Blog Stuff
So, I’ve been thinking a lot in the last month or two about my newsletter and how to improve it. (have some ideas 😉 ) I even asked my current subscribers what they’d like to see more of when I sent it out yesterday.
One of the subscribers, Jaynie, emailed me back with some suggestions. I followed the link on her email…and found this post on Author websites. I thought “HEy! Perfect timing!” and said please check out MY website….This is what she ( and others) had to say. I think there are some great points, but I’d love to hear what YOU all have to say.
What do you like/don’t like about my blog? :confused: About my website?:rolleyes: Do you surf the site? :satisfied: Or just read the blog? 😎 Have you read the story excerpts? Are you intrigued about any of my stories because of what you read here?:) Purchased any of my stories because of what you see on here? :hehe: Swear you’ll never read any of my stories because of what you see here? 😥 Then again, if you hated what you saw here before, you’re probably not here reading this are you? 😛
Writer Stuff
Suzanne gave me a great quote on MEANDROS, my June 6th release from AQP. And she DID read the story. I know this cuz I’ve had her read my stuff before and had her tell me what needs to be worked on. I know she doesn’t say things she doesn’t mean, which makes this quote mean a lot to me personally.
“Count on Sasha White to deliver first-rate blistering passion and tug on your heart strings at the same time. Meandros is soul-grabbing, richly evocative, and unforgettable! A true keeper!”
Suzanne McMinn, author of The Beast Within.
:hehe:
I’ve been to your blog a couple of times in the past week. I saw it linked on another person’s blog, and I hopped on over for a look. I really like the look of your site/blog. I haven’t had much time to go through the rest of your site yet, but I do plan on it.
The one thing I wish your blog had is an RSS/XML feed. I always have to remember to come here to read, and I sometimes forget. Most of the other blogs go right to my RSS reader every day and I read straight from there.
That is my only suggestion right now. It is nearing 3am for me, so nothing else is coming to mind.
You’re it! Trace
Oops, that was supposed to say Tagged!
I think you have a terrific journal and site, Sasha. I tend to just read the journal because I visit so many times.
Please, please, tell me what you use for a newsletter service. I’m in desperate need of a new one! :crazy:
Hugs!
Chey
Gina~ What IS an RSS/XML feed? :O Maybe I can fix that. 🙂
Trace~ I been seeing that places…now I guess I need to find out what exactly it is huh? 😎
Chey. Thanks for the words on the website and journal. 😀
It seems my links included the periods. Just take those off the end, and the links should work.
Hi there! I really want to help you out with improving your site, since you seem like such a great person (based on your picture). To be totally honest, I think that Jaynie R’s advice about improving your site was right on the nose.
This is my first time on your site and the first thing I saw/noticed about it was how difficult it was to read. I almost left right there and then. Only reason I stayed was because of reading Jaynie’s critique.
So far, based on first impressions, I haven’t got the slightest clue as to who you are (Make your name more prominent!) or what kind of books you write. I do know that you like pink and lipstick and have a sexy guy’s chest on the top. Nothing else besides your pic grabbed my attention.
Most people that come to your site will not want to spend time straining to read what you have to say and probably are less inclined to writing advice on how you can improve website. YOU, YOUR NAME, AND YOUR BOOKS are the most important feature here.
Personally, I think that you should mostly rely on the advice of a few experienced people who know what they are talking about in creating websites. Most regular people only have a few minutes to surf sites and won’t take time to give input unless it’s a topic that really grabs them. This is not meant to be mean or hurtful to you personally, but rather, constructive criticism.
I am actually interested in reading more about you just based upon the lipstick/pink/menu graphics alone. It’s a great theme, but I can’t read the writing without a hard glance. If you’re interested, here are my suggestions:
#1)MENU–The menu on the side is hard to see and it takes a minute to figure out what the titles mean. It’s clever, but not readily understood. Jaid Black did this on her site too and I hate it. I can totally understand what you were going for here. Sexy idea. Maybe you can put them in pink and explain in a subtitle what each option is, For example, under Secret Thoughts put (my private blog) or something like that.
#2)BALANCE– The page feels unbalanced with all the text heavily on the left and nothing on the right. Maybe putting info on both sides would even it out a bit. Text needs to be bigger and you gotta have less of it. here’s too much text and it’s overwhelming. You want to highlight the meat of the site, which is YOUR thoughts, YOUR words. You could even make your words in pink and main points in another color and all the other stuff on the side in white, because that stuff is extra.
#3) COLOR–I love what you’re going for here. It’s unique and hip. But, it looks a bit washed out and boring. I think more color would do so much to bring your site to life. I feel like I am looking at a textbook page. Your pic should be in color. You have such a pretty face!! The black feels cold and distant.
#4)DISTRACTIONS–There are waaaaay to many smileys going on. They totally detract from the words that you are writing and it looks unprofessional. One or two is fine. For example, there are TEN smileys in your short 4 paragraph blurb up top. Presenting your own website as an author is different from writing emails to friends, where you would use all that.
Anyways, I wish you well and hope that you will write back to me to let me know what you think. Even if it’s to tell me off. LOL!! I can’t wait to come back here and see the changes you’ve made.
Sincerely,
April B.
WOW! Thanks so much for the in put April. I think the biggest thing is that people are following linkes to my BLOG and assuming it’s my HOME page. It’s not *g*. My website starts here and from there, I think it’s pretty clear what I write. Other than that…suggestions are great. Thansk fro takign the time to look around the site and voice an opinion.
It’s a link in a way. By people using it, it allows them to get your journal sent to them to read by using a program or another service.
You can find more about them here: .
One site I know that allows you to get one free is: http://www.feedburner.com.
Hope that helps.