Publishing Your Website — Going Live Checklist

Before sharing your author website URL with readers and the public, run through this checklist to ensure everything is polished and professional.

What You'll Learn

• Essential items to verify before launch
• Quality checks for content and design
• How to test your website across devices
• Launch announcement strategy

Pre-Launch Checklist

Content ✅

• Author bio is complete and compelling (written in third person for media, first person for readers)
• Author photo is uploaded (professional, high-quality, well-lit)
• Social links are set (Twitter/X, Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon)
• At least 1 book is published and visible on the website
• About page is created with your story and CTAs
• Contact page is created with your preferred contact method
• Blog has at least 2-3 posts — an empty blog looks worse than no blog at all
• All text is proofread — check for typos, grammar, and broken sentences

Design ✅

• Theme is selected and customized with your brand colors
• Font is chosen that matches your genre and brand
• Hero/header area looks professional (not using default placeholder content)
• Book covers display correctly (no stretched or pixelated images)
• Mobile view looks good (test on your phone)
• Favicon is set (small icon in browser tabs)

Navigation ✅

• Menu links go to the correct pages (click-test each one)
• No broken links — all external links work
• Navigation order makes sense (Home, Books, About, Blog, Contact)
• Footer links are correct

SEO ✅

• Site title is set (includes your name and genre)
• Site description is written (150-160 characters, compelling)
• Social sharing image is uploaded (1200×630px)
• Each page has a meta description — especially book pages and About
• Favicon is uploaded

Technical ✅

• SSL works — website loads via HTTPS with green lock
• Page load speed is acceptable (under 3 seconds)
• Newsletter signup works (test by subscribing yourself)
• Buy/Download buttons link to correct book pages

Testing Across Devices

Test your website on:

1. Desktop browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari)
2. Mobile phone (iPhone and/or Android)
3. Tablet (if available)

Key things to check on mobile:

• Navigation hamburger menu opens and closes properly
• Book covers are not cut off or distorted
• Text is readable without zooming
• Buttons are large enough to tap

Launch Announcement Strategy

Once everything checks out:

Day 1: Soft Launch

• Share your URL with close friends and fellow authors for feedback
• Fix any issues they report

Day 3: Social Media Announcement

• Post on all social platforms with a link to your website
• Pin the post on Twitter/X and Facebook

Day 5: Newsletter Announcement

• Send a newsletter to your subscriber list announcing your website
• Include a link and a specific CTA ("Check out my About page" or "Browse my books")

Ongoing

• Update your "link in bio" on all social platforms
• Add your website URL to your email signature
• Include it on business cards and author handouts

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I make changes after launching?
A: Absolutely. Your website is always editable. Changes go live immediately.

Q: Should I wait until my website is "perfect"?
A: Don't let perfectionism delay your launch. A clean, complete website with 3 pages and 2 blog posts is better than no website at all.

Q: How do I know if my website is ready?
A: If everything on the checklist above passes, you're ready. Run the mobile test, have a friend review it, and launch.

Related Articles

• Your Author Website — Overview
• SEO Settings for Your Author Website
• Customizing Your Website Theme & Design
• Building Your Author Brand