Tag Archives: books

April 16, 2025 · 2:40 am

Tips for Building Your Author Website

Your book has been written. It’s being published or it’s already been published. Now, you’re looking into marketing to promote yourself and your book. There are many benefits to maintaining a personal website, including promotion, sales, reader engagement, and the power of working outside of the algorithms of social media. Despite these benefits, it can seem like a daunting task to build a website independently, especially if you are not confident in your tech-savvy skills. Sometimes the hardest step to take is the first one, so here are a few tips to getting started with building your website:

Creating a Domain Name:

The expense of buying a domain for a website is usually very small, about $10 to $50 annually. When choosing the name, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Your domain name be simple, easy to remember, and should relate to you, rather than any of your specific books. For example, if your name or pen name is already taken, then try adding words like “author” or “writer” after your name to narrow the options. Alternatively, you could follow your name with the genre you tend to stick to, as this will function as a keyword to help search engines find you. Try to steer clear of special characters like numbers or hyphens.

Remember, choosing a name that reflects you as an author is important because it will enable you to market yourself and any other books you write in the future under that umbrella. If you’d like to create a separate website for an individual book, then go for it!

Choosing a website platform:

There are many options available to choose from when selecting a platform for your website. Here are a few tips to help narrow down your search and hopefully find an option that suits you:

User-friendliness — your website should be easy for you to use, so if you happen to be on the less than tech-savvy side, search for pre-made templates, as this will help remove some of the confusion.

Affordability — it goes without saying that a website needs to be affordable for you. Inexpensive options are tempting, and you may be just fine with platforms where your control over customization is limited. The pricier options, while expensive, usually come with additional features and may be easier to use.

Flexibility and Longevity — ensure that whatever platform/template you use looks good on different types of devices, as some websites will look different on a laptop, phone, or tablet. Additionally, consider open-source options rather than proprietary ones, as the latter platforms are tied to the success of the companies that provide them. Open-source platforms may be more difficult to learn to use, but will help ensure the longevity of your website.

Just a few of the popular website platforms include:

WordPress — a tech-savvy option. WordPress offers highly customizable designs, as well SEO features. While it may take some effort to learn how to use, it offers broader control of your website.

Squarespace — less tech-savvy than WordPress but still requires some knowledge to utilize, offers built-in SEO and blogging tools. They offer a variety of templates to choose from.

BookBub— an inexpensive ($10/month) platform that requires less technical skill than the two above. If you don’t mind less freedom for customization, this offers a less technical route to build a website. BookBub contains templates designed specifically with authors in mind.

Wix — great for beginners, with easy to understand building tools. Like BookBub, this platform offers designs directed toward authors.

Note: When choosing a website template, keep in mind your brand. The aesthetic of the template you use will reinforce your brand. Which genre do you write in? A horror author’s website will look very different from a business author’s. Choose designs that will create a space that is both professional and will allow you to continue to grow and flourish with time.

Essential aspects of a website:

When you’ve chosen your platform and are ready to build your website, keep in mind these essential features to include:

Homepage — include your name and a blurb about yourself (ex: I am … welcome to my website!), your book covers (or select one or two), and social media links. If you decide to create a newsletter or blog, you can place the option to sign up or view them here, along with select reviews of your work.

About Me page — should contain your professional bio. You can also include other information about yourself to help readers get to know you better, like your hobbies and interests.

Contact Information page — add information on how you’d like to be contacted for promotional opportunities. If applicable, include your agent, publicist, or other professional who can be contacted in order to reach you.

Individual book pages — each of your books should have their own designated page, with an image, a description (long or short), and a link to buy the book. You could also include content, such as the first chapter, to invite readers to sample your work before purchase.

Conclusion:

Choosing to build a website can be time consuming, and it’s easy to feel daunted by it, but it is a valuable investment of your time that can eventually pay off in a boost in sales, promotion, and community engagement. Additionally, a website adds a layer of professionalism to your identity as a writer, a badge of honor for the dedication and perseverance it took to write your books! If you’d like a more in-depth summary of the benefits of building and maintaining your website, check out our Benefits of Having and Website as an Author blog post for more ideas and tips.

