Author Platform Blueprint Resources Page

Chapter 1: 

View the internet's most-visited websites: https://www.alexa.com/topsites

Bible Pathway Adventures on Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.nz/biblestory4kids/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/

Recommended podcast episode - a balanced view of social media for authors. Plot spoilers - most authors don't sell books via social media and those achieving remarkable sales results on TikTok or Instagram are not typical.

Also see https://createifwriting.com/social-media-for-authors/

Chapter 2: 

W3Techs article: https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/cm-wordpress

Hosting Tribunal: https://hostingtribunal.com/blog/wordpress-statistics/

1000 True Fans/Kevin Kelly: https://kk.org/thetechnium/1000-true-fans/

MailerLite: https://paulteague.net/mailerlite (my affiliate link)

Example of a website made with MailerLite: https://www.subscribepage.com/paul-teague

Chapter 3: 

WordPress: https://wordpress.org/ (The downloadable version, but don't install it from this website)

WordPress: https://wordpress.com/ (This is the version I don't recommend)

Medium blogging platform: https://medium.com/

How to install WordPress guides ...

Hostgator: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLl8gcdjf_J_naqGVKRP1Q6zP0InKyGrRU

Siteground: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTbAWJM0XBG8ukT3s5NdW010ZclJYvbEq

000Webhost free WordPress hosting: https://www.000webhost.com

I buy my web domains from Fasthosts: https://www.fasthosts.co.uk/

Hostgator WordPress hosting: https://www.hostgator.com/managed-wordpress-hosting

I use Siteground web hosting: https://paulteague.net/siteground (my affiliate link)

WordPress support: https://wordpress.org/support/

WordPress forums: https://wordpress.org/support/forums/

Getting started with WordPress: https://wordpress.org/support/article/new-to-wordpress-where-to-start/

Use YouTube to add video to your website: https://www.youtube.com/

Use SoundCloud to add audio to your website: https://soundcloud.com/

Use Canva to create your images: https://www.canva.com/

Use Fiverr to get small website jobs done: https://www.fiverr.com/

OptimizePress WordPress site builder for more advanced users: https://www.optimizepress.com/

WordPress free themes: https://wordpress.org/themes/

WordPress free plugins: https://wordpress.org/plugins/

Template Monster WordPress themes: https://www.templatemonster.com/

Theme Forest WordPress themes: https://themeforest.net/

Creative Market WordPress themes: https://creativemarket.com/

Recommended WordPress Plugins

Essential Plugin: All in One SEO Pack

Take a look at: https://wordpress.org/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/

Full instructions here: https://wordpress.org/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/installation/

UpDraftPlus Backup And Restoration

Take a look at: https://wordpress.org/plugins/updraftplus/

Full instructions here: https://wordpress.org/plugins/updraftplus/installation/

Cookie Law Info

Take a look at: https://wordpress.org/plugins/cookie-law-info/

Full instructions here: https://wordpress.org/plugins/cookie-law-info/installation/

Essential Plugin: All in One WP Security & Firewall

Take a look at: https://wordpress.org/plugins/all-in-one-wp-security-and-firewall/

Full instructions here: https://wordpress.org/plugins/all-in-one-wp-security-and-firewall/installation/

Suggested WordPress Plugins

Classic Editor - changes the page & post editing interface to something more intuitive: https://en-gb.wordpress.org/plugins/classic-editor/

Page & Post Clone - saves you having tp start pages and posts from nothing: https://en-gb.wordpress.org/plugins/page-or-post-clone/

Chapter 4: 

MailerLite email marketing: https://paulteague.net/mailerlite (my affiliate link)

MailerLite guides: http://help.mailerlite.com/article/show/30070-getting-started-with-mailerlite

MailChimp email marketing: https://mailchimp.com/

MailChimp guides: https://mailchimp.com/help/

ConvertKit email marketing: https://convertkit.com/

ConvertKit guides: https://convertkit.com/training

MailChimp GDPR guide: https://mailchimp.com/gdpr/

MailChimp CAN-SPAM ACT info: https://mailchimp.com/help/anti-spam-requirements-for-email/

Suzanne Dibble GDPR info: https://suzannedibble.com/

UK Data Protection registration: http://www.ico.gov.uk

BBC/What you can and can't say on social media: https://www.bbc.com/news/av/technology-20383782

Chapter 5: 

Facebook: https://facebook.com

Facebook Help Center: https://www.facebook.com/help

Avoid social media hoxes: https://www.hoax-slayer.com/

Facebook Business Manager: https://business.facebook.com/

Create your business page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/creation/

Pixlr - for simple photo editing: http://apps.pixlr.com/editor/

Use Canva to create your images: https://www.canva.com/

Canva tutorials: https://designschool.canva.com/tutorials/

Use Fiverr to get small website jobs done: https://www.fiverr.com/

Facebook Ads - Recommended Resources

Expensive, but this is where I go to learn about all forms of author advertising: https://selfpublishingformula.com/courses/

Udemy is a great source of training: https://www.udemy.com/course/facebook-training-for-beginners/

Tara Zirker, Successful ads training: https://www.successfuladsclub.com/

Help! My Facebook Ads Suck book: https://books2read.com/HMFAS

Facebook contests

Heyo.com at https://heyo.com/

WooBox.com at https://woobox.com/

Shortstack.com at https://www.shortstack.com/

TabSite.com at https://www.tabsite.com/

Pagemodo.com at https://www.pagemodo.com/

Rafflecopter.com at https://www.rafflecopter.com/

Chapter 6: 

Twitter: https://twitter.com

Twitter Help Center: https://help.twitter.com/en

Lastpass password management: https://lastpass.com

Pixlr - for simple photo editing: http://apps.pixlr.com/editor/

Use Canva to create your images: https://www.canva.com/

Canva tutorials: https://designschool.canva.com/tutorials/

Use Fiverr to get small website jobs done: https://www.fiverr.com/

Twitter copyright and trademark rules: https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/twitter-rules

BBC legal guide: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20782257

Example of a viral Tweet by a writing colleague and the editor of many of my fiction books, Julie Cordiner:

Chapter 7: 

Amazon Author Pages: https://kdp.amazon.com

GeniusLink book linker: https://www.geniuslink.com/

Books2Read book linker: https://books2read.com/

To register as an author on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/program

Goodreads also gives lots of guidance on the process here: https://www.goodreads.com/author/how_to

Camtasia for video creation at http://discover.techsmith.com/try-camtasia/

Screencast-o-matic for video creation at http://www.screencast-o-matic.com/

Jing for video creation at https://www.techsmith.com/jing.html

Register as a BookBub author: https://partners.bookbub.com/users/sign_up

Connect all your web outlets with just one link: https://linktr.ee/

Google Keyword Planner: https://adwords.google.com/KeywordPlanner