Which comes first; website or blog?

Anna

I think I need both, but which comes first?

I've searched both topics on TB and some advice is a couple of years old now, so I'm wondering what the latest advice is and which sites do you recommend to get started?

(I've also visitted a lot of TBers' blogs and been well impressed!)

Baggy Books

I have both - the website came first because I need to advertise myself and earn money from it. The blog's just for fun.

The website is really an on-line brochure - accounts, copywriting etc.

I write non-fiction - whereas a fiction writer might use a blog to publish some of their work.

Carol

At the moment for me the blog, but the website will come later.

I think it depends on what you need them to do, Anna.
As Baggy has explained her website serves a specific purpose, she has to advertise her skills to earn a living.

What is your current aim?

dora

[quote=Anna]which sites do you recommend to get started?[/quote]

Look at the thread, "building a website" by Betsie. She has built a writers site using weebly which seems one of the better ones to me and there is advice there also for wordpress I think.

Depends what you want one for.

Phots Moll

I have a blog (Patsy-collins.blogspot.com) but no website. I don't currently need a website and I'm not sure if I ever will.

As has been said, it depends what you want them for. If it's to advertise a business or to sell directly to customers then a website may be best. For chatting about your writing, promoting yourself as a writer and interacting with others, I think a blog is the better option.

Anna

[quote=dora]"building a website" by Betsie. [/quote]

I will check it out.

Thanks, folks!

dora

sorry, "website building", it's called oops

Anna

Huh! Now you tell me, after I've wasted an hour of my life trying to find a thread that doesn't exist.

I'll never get it back, you know.

(Liar, liar, pants on fire; I've been on a lovely dog walk! :) )

pbw

I don't think it matters, does it?

I have a blog (as many of you know). It has the advantage that you can set one up and be posting and publishing, literally within minutes. Blogger I found the quickest, Wordpress has more functionality but takes a little longer to set up (but not much). Weebly looks good too, and there is tumblr and others.

I plan to set up a new website (I used to have one for my paintings but migrated everything to a dedicated blog for that, http://fiona-maddock2.blogspot.com/ )

so, I plan to set up a new website to illustrate and promote my novel, but I would go with your gut, as they say. If you're ready to let rip with a blog, go for it, and bring in the website when you're ready.

With a bit of effort spent on the design, you can make a Wordpress blog look indistinguishable from a website, which means it's much easier to build the pages, but you have a blog which looks like a website.

Anna

Thanks for all your advice, folks.

I've tentatively got something up and crawling - think it's a long time before it's running.

If you're passing by, it's http://annacaddyswordywindow.blogspot.com/

I haven't worked out how to add the bloggerss I follow, yet, or where to find the link.
(Chippy very kindly let me know what it is, so I can copy it.)

Carol

Anna you need to go into your template and add the blog list to the options you can add down the side panel. Remember to press save when you've added it.