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March 24, 2025 · 12:23 am

Benefits of Having a Website as an Author

If you are an author, you may be considering creating your own website, even if you are just publishing your first book! A website is a place for all your information to come together, a one-stop shop to collect and promote your work, upcoming projects, events, press engagements, and relevant personal achievements. It also allows you to communicate directly with your audience without the hassles of social media algorithms, while adding professionalism to your reputation and solidifying your brand on your own terms. These are just a few reasons to go ahead and dive into creating that website. Let’s look a bit more deeply at some of the benefits of a website and what you can do with it.  

Benefits of having a website:

Marketing and Sales — The first benefit of having a website is the most obvious—promotion. You can promote your books (and other merchandise if applicable) on your website, and provide a list of links to purchase all your books in one place. Websites are also a straightforward and time-saving method for journalists to contact an author for PR purposes, which helps you to network efficiently.

A Home Base — A website provides a central hub where all your information, including your promotional materials, links to your books, contact info, and other specialized content like blogs, email lists, newsletters, and more are tied together by your brand and presented to the world. Customized on your terms, a website is the place interested readers can seek out to learn more about you, an author they enjoy and want to see more of.

Visibility — This refers to the amount of traffic you are getting on your media platforms, and there are many layers related to this topic. As it relates to websites, traffic is impacted by search engines. When your name or your book title is entered into a search engine, what comes up? Is it your information or something else? Maintaining a website helps search engines discover you when your book title and/or name are entered, increasing the probability that your information will surface when searched.

Community Engagement — Interacting with your audience is essential to growing your reader community. Creating an email list, blog posts, newsletters, or other specialized content unique to the website enables a sense of community to arise as readers respond to your content.

Freedom – A website empowers you to present your work to the world on your own terms, with authenticity and control. Conducting book promotion and community interaction on social media platforms means that you must navigate their algorithms, which can often work against you by not efficiently showing all your posted content to your followers. A website ensures that interested followers can easily access all of your content relatively easily, especially those who are subscribed to your newsletters, emails, and/or blog posts.

Now that we’ve talked about a few of the benefits of creating a website, let’s think about a few of the possibilities for what you can fill it with:

What to include in your website:

Personal Stories — Along with the usual contact info and personal biography, etc., you may also decide to share some behind the scenes content. Although it is not essential to share personal life stories, readers are often interested in your unique process, what inspires you, and your writing process. Giving readers a peek into what goes on behind the curtain can help them understand your writing style and who you are, fostering deeper connections within your readership community.

A List of Your Work — Although this is obvious, your website should contain links to purchase your book, or books, along with links to any other materials you’d like to include, such as online publications or reviews, articles, research, collaborations, press, notable achievements, etc.

Engaging Content — As previously mentioned, an excellent way to interact with readers is through email lists, newsletters, and blog posts. Blogs can be filled with things you are interested in—current topics in the literature scene, pieces of news you find interesting, book reviews and recommendations, tropes familiar to your genre, lists of podcasts, books, films, and other things you like. This content can also include exclusive excerpts of your work, such as scenes that were cut from your book, but readers are still hungry to read.

Events and PR — Notifying readers of opportunities to connect with you makes you seem more approachable, helping them to feel more connected to you. Are you having a book signing? Are you engaged as a speaker, whether virtually or in person? Are you hosting an event? Promote it on your website!

Reader Reviews— Including reader reviews on your website helps to build trust and credibility, as many of us refer to the opinions of others before taking a chance on buying a book when we don’t know the author. Reviews also help to give your readers a voice, and when that is coupled with engagement from you, the author, it helps make readers feel like you are listening and accessible.

