling on about, play this video:



The wizardry behind this technological innovation are YouTube Annotations. What is a YouTube annotation, you ask. Good question! Let's let the talented folks over at YouTube explain it:

Video Annotations is a new way for you to add interactive commentary to your videos! Use it to:

- Add background information about the video
- Create stories with multiple possibilities (viewers click to choose the next scene)
- Link to related YouTube videos, channels, or search results from within a video
- All of the above!

You control what the annotations say, where they appear on the video, and when they appear and disappear.
- Read More

You might be thinking: Okay, that's fine, but how do I DO all this cool stuff? How do I transform my crusty, boring, video into an interactive masterpiece? I'm glad you asked! If you click here, the Folks at YouTube will show you how to create or edit your annotations. And, I ask, what could be more fun than that? Can't you see yourself Saturday night, alone, at home, furiously editing annotation after annotation? Oh, wait, that's me. :p

Hope you have fun with your annotations!

Related Articles:
- Why YouTube Annotations Can Make the Difference Between Viral and Lame
- Penny C. Sansevieri: Six Simple Ways to Promote Your YouTube Channel!

Hiring the Right Web Designer

Many years ago I was a website designer/developer. Nowadays, I leave the website designing to other folks, but when I read Jane Friedman’s blog post about what to look for in a web designer I knew I had share with you. Her questions are spot on.

My advice: pay special attention to #6.

1. How long have you been designing websites?
If someone has been creating websites for awhile, there’s a good chance that they will be around for the long haul. Being in business a long time is not enough to prove they’re competent and reliable, but it’s a start.

2. Can I see your portfolio?
Looking at someone’s portfolio can provide you with a lot of information. You should be looking for a few things.

- Do you like their design style? It’s important that you like their style, because the design they do for you will probably have a similar style.
- Do their sites function well?
- Are their sites easy to get around? Is there a lot of clutter, or is it clear how to find what you’re looking for?

3. Are you primarily a designer, programmer, or both?
Some people can create a beautiful design as well as expertly code your site. But most people excel at one or the other. In some cases, you only need one set of skills. Make sure your web designer has whatever skills are needed to get the job done right.

4. Can we meet and talk (virtually or in person)?
Creating a website is a joint effort between you and the designer. You will be having a lot of conversations over the course of the project, and it’s important that you can communicate well with each other and that you are comfortable with their communication style. The only way to get a sense of that is to have a conversation.

5. Will we sign a contract?
Verbal agreements are not enough. You should receive written documentation that spells out the scope of the project. You should know exactly what you’re getting and how much it’s going to cost. This protects both you and the web designer, and is essential for preventing misunderstandings. If the designer is billing by the hour, you should be given an estimate along with some agreement as to what happens if the process takes longer than the estimate.

6. How are website updates handled?
It used to be that you had to hire your website designer to update your site for even the smallest changes, unless it was built with an expensive proprietary content management system. A content management system, or CMS, allows you to update your site without knowing any code or programming languages. These days there are a number of free systems that nearly anyone can use without special knowledge, such as WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal. Of these systems, WordPress is the easiest to use. If you want to update your site yourself, ask your website designer if they use WordPress or another content management system.

7. Who owns my site after it’s completed and paid for?
You should have full ownership of your website. Make sure you get all of your login information so that if somewhere down the line your website designer is no longer in business, you have access to your site.

Some companies build their websites with proprietary software. This may work well while you are hosted with them, but you will not be able to move your site anywhere else, since it needs the proprietary software to run.

WordPress is a very popular platform, so I recommend using it if at all possible. If you want to move your site or change website designers, you’ll have no trouble finding someone else who can take over.

Read the rest of Jane's article here: How to Hire the Right Website Designer