And thank you all. This has been great. Mollie’s gearing up now. Stand back, world, website coming through.

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I don’t even know what Cranky Agnes is and already I want to read it. I love the comment (somewhere in the vastness above) about rolling around in the world a little longer, b/c I feel the same way when I find a book and characters that I love (case in point – Temptation). I want to stay there a little while longer and learn more.

I’d enjoy the outtakes too; like extras on a DVD they’d further enhance the experience of reading the novel. I’m not keen on downloads and contests or recipies b/c they’re not my thing (unless they’re microwave recipies, as I am the queen of the redux meal [ew - not that way]), but I’d love the early agnes and cast bios and all the creative stuff that again, lets us roll around in your worlds for a little longer.

I’d like to read the communiques with Bob b/c frankly, it sounds like a riot, but the collaborating process is of less interest. Also reviews aren’t too interesting as I’m gonna buy your book regardless of what they say.

Basically, I don’t like visting a site and only finding sales and marketing for the upcoming book, or just wallpapers and backlist info. I like a site that has nuggets of goodness to share, that will enrich my reading of the novel, my sense of character and place, plus some behind-the-scenes goodies of your creative process for example and inspiration as well as just good, wild, guffawing kinds of fun.

Eh – maybe half a cents worth.

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Is there any of this you could delegate to others? Perhaps it’s faster to do it yourself than to read through loads of suggestions, but there may be some things for which it isn’t.

We love all the content you give us, but (some of us) do feel guilty over pressuring you to work EVEN HARDER! Not OH, though, I don’t think.

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Lilyblues: Now I’m picturing Bob with Rachael Ray. I think he’d kill her with the nearest spatula. HA

And, the Green Beret-Librarian thing sounds fabulous. I see hijinks involving an quiet, agoraphobic woman in the swamp (who knows what the plants are only because she’s a reference librarian, not that she’s actually seen them before) with a short-tempered John Wayne-type who eats grasshoppers for breakfast. Don’t mind me, I’m just amusing myself over here.

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What keeps me coming back: Stuff like HWSW, Agnes blog, D&G blog, Fortune Sisters blog, how to write.

Fun stuff: Outtakes, B&J banter, opinions (reviewers who don’t read the novel they’re reviewing), behind-the-scenes stuff (D&G blog)

Don’t care: Recipes, reader guides.

Huh? What contests? Well, except for Me’s Hanky Panky, etc. Yep, I like those, especially if you’d pick me.

Extra, but nice: If I could click either at the top or bottom of a topic to see/add comments.

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On a more serious note, websites and marketing don’t affect my purchasing choices. Either I go to the store with a specific mission in mind, ie Crusie or Harry Potter, or I browse leisurely.

If I enjoy a book, then I might take a look at the author’s website to browse the backlist, and then I’m looking for two things: the story blurb, and the author’s comments about the book.

If I’m infatuated with a book, or a world, or an author, I can spend hours playing on the website, and I appreciate any little gifts the author and web coder have to offer.

But I think others have a good point about layers.

Is there anyway St Martins can get you booked onto a cook/chat show like Rachel Ray?

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-Michelle

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I raise my hand to the classics from HWSW. That blog was priceless. While it didn’t sell the book for me(I always was on the look out for the next Crusie) it generated excitement for it. Also, I was unfamiliar with Bob Mayer, Robert Doherty, Greg Donegan, Paddy O’Mayer. It served a dual purpose in selling your solo books as well.

Outakes, yes. I will never view cole slaw as a mere food item again.

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But do as you like. Us addicts need to come back anyway.

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Will you show us the AATH collage?

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But if you’re asking what I as an existing fan most want to see, it’s outtakes and Cranky Agnes columns. And the short story where Agnes is getting rid of the body (please – I really want to know how she does it!). I want more story, in effect.

The only thing I’d drop is the Reader’s Guide, but I don’t go to reading groups so I’m not your target audience for that.

If I stumbled across the site as a new reader, the first chapter is what would draw me in and make me most likely to buy the book. I’m a first-chapter kind of woman, not a blurb woman.

If a site’s easy to navigate, there’s no point where I say there’s so much I won’t look at anything. I’m sure Mollie and Mara will layer it beautifully.

But all that said, if it’s a choice between you writing website content or another book or the AATH website, I’d much rather have the book. That includes Dogs and Goddesses, which is great so far.

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The point of Agnes is the house, right? Could the website be analogous to the house? Even with something like the hidden basement or hidden basement door. True, you are not designing a game here, but, oh, well, I’m a maze fan, so that’s me. In my world, you’re a celebrity, and you and Bob are a celebrity couple, of sorts. Or out of sorts. Your collaboration is my 21st Century version of the Days and Nights of Molly Dodd or Frank’s Place.

Definitely show us some outtakes. If you have a blooper reel, put that in, too. Just never have anyone pan down. Panning is a horizontal movement. Tilt is vertical.
And, whatever you finally decide to do, if it’s your usual MO, it’s above and beyone what you have to do, so thanks in advance.

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From memory:

Home page
Story (includes cast, and setting if you must)
Fun stuff (columns, recipes, contests if you’re set on having contests, etc)
Old Agnes (outtakes, early Agnes, collaboration stuff)
Events
Where to Buy
Related sites
Bios/Contact

IMO, keeping the top-level nav simple will help people focus on what they want. And if you do the revolving-content thing, your site will be refreshed regularly.

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But the bottom line is: will that sell books? You might get some word of mouth out of it, but will it become viral? Can you do some kind of treasure hunt in South Carolina with a big prize at the end?

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Lose the comments.
Lose the contest.
Combine Early Agnes and Outtakes.
Lose the setting.
Lose the reader’s guide – will people really want that before they read the whole thing?
Combine the Downloads, Cranky Agnes column, and maybe the contest if you’re totally married to it in one Fun Stuff page.
Combine Story + Cast. Throw Setting in there if you must.
Combine bios with contact info.

That leaves you with a slightly more manageable navigation, and somewhat less content:

Home Page
The Story (which includes cast & setting)
Chapter One
Collaborating
Early Agnes (includes Outtakes)
Reviews
Fun with Cranky Agnes (columns, downloads, contest)
Event Schedule/Tour
Related Sites
Purchase Links
Bios/COntact

I think that if it’s easier to navigate, the ton of content won’t be as bad – and it’ll be easier to navigate if you have a smaller top-line TOC.

This assumes you’ve already created all the content… if you haven’t, I’d cut it off where you’ve got it. 42,000 words is a hell of a lot of words for a web site.

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