Conclusion:

It is up to you to decide if the home base offered by a website is for you. Some authors view the idea of creating a website as daunting and potentially time-consuming, especially in the midst of hectic lives filled with work, family, and other competing tasks. However, the time devoted can be worthwhile, materializing in the form of increased sales, community engagement, and publicity. As a writer, finding balance is essential. Hopefully this list will give you some food for thought as you consider building a website.

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March 8, 2025 · 2:59 pm

Celebrating Female Voices in Literature – International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day is a day to celebrate the triumphs, skills, and courage of women across the world. As we look through the window of hindsight at history, we observe the terrific feats of women, their struggles, fortitude, intelligence, and sacrifices in the evolving progress of equality. In the world we live in today, International Women’s Day celebrates every aspect of what it means to be a woman, honoring the determination, innovation, strength, creativity, joy, and tragedies woven through women’s stories.

Most of us have heard of famous female authors like Jane Austen, Agatha Christie, and Mary Shelley. There are many writers whose voices have lifted and moved readers, and their work deserves to continue to be heard as time moves on. Let’s look back and review or learn something new from a few of the women who have had a profound impact on literature.

Audre Lorde

The inspiring Audre Lorde was a multitalented writer, professor, and lifelong social activist, devoting her life to illuminating and confronting issues in civil rights, feminism, gay rights, classism, and disability. As a black, queer woman in the middle of twentieth century New York City, she supported the creation of a black studies department within the male-dominated universities where she worked as a professor. She assisted in founding the first publishing press for women of color in the US, and in the formation of an organizations to assist women throughout the world, including victims of sexual assault in St. Croix, and women impacted by the apartheid in South Africa. Audre was fierce in her writing. In her poetry, she made calls for social justice and explored the dueling expectations and roles within the female identity, positing that the differences between genders, classes, and races should be explored and celebrated. Her subsequent poems inspected themes like the intersectionality of women’s lives, the celebration black identity, and rage at social injustice. Her prose was consistent with these themes, including one of her prominent works, Zami: A New Spelling of My Name. In her later years, she wrote about motherhood and her battle with cancer, which was portrayed in her books The Cancer Journals and A Burst of Light, both collections of essays expressing her struggle with illness that would ultimately take her life. Audre is regarded for her narrative bravery, persistence in advocating for equality, and the authenticity with which she conveyed her experiences as a black woman, lesbian, and mother.

Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor (not referring to the actress, who with a stroke of bad luck, rose to fame at a similar time as the author) was a British writer who focused her work on the nature of everyday life. Born in 1912, she grew up in England, working as a governess and librarian until she married in 1936. Her first book was titled, At Mrs. Lippincote’s, a humorous autobiographical tale, and was received with positive reviews and commercial success. Her publications included eleven more novels and a children’s book, along with short stories. Inspired by relationships and events in her own life, one of her short stories portrayed her correspondence with fellow writer and friend Robert Liddel, and another illustrated her disdain of living in the public eye. She was admired by her peers and the masses as an extraordinary writer for her portrayal of natural behavior with precise language through a sometimes plotless, natural setting. She passed away in 1975, and several of her novels, Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont and Angel, have since been interpreted into film.

Grace Paley

Born in the early 1920s, Grace Paley was a American poetry and shorty story writer, as well as political activist and teacher. A child of Jewish Russian immigrants, she grew up in the Bronx, and her work was heavily influenced by the city. She was inclined to write what was familiar to her, so her stories centered on portraying the authentic lives of New York women like herself in a style that was grounded and true to life. Her first book, a collection of short stories titled, The Little Disturbances of Man, gained her a following. Her stories included recurring characters as she progressively analyzed issues of civil rights, class, and feminism through her stories. Paley was an avid political activist concerning civil rights, feminism, and pacifism throughout her entire life. Notably, she contributed to the founding of the Greenwich Village Peace Center in the early 1960s, and years later traveled to Hanoi as part of a peace mission group to arrange the release of prisoners during the Vietnam War. She continued to speak publicly into the later stages of her life, maintaining her passion to create a better world for her grandchildren. Paley’s most famous work was The Collected Stories, an assembly of three books of her own short stories that became finalists for both the National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize.

