8 Classic Squarespace Templates That Will Take Your Author Website to the Next Level
Squarespace Templates: The Secret to Building the Author Website of Your Dreams
For today's authors, a solid online presence is indispensable. A well-executed author platform (social media, newsletter, and website) can make the difference between your work gaining a broader readership and disappearing into the internet void.
Yes, you still need an author website!
An author website provides an ideal platform for showcasing your work and connecting with readers, allowing you to establish your brand and take control of your online reputation. Think of it as a home base for promoting your books, sharing updates, and engaging with fans on a personal level. And with the ability to directly communicate with your readers and grow your email lists, you can't afford not to have a website. Plus, let's remember the networking potential! By building relationships with industry pros and like-minded writers, your website can open up new and exciting opportunities you never thought possible.
Here's an article about why you need an author website and the secrets to building a fabulous one.
Need some inspiration for your author website?
Check out these posts:
Squarespace is the easiest way for authors to build a professional author website.
Squarespace is an excellent choice for authors, as it's an all-in-one platform that helps create an eye-catching and feature-loaded online presence. With various templates designed to display written works, authors can effortlessly find designs that vibe with their unique style and genre. In addition, thanks to the platform's intuitive drag-and-drop editor and customization options, authors can craft a bespoke website without much tech expertise.
Additionally, Squarespace offers essential built-in features like blogging, e-commerce integration for selling books, newsletter sign-ups, and social media sharing options. These features empower authors to share their work and connect with readers, grow their audience, and enhance online visibility.
And let's remember Squarespace's mobile responsiveness, which ensures an author's website looks and works like a charm across devices, offering a silky-smooth browsing experience for on-the-go readers.
Squarespace templates are pre-designed websites.
The easiest, quickest, and cheapest way to build a fantastic author website is to use a Squarespace template.
Squarespace templates are pre-designed websites. These templates act as a starting point for users to build and customize their websites without creating everything from scratch. They come in various designs and styles, catering to different industries, professions, and purposes, such as portfolios, online stores, blogs, and more.
You can pick from Squarespace-designed templates or third-party designer Squarespace templates for your author website.
Squarespace Templates can be templates designed by Squarespace or designers on Squarespace.
Squarespace offers its own templates that you can use for your author website.
Squarespace boasts a selection of professionally crafted templates already included in the price of Squarespace. These in-house templates are thoughtfully designed to accommodate the diverse needs of various industries and styles, including those of authors. Conceived with an emphasis on user experience, Squarespace's templates enable authors to effortlessly establish visually captivating and functional websites without delving into the complexities of web design.
Designer templates can take your author's website to the next level.
You can also purchase a Squarespace template from a designer. Designer-crafted Squarespace templates offer a unique and stylish option compared to the templates made by Squarespace. Crafted by independent designers and developers with a deep understanding of the platform, these third-party templates provide extra design choices and features beyond what's available in Squarespace's collection. Moreover, these designers often create templates tailored to specific industries, ensuring a more personalized and targeted design for various professions, including authors.
While Squarespace's in-house templates are usually polished and dependable, third-party templates can cater to specific tastes or needs that might not be found in the default options. For example, these templates might include extra features, unique layouts, or custom integrations specialized for particular industries.
You’ll likely get a better website by buying a Squarespace template rather than DIY-ing your website.
When it comes to building a website, opting for a Squarespace template can be a game-changer compared to the daunting task of DIYing your site. Designers have honed their craft and possess the expertise to create effective and visually stunning templates. They understand the subtle tips and techniques necessary to make your website aesthetically pleasing and capable of converting visitors into loyal fans, listeners, readers, or clients.
By investing a few hundred dollars in a Squarespace template, you gain access to this valuable knowledge and experience. This means you can confidently showcase your brand, knowing that your website is professionally designed and optimized to captivate and engage your audience. Save yourself time, frustration, and the risk of a lackluster website by harnessing the power of a well-crafted Squarespace template designed by experts.
I love Squarespace templates so much that this website is built from this GoLiveHQ Squarespace template.
You’ll have a lot of design flexibility with each Squarespace template.
You can edit and change Squarespace templates without needing to be a tech whiz. You can easily switch up the layout, colors, fonts, images, and more to give your website a unique look and feel that suits your brand and personal style. This level of customization is super empowering because you can ensure that your author's website embodies the essence of your writing. In addition, with Squarespace's intuitive drag-and-drop editor and other easy-to-use features, you can edit your site quickly!
