Connect With Agents and Proofreaders Through Your Website

One of the most important functions that a website can fulfill is to advertise your presence and your product to those who may be interested. A website can be a great way to get the attention of an editor or a literary agent.

One thing that isn’t talked about all that much, though, is how much a website can benefit a writer as a communication tool. When you are going through the process of preparing a manuscript for publication, communication with your literary agent and the proofreaders is vital.

Some communication will necessitate the use of paper and traditional mail, but having a website can alleviate a lot of concerns with other types. For example, if you need to send an email to your proofreader about some portion of the work, there’s a chance that email could get lost in the clutter.

After all, proofreaders for major publishing houses are generally involved with multiple projects at once and are probably on an in-house email list that will clog their inbox everyday. But, if you set up a safety net system of using part of your website for communications, then you don’t have to worry. Using a website and email may seem a bit redundant, but redundant is good in this case. The old phrase, “better to err on the side of caution” definitely applies here.

Also, in addition to helping facilitate communications between you and your colleagues, having a website can be a great help in getting feedback from your readers. All you have to do is set up a forum system or a comments page (pretty easy to do if you’re using the right web design software), and you’ll have a way to get immediate responses from your feedback.

People who enjoy your work will write comments full of praise to boost your confidence and people who dislike it will keep your ego in check. A criticism leveled at some writers is that they lose touch with their audience or the world they are trying to write about. If you have a quality feedback system set up on your website, then that won’t be a problem for you.