Female writers continue to shape layers of the social, societal, and cultural story of womanhood as the future of gender equality unfolds before us. The work of current female authors contributes to the collective of determined, ambitious, deeply feeling, and observant women who exhibit the inspiring perseverance it takes to write and keep writing. Richter publishing is proud to assist our extraordinary female authors in sharing their books with the world. A list of books written by our female authors can be found here.

Happy International Women’s Day!

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February 21, 2025 · 8:17 pm

Celebrating Black Voices for Black History Month

Black History Month is a time to celebrate and honor the contributions of the black community. In honor of Black History Month, we would like to celebrate the profound impact of black literary authors. Before we jump into sharing the work of our own gifted, dedicated authors, let’s take a look at a few of history’s extraordinary and revolutionary writers:

Maya Angelou
After a turbulent early life, Maya Angelou became a renowned figure in American literature and activism. Her extraordinary contributions include poems, memoirs, plays, and screenplays, along with activism, scholarly work, and more. Her work led to a plethora of awards and recognitions, and she became friends with such extraordinary figures as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X, and James Baldwin. One of her most notable autobiographies is I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, where she used her own childhood as the inspiration for the book. Her movie Georgia, Georgia was the first screenplay to be produced by a black woman, and the film was released in 1972, which she also wrote the score for. Maya Angelou is considered one of the most influential black writers in history.

Octavia E. Butler
Octavia E. Butler was a prominent science fiction author. Picked on in school because of her shyness, she spent much of her time in the library as a child, discovering science fiction and writing her own stories. As an adult, she wrote science fiction short stories and novels, such as the Patternist series, Bloodchild, and Kindred, which garnered her acclaim. Her characters often centered in the perspective of black women, utilizing genre to draw parallels from the fictional world to the real one. Her work won several Hugo and Nebula awards, and she was the recipient of the renowned MacArthur Fellowship, working as a full-time writer.

Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes was a writer of short stories, plays, novels, essays, and columns. As a young adult, he attended Columbia University, but dropped out due to racial discrimination from other students, and then resided in Harlem, where he was deeply inspired by the people and culture. He is credited with being a founder of the Harlem Renaissance, a period of expression of black culture and art. He later led an opinion column at the newspaper, Chicago Defender, where his social activism and passion for civil rights were expressed weekly for twenty years. Although it was not universally popular at the time, he portrayed working-class black lives with authenticity, exploring and illuminating both the joys and pain inherent to living as a black American. Langston Hughes was also influential in the innovation of a poetic form called jazz poetry, poetry that reflects the rhythm and improvisational nature of jazz music.

Without further ado, we would like to showcase narratives from our black authors to be enjoyed every day of the year. Celebrate Black History Month by supporting our authors:

Stand by Gary Hartfield

Stand, by Gary Hartfield

This Plane is Going to Crash by Maurice Jovan Billington

This Plane is Going to Crash, by Maurice Jovan Billington

A portion of the Eternal by Maurice Jovan Billington

A Portion of the Eternal, by Maurice Jovan Billington

Goals of Dance Technique & Movement by Nealya Brunson

Goals of Dance Technique & Movement, by Nealya Brunson

Flies in My Coffee by M. Rene Harris

Flies in My Coffee, by M. Rene Harris

The 3 Pillars of Strength: Improving Your Physical, Mental and Spiritual Fitness, by Jeffrey White

The 3 Pillars of Strength: Improving Your Physical, Mental and Spiritual Fitness, by Jeffrey White

