I like websites. I always have.
My older brother is a very skilled web designer. Even his MySpace profile was gorgeous! I’ve always been pretty envious of his skill, but I like making websites, even if they don’t look as good as his.
All in all, I think my biggest problem has always been that I don’t like the cold and austere look of professional sites. I always find myself trying to squeeze in a few more graphics or just a little more color. Something to give it just a little more life, a little more energy.
The result, as you would imagine, is usually horrendous.
But a professional author has to have a professional webpage. Several years ago, I bought my own .com and hosting. I’ve used it for various things and it’s had at least half a dozen designs in the span of time I’ve had it, but the one I gave it this morning is the most professional it’s ever looked.
You can view it here, of course: http://www.ithilear.com/
It could look cleaner. It could look sharper. But all in all, I’m not sure it could look more me. As a writer, I’m obviously the creative sort. As an artist, I find myself drawn to things with visual interest. Sure, I could’ve had plain white backgrounds or sleek glassy looking Photoshopped buttons. But I wanted something a little more frilly, a little more varied, with a little more color and texture than that.
I’m sure I’ll probably change it again in the future, but for now, I think this will do nicely.
In other news, I’ve finally done it. After years of resisting, I finally started a Twitter account. I’m not sure how often I’ll update it, or even remember that it’s there, but if you’ve always wanted to tweet me, now you can!