Website Design...What's Your Favorite Layout?

[-K2-]

Time and again it's suggested that 'if you intend on having any associated content (maps, sounds, graphics, glossaries, appendices, etc.), they should be placed on a website.'

With enough stuff already on my plate, I'm hesitant to re-learn everything I've forgotten plus learn more about site building. Regardless, whether I build it or have someone else do so, I still need some ideas as to the design. Though I was quite proud of my one and only attempt--a gazillion years ago--I realize my skills and thoughts on design are rather dated.

So, I wonder if you kind folks might point me to some websites that impress you, to get some ideas flowing in my noggin and perhaps warm me up to the idea?

They don't need to be publication oriented, just a site which is a bit more current with the day's standards and that draws you in due to the quality layout. Please be cautious to not post a link to a SFFChrons competing site. I'm also not interested in utilizing any of the social media platforms (such as facebook or whatever the kewl kidz are using now).

Thanks for any suggestions!

K2

 

[Brian G Turner]

Install Wordpress. Add themes, toy with them, try and get the effect you want. Fin.

Actually, it can be a lot of work, depending on how professional you want to be, but as many Wordpress themes these days offer drag and drop functionality it's much easier to create something. It just depends on how much exact control you want over things.

 

[AlexH]

Stick to expected conventions, such as the main menu at the top. Keep it simple, avoid clutter and use white space (whether it's actually white or not).

If looking at templates, use a responsive design and make sure it looks good at different screen resolutions. If you're using Google Chrome, you can press F12 to emulate different devices.

It's worth running tests to see how certain themes fare e.g.:

PageSpeed Insights

developers.google.com

WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools

wave.webaim.org

The W3C Markup Validation Service

W3C's easy-to-use markup validation service, based on SGML and XML parsers.

validator.w3.org

There are likely to be errors, but terrible scores can give an idea of whether the theme creators took care with their designs. I tried some templates 3 or 4 years ago, but they included too much bloat for my liking, so I decided to hand code my website in the end, which was probably quicker than removing everything I didn't want from the templates. Templates can be great if you don't have coding experience though. I'd consider a lightweight theme e.g. The 10 Fastest Free WordPress Themes in 2019 (Tested)

Apologies for not having any designs to share. I used to be a web developer/designer and now audit websites for a living (mostly for SEO and usability, which is often the same thing), so feel free to fire questions at me if you think I can be of help.

 

[-K2-]

Thanks @Brian G Turner and @AlexH for the suggestions. I'll keep the advice in mind.

K2

 

[jbmwriting]

Like many of you, I've got a full-time non-writing job and a family, so learning and managing a Wordpress site seems like a big investment. I've been doing research this week, and decided to just get a domain name and use a 1-page website, but for my debut novel that should fit my needs just fine.

 

[.matthew.]

There is the own website way to go, and I would have recommended that if asked, but while reading this I also had a thought. A portfolio site.

Yes, it comes with risks of shutting down at some point (but that same risk applies with any of the free hosting services, and if you pay for hosting you'll have to keep paying forever anyway).

I like Artstation. It's considered the professionals' site. You could link directly to your profile (set one up for your specific book or you as a writer and have multiple folders for each book). The layout and everything is all taken care of. There's the possibility of selling prints (who doesn't like the idea of having maps up on the walls eh). Above all, super easy to use and while it doesn't have a totally unique address, for what you're looking for I think it'd be ideal.