However, more sophisticated customizations might be more expensive, time-consuming, and require coding knowledge. Avoid the headache by hiring a designer to install and customize your Squarespace template.
Key features you should look for when purchasing a Squarespace template for your author website:
If you're considering using Squarespace for your author website, you might feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of templates available. We've compiled a list of our favorite Squarespace shops and templates to simplify things. These templates include the essential pages every author's website needs. These pages typically include the home page, about page, portfolio page, blog page, and contact page, although some templates offer additional pages.
Each template featured is a Squarespace 7.1 template built on the latest version of Squarespace. I highly recommend purchasing only a Squarespace 7.1 template because Squarespace has stated that Squarespace will no longer update templates before 7.1. This means that a website built on a pre-7.1 template will continue to exist but will not receive any new features or tech updates.
Most templates from these shops range in price from $200 to $300, providing an affordable option for those who want a professional-looking website without breaking the bank.
Remember that these templates usually include standard pages like home, about, portfolio, blog, and contact, but some templates may offer additional pages or customization options such as shop pages. In addition, some of these templates include matching social media templates, so your website and social media will have a cohesive look.
Finally, some templates include the option to feature videos throughout the website. This is an innovative and essential feature. Video will only become more critical in the coming years.
A few of my favorite Squarespace template shops and Squarespace templates for your author website:
Among the significant Squarespace template shops are GoLiveHQ and BigCatCreative, each offering a unique selection of templates that can help elevate your online presence and showcase your author brand in style.
Notably, some templates have shop pages as well. I don’t recommend Squarespace for e-commerce (aka selling anything online), but you’ll want to note this option if you sell your work or merchandise directly to your readers.
The links below are affiliate links meaning if you purchase with these links, I will get a commission, and you will get a 10% discount for GoLiveHQ templates.
GOLIVEHQ
GoLiveHQ - GoLiveHQ is a Squarespace template shop that creates visually stunning and mobile-responsive templates for creative entrepreneurs and small business owners. Their sleek and minimal templates feature bold typography, high-quality images, and easy-to-use navigation and are designed to showcase products and services in a modern style. Here are my favorite GoLiveHQ templates.
Use code POWERHOUSESTRATEGY10 to get 10% off on all GOLIVEHQ Templates.
The Quinn Squarespace template is an excellent choice for authors who want a clean and modern website. In addition, it is perfect for those who are also speakers and podcasters, as it has several features designed specifically for these purposes. One of the key advantages of the Quinn template is its clean and understated design. The website is easy to navigate, and the invention is not distracting, allowing visitors to focus on the author's content. The classic fonts, graphic line elements, and colors used in the template are also elegant and professional, giving the author's website a polished and sophisticated look.
The Quinn template is built explicitly for authors, speakers, and podcasters. It includes a blog page perfect for podcasting, which can be duplicated or repurposed as needed. This feature makes it easy for authors to share their podcast episodes with their readers and build a community around their work. Additionally, the Quinn template offers ample space for newsletter sign-ups, essential for authors who want to make an email list and stay in touch with their readers. The template's freebie page is also an excellent feature for authors offering incentives to subscribers.
Overall, the Quinn Squarespace template is an excellent choice for authors who want a clean, modern, and professional website. In addition, its features are designed to meet the needs of authors, speakers, and podcasters, making it an excellent option for those who want to build a community around their work. With its elegant design, easy-to-use features, and ample space for podcasts and newsletters, the Quinn template will help authors establish a solid online presence and reach a wider audience.
I recommend this Quinn Squarespace template so much that it’s the basis of this website!
Use code POWERHOUSESTRATEGY10 to get 10% off on all GOLIVEHQ Templates.
The Amplify Squarespace Template
The Amplify Squarespace template is an excellent choice for authors who want a professional and stylish website. This template has several features that make it an ideal option for writers.
Firstly, the color scheme of the template is bright and eye-catching. The yellow color can be changed to any other color of the author's choice, making it customizable to match their branding. This allows authors to create a unique and memorable online presence.
Secondly, the font used in this template is both chic and classic. It is easy to read and complements the overall design of the website. The font also adds a touch of elegance to the author's brand.
The layout of the Amplify Squarespace template is chic and modern. It allows authors to showcase their content in a visually appealing way. The yellow highlighting below the text draws attention to important information and adds color to the page.
Lastly, the footer of the template is clean and straightforward. The author can include important information such as contact details and social media links. This can help to increase engagement and drive traffic to the author's website.
