There are two ways you can do this: pay a web designer to build and maintain site for you or do it yourself. The first will almost certainly involve some expense, how much depends upon size and sophistication of site, how and where it's hosted, how often up dates are required and various other factors which we need not go into here!

You may have an obliging friend who will do necessary for you, but trouble with obliging friends is that they often grow tired of updating and maintaining site on a regular basis.

Unless you have a lot of money to throw at it, for freelance writers with a little willingness to learn, best option is to do it yourself.

Creating a web site is not difficult! The Free & Easy Web Design workshop that I've just written is based on using a web authoring programme that is very like Word, a word processor that most of us already use on a daily basis. So, if you can use a word processor, you can create a web site! The workshop takes you through process of building a simple site and uploading it to web.

The big advantage with building and maintaining your own site is that costs are very small and you are in complete control of updating whenever and with whatever you want.

Whichever option you choose do bare in mind that site alone will do nothing to bring you honour, recognition or more importantly, cash! Unless your web designer offers this as an extra service, and most of them don't, you will also have to learn some marketing skills to make people aware of your cyber presence.

It's worth expanding a little on this since marketing is vital to success or otherwise of your site.

If you decide a web site will be beneficial to you, don't fall into trap of thinking that you can leave it to its own devices and you'll get a steady stream of visitors. Think of it like this, you wouldn't move into a new house and not let as many people as possible know your new address would you?

The same holds true with your web site. You must take an active part in its promotion and keep it up dated on a regular basis.

Another point to bare in mind, if you are using it as an on-line brochure beware of thinking that all editors will visit your site to view clips. On-line editors will almost certainly do this if they are interested in using your work, off-line editors can be a different kettle of fish all together!

Although a dying breed, there are still plenty of print based editors out there that are technophobes and only pay lip service to internet so don't put all your eggs in one basket, keep a firm foot hold in tangible world as well!

RESOURCES:

Free & Easy Web Design, hands-on workshop for writers, authors and publishers with books, services or newsletters to promote. www.thebookblurb.co.uk

The WriteLink to Promoting & Selling Your Book. Tips on how to promote your book both on and off line. www.thebookblurb.co.uk

ABCTales Site for show casing fiction and poetry. Discussion lists and writing tips. www.abctales.com

Sue Kendrick is a freelance writer and graphic designer living in the English Midlands.

She has written many special interest articles for magazines and contributed extensively to her regional newspaper.

She edits and publishes www.writelink.co.uk a UK writers resource website and monthly newsletter and www.writelinkpro.co.uk a content providing service for Writelink and other publications.

OK time to take some action:

=> Draw up an initial list of 10 of your interests.

=> Scan your bookshelves to see what reference books you've bought in past, and on what subjects or hobbies.

=> Pay attention when folk you meet start talking about their hobbies, their passions.

=> Pop down to your local magazine store and see what interests are being catered to.

=> Can't be bothered to pad down to your local store, then click over to http://www.mediafinder.com and do some searches.

=> Buy a stack of these magazines and go through classified ads with a highlighter. Call up ones you've circled and ask for their information packs. Make a note of which ones you've called and see how soon information arrives. How are they selling? Good, bad, OK? Could you improve on thequality of what they are offering? Over five to six issues how many of adverts are repeated? Make a note and watch that market like a hawk. If they weren't making money ads wouldn't be running.

=> Hop over to eBay to research all different sub-categories. Which ones are active? Which ones are commanding high prices?

=> Are there any discussion forums related to your potential market? Buzz over to http://www.forumfind.com and do a search.

This is just beginning. Until next article I want you to start paying attention to what people are interested in. This can simply be as easy as listening to folk banter when they're in checkout line.

Scan news, open your eyes and mind to opportunities. You'll be amazed at how your brain kicks into “selective perception”. Don't know what that is? Ever bought a car and then suddenly you notice whole planet is driving exact same model. It's like everyone decided to buy car YOU just bought. Well that's “selective perception” at work. Same thing happens when you actively go hunting down niche markets… actually it can work great for an awful lot of other things… building keyword lists is another example, and another story.

Until next time, now get on with your homework.