My new website is ready

Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and promoting your book on the Internet
Post Reply
User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 26th, 2012, 12:51 pm

http://mattlarkin.net/

Well that was some work. Back to the writing...


...Ok, a little bit about the site and why I dropped the blog. I wanted a static website because blogging kind of lost its luster. It was a fun experiment. I don't regret it, mainly because it taught me my time is better spent elsewhere. In the end, I mostly just reviewed books. I can do that on Goodreads, without the pressure of trying to maintain a regular schedule. Sommer is always saying, blog if you want to blog for its own sake (paraphrasing, don't hit me with the ray gun Sommer). And it turned into blogging because a writer is supposed to blog. Really, the things I want to say, I can mostly say in my novels.

So instead, I wanted the site to be a place people could buy the books, or find out a little bit more about them and the world they are set in. So I have a list of characters, a nice map, a timeline, and so forth.

Hope the community enjoys it. The support here is always amazing.
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

User avatar
Ryan
Posts: 205
Joined: December 7th, 2009, 2:25 pm
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by Ryan » July 26th, 2012, 3:20 pm

Nice. Setting up that $ht takes a long time. I think having an informal blog to share rambling and whatever else doesn't fit on the book's site isn't a bad idea. So don't scrap the blog completely.

You look more fantasy-guy with long hair by the way. :)
My love of fly fishing and surfing connects me to rivers and the ocean. Time with water reminds me to pursue those silly little streams of thought that run rampant in my head.
http://www.withoutrain.com/

User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 27th, 2012, 9:04 am

Ryan wrote:
You look more fantasy-guy with long hair by the way. :)
:lol:
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 27th, 2012, 11:06 am

'Fraid the blog is already scrapped, Ryan. Database deleted, file space reused (you may notice the new site has the same url?).

And yeah, it took a long time to set up. But hey, I got to use my day job skills a bit, and that's a plus sort of.

Really, the thing is, now the time on the website is done and finished, and I can dedicate my time to writing. I doubt my blog brings that much business in. Even David, whose got a killer platform, says he probably gets only a small % of his sales through the blog. And I don't feel much need to ramble (in public) in general. What need I have is satisfied by FB, Twitter, the Bransforums, Goodreads, and so on.
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

Claudie
Posts: 707
Joined: June 9th, 2010, 3:57 pm
Location: Quebec
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by Claudie » July 29th, 2012, 10:17 pm

Wow, Matt, congrats! It looks all kinds of pretty, not to mention simple and efficient. I have to say, I'm dying with curiosity about the images in the background. Are they related to your books? Because they are incredible. (I couldn't find a copyright so I figure they belong to you? If not I'm not clear on the exact rules but I think there should be some sort of recognition around the site?)
"I do not think there is any thrill [...] like that felt by the inventor as he sees some creation of the brain unfolding to success... Such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything." -- Nikola Tesla

User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 30th, 2012, 10:23 am

Claudie wrote:Wow, Matt, congrats! It looks all kinds of pretty, not to mention simple and efficient. I have to say, I'm dying with curiosity about the images in the background. Are they related to your books? Because they are incredible. (I couldn't find a copyright so I figure they belong to you? If not I'm not clear on the exact rules but I think there should be some sort of recognition around the site?)
Hi Claudie, thanks for looking at the site. So I actually meant to add something about the images to the FAQ--good you asked.

The home page (red cave) is a license free image. The other images own the site I have licenses for, or were created specifically for me. The Chinese mountain path image is done by Fan Ming, an amazing artist from China (the image you see on the Bio and other pages). The temple in the background of the Skyfall pages is a picture from Java.

The background on the Children of Sun and Moon page is the cover for my book, with text removed.
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

User avatar
Mira
Posts: 1354
Joined: December 7th, 2009, 9:59 am
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by Mira » July 30th, 2012, 1:05 pm

Wow, Matt. That is absolutely gorgeous!

Nice job!! :D

User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 30th, 2012, 1:08 pm

Thanks, Mira!

It was a lot of effort, but I'm proud of the result. Or I should say, I'm proud of my books and I wanted a website to add a nice visual to them.
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

User avatar
Mira
Posts: 1354
Joined: December 7th, 2009, 9:59 am
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by Mira » July 30th, 2012, 1:22 pm

Well, I think you accomplished that! And now you can be proud of both your books and your website. :D

Btw, I love fantasy! Just added your book to my 'wish list'. I have to say, as a reader, going around to writer's forums really pays off in my TBR pile. Since I write non-fiction, I can just be a fan in that way. :D

User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 30th, 2012, 3:28 pm

Thanks, Mira. I didn't realize you were writing non-fiction.
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

User avatar
Mira
Posts: 1354
Joined: December 7th, 2009, 9:59 am
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by Mira » July 30th, 2012, 3:56 pm

MattLarkin wrote:Thanks, Mira. I didn't realize you were writing non-fiction.
Yep. Memoir, essay, humor, and prescriptive non-fiction (pop psychology). Not nearly ready to publish, but working on stuff. I'm alittle envious of fiction writers. I can't do story. Just have no idea 'what happened next'. Wish I did! But instead, I'll get in on the ground floor and enjoy all you debut authors and your fun books. :)

User avatar
AnimaDictio
Posts: 158
Joined: June 10th, 2010, 1:07 am
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by AnimaDictio » July 30th, 2012, 4:59 pm

Love the site! Pretty.

User avatar
MattLarkin
Posts: 346
Joined: July 31st, 2011, 9:37 am
Location: St Petersburg, Florida
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by MattLarkin » July 30th, 2012, 5:02 pm

Thanks, Anima! Writing's my passion, but it's nice to get a little use out of my day job.
mattlarkin.net
larkinediting.com - freelance editing for fantasy and science fiction
ImageImageImage

User avatar
dios4vida
Posts: 1119
Joined: February 22nd, 2010, 4:08 pm
Location: Tucson, Arizona, USA
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by dios4vida » July 31st, 2012, 4:22 pm

Mira wrote:Just added your book to my 'wish list'.
You won't regret it!

And yeah, you know my opinion already, but I'm gonna say it up here in public anyways. I love the site! :D
Brenda :)

Inspiration isn't about the muse. Inspiration is working until something clicks. ~Brandon Sanderson

lindsayB3462
Posts: 21
Joined: August 25th, 2012, 7:44 am
Contact:

Re: My new website is ready

Post by lindsayB3462 » September 3rd, 2012, 4:56 am

Wow, i really amazed seeing your website. nice color combination and workings. I felt like to read your books after seeing the website. :ugeek:

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 6 guests