Surprises in website analytics…
First-time visitors to this blog and/or website might not know that my website gurus at Monkey C Media recently did an update/upgrade (it’s generally transparent to visitors). Having a functioning website with interesting content is essential for authors these days. (After the initial costs, an author still has maintenance costs—all part of doing business.) In this last round, the gurus got my website analytics working again (it’s a mystery why they stopped). I don’t hover over them like some bloggers do, but I like to check them occasionally. This time I had some surprises.
First, the list of countries corresponding to website visitors: No surprise here, the US ranks first. I’m a US author, after all, even though I’d like to think my novel Rembrandt’s Angel could be loved by all readers of English literary works, especially Brits (it’s dedicated to Agatha Christie and her two famous sleuths, Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot, and its main character is a Scotland Yard Inspector and ex-MI6 agent). But Great Britain is only seventh on the list! Much more surprising, Ukraine is second. In fact, the US and Ukrainian web surfers have made many more visits to the website than those from other countries. (I’m a bit leery about the Ukrainian participation. Are they from the part that Putin stole?) France and Italy surfers trail far behind at third and fourth, Russia at fifth (again suspicious), and Chile at sixth. Chile? What’s that about? I lived for a while in Colombia and loved Colombia as well as Chile (I visited there during the time of Allende), but I don’t (and can’t) write a novel in Spanish. Maybe it’s because many of my characters have a Hispanic origin? But why not other Spanish-speaking countries too?
Second (and I think this is a general phenomenon): 81% of my visitors spend less than thirty seconds at the website. These obviously aren’t readers of my blog, which is a frustrating observation. It’s probably due to my home page looking the same from day to day (it’s rate of change is much less than that of my blog, of course). Maybe I should create an internal link on the home page that goes directly to the blog? Hmm. There are already two, one at the left and one at the bottom. Oh well….
Third, there seem to be a lot more bots sniffing around, not just Google’s. That’s good, I suppose, if they report back to their masters something like “Hey, this old guy has new material!” At least I hope they’re capable of sniffing out what’s new. You never know—the bots are only as good as the people who program them.
Fourth, the change in my focus hasn’t seemed to stop visitors from coming, which is a bit of a surprise. When I first started my blog, I said to myself, “Steve, you’re just starting. You only have one book. What can you say that’s of interest to readers, writers, and publishers? And why would they bother to read it?” My website gurus—specifically their leader, Jeniffer Thompson, who helps authors on many fronts—said, “Steve, you must have a blog. Write about anything.” I did.
Many of my original posts were op-ed-like where I commented on current events and issues, something most author sites don’t do. I changed that focus, but not for the reasons you might think: Those articles, while opinions, required a lot of research! And research requires a lot of time. I decided I’d rather be using that time to write fiction (that also requires research, but for my stories). The short-fiction component of that writing is now more prominent in this blog, along with the free downloads I’ve made available (see the “Free Stuff & Contests” web page), and my op-ed-type articles are restricted to reading, writing, and publishing, something I know a lot about now after 15+ years and many books later.
My content now also features a lot more about other authors too, and their opinions, primarily through interviews and reviews of their books. I’ve always been interested in how fellow authors opine about our business, which is why I’ve participated in many online discussion groups. The interviews formalize that a bit more, and, by using the same set of interview questions, I can compare authors’ responses. Of course, I like to help them get a bit more internet exposure, and they return the favor by providing me with interesting content.
My website is now all about providing information that’s related to reading, writing—about other authors and their books, about my book events and new and evergreen (back list) books—and about what’s going on in publishing today. Feel free to make suggestions, though. If I adopt an idea, you will get the credit!
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Comments are always welcome.
The Last Humans. “My first thought had become an echo in my mind: Why am I alive? My second thought: Am I dying, but just more slowly than everyone else? That leitmotif also kept repeating in my chaotic symphony of thoughts. Not a great start for a long train of logical ones.” Ex-USN Search and Rescue and current LA County Sheriff’s Department diver Penny Castro goes on a forensics dive off SoCal shores and surfaces to find herself in a post-apocalyptic world. A bioengineered and airborne contagion has been delivered to the West Coast and will be carried around the world, killing billions. Her adventures trying to survive in this new world will make you ask, “Could this really happen?” Published by Black Opal Books, this post-apocalyptic thriller is available in ebook and print format from Amazon and as an ebook version from Smashwords and its affiliated retailers (iBooks, B&N, Kobo, etc.) Also available from the publisher or your local bookstore (if they don’t have it, ask for it). A sequel is coming.
Around the world and to the stars! In libris libertas!