I Found Me by Chef Corey Hall

I Found Me, by Chef Corey Hall

Dysfunctional Blessing by Shante Saulsberry

Dysfunctional Blessing, by Shante Saulsberry

Buffalo Scout by Stephen McDonald

Buffalo Scout, by Stephen McDonald

The Audacity of Resilience: A Refugee Memoir, by Pitman A. Kennedy

The Audacity of Resilience: A Refugee Memoir, by Pitman A. Kennedy

Culture in 4D: The Blueprint for a Culture of Engagement, Ownership, and Bottom-Line Performance, by Tony Moore

Culture in 4D: The Blueprint for a Culture of Engagement, Ownership, and Bottom-Line Performance, by Tony Moore

Millennial Marriages: A Military Relationship, by Jarron Webster

Millennial Marriages: A Military Relationship, by Jarron Webster

Planning Your Life to the 52nd Power: Planner, by Danese Banks

Planning Your Life to the 52nd Power: Planner, by Danese Banks

Seasons of Change by Sim Johnson

Seasons of Change, by Sim Johnson

Gifts From a Glacier: The Quest for an American Flag and 52 Souls by Tonja Anderson-Dell

Gifts From a Glacier: The Quest for an American Flag and 52 Souls, by Tonja Anderson-Dell

Modern IV Wellness by Dr. Uhuru Smith MD, Dr. Tracy Edward Smith PhD

Modern IV Wellness, by Dr. Uhuru Smith MD and Dr. Tracy Edward Smith PhD

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January 2, 2024 · 12:12 pm

Happy New Year! Books to Inspire You in 2024.

There’s no denying that books have the power to inspire us, challenge our perspectives, and push us to be better versions of ourselves. And as we look ahead to 2024, there’s no better time to start filling up your reading list with titles that will help you grow and evolve.

Here are some recommended books that are sure to inspire you in the coming year:

Planning Your Life to the 52nd Power: Planner +

Planning Your Life to the 52nd Power: Planner +

“Planning Your Life to the 52nd Power,” can help you change your life by changing one small thing a week for the next year. You can make big changes by starting off with simple things once a week. Each week has a different power to contemplate and a few questions to consider regarding each power. The purpose is to help you focus and be mindful of how you schedule your days and spend your time so that you can experience a life change for the better. The powers will actually empower you to change your life in an easy and “no pressure” way. Whether you have a big goal already in mind or are looking for guidance in figuring out your next step, this minimalistic styled planner has more than enough space to write your schedule and things to do while providing just enough content to help you develop and become your best self. This planner is not created with a pre-planned year for you, so you can pick it up and start at any point and time in your journey. Who says you have to plan your goals on Jan 1st?! Just enter in the calendar year and month you wish to start taking control of your life. So, if you’re ready to get started changing your life, this is the planner for you! There’s no time like the present….START TODAY!

My "Everything" File: Everything My Loved Ones Need to Know About Me - https://www.amazon.com/My-Everything-File-Loved-About/dp/1945812222

My “Everything” File: Everything My Loved Ones Need to Know About Me

During our lives, we all accumulate a vast amount of information about ourselves, our family, our health, finances, home, assets, debts, employment, pets, taxes, legal issues, passwords, and so much other information. It’s a wonder we can remember it all! So what happens if you become incapacitated or die? Who else knows all of the important details of your life? “My ‘Everything’ File” is intended to help you create a comprehensive document containing almost everything you would want your loved ones to know about you. This will enable them to take care of you and, if needed, handle your affairs if you become unable to do so yourself—whether due to illness, disability, dementia, stroke, incapacity, extended absence, or death.

This information includes:

  • Vital information in case of an emergency
  • What you own
  • What you owe
  • Your family and employment history
  • Where your legal, tax, financial, insurance, and other important documents are located
  • Your medical history, health care providers, and prescriptions
  • Your digital data, including websites and passwords
  • Your life lessons and final wishes

So much other information, you’ll wonder how your head didn’t explode from keeping it all inside your brain!Your loved ones will appreciate your forethought and efforts in providing them with this essential information about you. www.myeverythingfile.com

Work & Live Anywhere: Island Hopping in Greece

Yes, you can travel the world and while you are working. The world has changed. If you are a digital nomad, or want to be, then this is the book for you! Or if you just want to travel and learn more about Greece and what it’s like in a post Covid world. This has all the tips n’ tricks to start globe trotting and get out there again. Check out my blog to keep up to date with new countries and book releases as well as retreats and fun stuff! www.nomadpublisher.com

Over 40 & Sexy as Hell!

