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Let’s get one thing straight: building an incredible author website isn’t just about installing WordPress and hoping for the best. It takes imagination, patience, and a spark of stubborn determination. But guess what?
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
And I’m here to show you the exact tools and plugins you need to bring your vision to life—whether you’re creating an immersive book world, selling your eBooks direct, or building a membership experience for your loyal readers.
Start with a Reliable Web Host
Before anything else, you need a solid home for your site.
🔗 I recommend SiteGround – it’s fast, secure, and plays beautifully with WordPress.
Once you’re signed up, install WordPress with one click and you’re ready to start building.
Also, they have exceptional customer service. So, if anything goes wrong, they are more than happy to fix it and or guide you.
👉 Sign up for Siteground!
Choose a Powerful Page Builder
To have a modern, responsive, and truly branded WordPress website, you need more than just WordPress itself—you need a page builder that gives you control, flexibility, and creative freedom.
But not all builders are created equal and you don’t want a generic free WordPress theme.
Some, like Elementor, look tempting until the hidden costs start stacking up—annual subscription fees, essential features locked behind paywalls, plugin bloat that slows your site down, and update fatigue every few months.
If you’re an author looking to create a professional site that looks custom but doesn’t require you to learn code, there’s a better option:
🌟 Use the Avada Builder – a one-time purchase with no annual renewal fees. Ever. There is a fee if you want support from, but that is optional.
I love Avada mostly because there is no annual fee and it gives you:
- Drag-and-drop freedom to build exactly what you envision—no coding required
- Dozens of pre-designed layouts and demo templates you can tweak to match your brand
- Built-in elements like galleries, sliders, countdowns, forms, image carousels, testimonials, accordions, and more—no extra plugins needed.
- Full mobile responsiveness—your site will look amazing on any device, right out of the box
- Advanced customization tools to tweak fonts, colors, spacing, backgrounds, and animations with zero HTML knowledge
- Seamless integration with WooCommerce, BookFunnel, newsletter platforms, and more!
The Avada Builder is everything you need to create a sleek, beautiful, and high-converting website—without relying on a developer for every little update.
💡 Bottom line: If you’re going to invest time (or money) into your author brand, you need a builder that grows with you—not one that charges you just to stand still.
Disclaimer: If you are purchasing The Avada Builder, you need a good web host. NOT a free or cheap web host because the builder will not work properly and you will receive errors.
🔗 I recommend SiteGround
Did I mention that their customer service is exceptional.
Merch Store Setup
WooCommerce – the essential WordPress plugin for setting up your store.
Depending on your requirements you will have to install many more plugins for tax’s and shipping labels. Wishlist, rewards, bundling or product variations.
Some of these addon plugins are free but majority of them, you will have to pay either a one-time fee or yearly fee.
But if all you need to do is sell eBooks directly, then all you need is Woocommerce and Bookfunnel.
Selling Merchandise? Printful Connects to your Woocommerce:
Sell Your eBooks Direct
Tired of royalty cuts and algorithm games? You can sell straight from your site with:
- WooCommerce – the essential WordPress plugin for setting up your store.
- BookFunnel – for flawless digital delivery. If you don’t have an account yet, sign up and choose the Mid-List Author plan—it’s perfect for direct eBook sales and email integration.
💰 Bonus: WooCommerce + BookFunnel = 95%+ of your sales in your pocket.
Note: They have amazing documentation to set up both Woocommerce and Bookfunnel.
Build a Newsletter to Connect (and Keep) Your Readers
We missed this step, you need a newsletter to connect to your BookFunnel account.
Why? Because owning your reader list is everything.
Unlike social media or Amazon, where your reach is limited by algorithms, your email list gives you direct access to your readers. It’s where you:
- Announce new releases
- Share exclusive content
- Offer preorder perks or bonus scenes
- Build deeper reader loyalty over time
If you’re new to the concept:
A newsletter is simply an email you send (weekly, monthly, or whenever you like) to readers who’ve chosen to hear from you. It’s one of the most powerful tools in your author business—and it grows with you.
💡 My Recommendation:
Start with Flodesk—it’s clean, beautiful, and made with creators in mind. No confusing layouts or ugly templates, and their flat monthly fee means your price doesn’t go up as your list grows.
Unlimited emails and subscribers.
Bonus: Flodesk integrates seamlessly with BookFunnel, WooCommerce, and your website, so everything works in harmony.
Set Up a Membership Experience
Want to offer exclusive content, bonus chapters, early access, or behind-the-scenes material?
Use ARMember – a one-time fee, and you get total control over your membership tiers, colors, fonts, and user access. No coding knowledge needed.
It’s beautifully customizable and easy to integrate into your existing WordPress site.
» Purchase and Download ARMember «
Add “Meet Your Book Beau” or Interactive Visuals
Want to let readers explore your characters, click through a custom zodiac chart, or dive into lore via a stylized map?
🎯 You’ll need: Draw Attention – a premium interactive image plugin (yearly fee).
Use Canva to design your visual (zodiac wheel, map, character tree, etc.), then upload it and assign clickable hotspots. The result? A gorgeous, interactive experience that keeps readers exploring.
If you want to create a quizz, Purchase and download Forminator Pro.
Create an Online Reading Hub
Want to offer a Wattpad-style reading experience directly on your site?
Purchase TNC FlipBook – PDF Viewer for WordPress from CodeCanyon.
This plugin lets readers flip through pages like a real book—perfect for sneak peeks, bonus chapters, or serialized content. You may need a few other add-ons from this creator, depending on how fancy you want to get, but this plugin is the core.
Show Off with a Gallery
Want to feature character art, aesthetic moodboards, or fan creations?
The Avada Builder comes with easy-to-use gallery modules built right in—no extra plugin needed. You can create grids, sliders, lightboxes, or full-page visuals to make your world shine.
Final Thoughts
Can you build a stunning, functional author website on your own?
Yes—but it takes vision, patience, and the right tools.
If you’re the DIY type with a vivid imagination and a bit of grit, these plugins will help you build a site that doesn’t just exist—it enchants.
But if you’d rather skip the tech headaches and focus on writing your next book…
👑 Let Crown Nine Studio build it for you.
We specialize in immersive author websites with features like direct shops, character dossiers, exclusive content hubs, and more—customized and launched in 10 business days or less.
🔗 Explore author design packages at CrownNineStudio.ca
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About Crown Nine Studio
Crown Nine Studio, builds websites for authors who want more than just a pretty site. With years of experience crafting WordPress websites that sell books and grow brands, C9S helps authors turn their vision into powerful digital homes. From direct sales to reader funnels, our custom builds are sleek, smart, and built to scale.
Your story deserves a website that works as hard as you do. Our mission? Make that happen—without the tech overwhelm.
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