Get fit in 2024! THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO DIET, EXERCISE, SUPPLEMENTS, LIFESTYLE TRAINING,AND HOW YOUR BODY WORKS. Dr. Drapkin will review your diet and exercise plan upon proof of purchase of his book. 

The 3 Pillars of Strength: Increasing Your Physical, Mental and Spiritual Fitness

It’s time to be the best person you can be. It’s time for YOU to reach your FULL potential. It’s time to tap into ALL your unique traits and talents that can propel you to greatness. It’s time to face all the challenges and obstacles this world will throw at you with the quiet confidence that you CAN and WILL overcome. It’s time to understand that, at your disposal, you have the tools needed to be the best you can be. It’s time to realize that the ONLY thing really holding you back from achieving your dreams is YOU. It’s time to realize that you are a very complex and intricate individual, and to perform at your best, you must work on ALL aspects of your life. It’s time to believe WITHOUT A DOUBT that no matter who you are or what stage of life you’re in, you still have the ability to reach heights you never thought possible. 

Women Who Want More: How to Create a Balanced and Fulfilled Life

Are you juggling to find balance in your life? Imagine how you’d feel if your life was just as you wanted it to be. If you could ask for what you wanted, create it and find the time to enjoy it. If you could change the thought of “I can’t’ to “I totally CAN!’

  • Discover the answers in this powerful book:
  • Discover what you truly want
  • How to set and maintain healthy boundaries
  • How to change the feeling of ‘should’ to want’
  • Instant strategies to combine fun with the never-ending ‘to-do’ list
  • FREE guided meditations and additional downloadable resources including finding your purpose, how to deal with parents, partners and children, being healthy, creating abundance and having fun.

For the Health of It

This book includes well over 350 recipes which were home-developed over the years “for the health of it”. The book is about good nutrition and sensible diet. The recipes are simple and require short preparation and cooking times. Additionally, the recipes are flexible, many of which include provisions for substitution of individual food items specified. The foods to be used for preparation of the recipes are intended to be whole, unprocessed, and rich in nutrients. Some of the recipes included in this book meet the criteria of different diets, such as DASH, Ketogenic, Paleo, Vegetarian, Vegan, Mediterranean, etc.

As we embark on the journey of 2024, books remain our steadfast companions, assisting us in self-improvement and personal growth. Whether it’s a timeless classic or a cutting-edge research publication, each book holds the potential to change our perspective, offering insights that can transform our lives. The knowledge contained within the pages of books equips us with the tools to reflect, learn, and evolve. Therefore, in 2024, let’s commit to reading more, exploring diverse genres and topics, and applying the wisdom gleaned to become better versions of ourselves.

Happy New Year!

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December 14, 2016 · 7:52 pm

Title Spotlight – Over 40 & Sexy as Hell!

Blank white book w/pathThis week, Richter Publishing would like to give “Over 40 & Sexy as Hell!” by Robert Drapkin, Donny Kim and Ashleigh Gass. The novel is a complete guide to diet, exercise, supplements, lifestyle training, and how your body works. If you would like to get a copy – take advantage of our holiday sale!

25% OFF Books for the Holidays! 

This holiday season give your loved ones something they can use for a lifetime. The gift of valuable information within books! We have package discounts for the perfect present. There’s a genre to fit any picky person. 

 

For the Fitness Guru/ Health Nut:

Health Pack

The 3 Pillars of Strength $23
Over 40 & Sexy as Hell! (FULL COLOR) $35
Road Map to Health $18
Modern IV Wellness $10
Get all four for only $65!

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