Overall, the Amplify Squarespace template is an excellent choice for authors who want a stylish and professional website. Its customizable color scheme, elegant font, chic layouts, and clean footer make it an ideal option for creating a memorable online presence.
Use code POWERHOUSESTRATEGY10 to get 10% off on all GOLIVEHQ Templates.
Influence Squarespace Template
The Influence One-Page Squarespace template by Go Live HQ is an excellent choice for authors who want a digital presence without investing heavily. This visually appealing and user-friendly template features a clean and modern design optimized for mobile viewing, with a very neutral color palette that can be modified to suit a variety of authors.
One of the main benefits of this template is that it is a one-page design, allowing authors to display all the essential information on a single page, which can be helpful for authors with limited content or those who prefer a simple layout. In addition, the template includes customizable sections such as an introduction, bio, book section, newsletter signup, and contact form, allowing authors to easily modify and customize the website's content and branding without investing heavily in web design.
Overall, the Influence One-Page Squarespace template is an excellent option for authors seeking a simple yet professional-looking website that is easy to set up and customize. In addition, it is ideal for authors looking to showcase their work and connect with their audience.
Use code POWERHOUSESTRATEGY10 to get 10% off on all GOLIVEHQ Templates.
Book Page Squarespace Template
The "Book Page" Squarespace template offered by GoLiveHQ is designed for authors or publishers who want to create a professional and engaging website to promote and sell their books. The template has a clean and modern design, showcasing book covers, author bios, and book reviews.
Some of the key features of the "Book Page" template include:
Customizable header: The template has a large header area where you can add a custom logo, background image, or video to make your website stand out.
Prominent book cover display: The template features an extensive book cover display area, with an option to add multiple covers and display them in a slideshow format.
Customizable book sections: The template has dedicated areas for displaying book summaries, author bios, reviews, and purchasing options. You can customize these sections with your content and branding.
Integrated e-commerce functionality: The template is integrated with Squarespace's e-commerce platform, making selling your books directly from your website easy.
Mobile-responsive design: The template is optimized for mobile devices, ensuring your website looks great and functions well on any screen size.
In addition to these features, the "Book Page" template is fully customizable, allowing you to tailor the design and layout to your specific needs. For example, you can customize colors, fonts, and content blocks, add images and videos, and adjust the website's navigation and page structure.
Overall, the "Book Page" Squarespace template offered by GoLiveHQ is an excellent option for authors or publishers who want a professional and customizable website to promote and sell their books. Its customizable features allow for flexibility, and its integration with Squarespace's e-commerce platform makes it an all-in-one solution for authors looking to sell their books online.
I highly recommend the "Book Page" Squarespace template.
Use code POWERHOUSESTRATEGY10 to get 10% off on all GOLIVEHQ Templates.
Opulence Squarespace Template
I love this Opulence Squarespace template so much that it’s the template I used for my website for Powerhouse Legal Strategy.
The homepage features a headline, a section for social proof, a bio, a video, testimonials, a blog, and a call to action. The template boasts a clean, minimal, modern, and elegant design with a simple black-and-white color scheme and a modern font.
I especially like the overlapping photo elements and the modern font used in the design. The About page is well-designed, with a bio and an exciting section featuring "my favorite things" circles. The template also has an information page for selling services, courses, or products. The blog layout is chic and organized, making it easy for visitors to navigate through organized blog posts.
Finally, the contact page is simple, allowing visitors to contact the author quickly.
I highly recommend the Opulence Squarespace template.
Use code POWERHOUSESTRATEGY10 to get 10% off on all GOLIVEHQ Templates.
Want $100 off a GoLiveHQ Template?!
Looking to purchase a GoLiveHQ template? If you reach out to me, I can hook you up with an exclusive $100 discount on the template of your choice. That's right, you'll get all the stunning features and impeccable design of a GoLiveHQ template, but with some extra savings in your pocket.
So, what are you waiting for? Contact me now, and let's make sure you get your hands on a stunning GoLiveHQ template with an incredible $100 discount. Don't miss out on this opportunity to save big on your GoLiveHQ template purchase. Your author website will thank you, and your wallet will too!
BIGCATCREATIVE
BigCatCreative - BigCatCreative is a design studio that creates custom Squarespace websites and templates for businesses and individuals. Their templates feature bold, fun, and modern designs focusing on user experience and functionality.
The Victoria Squarespace Template
The Victoria Squarespace Template from Big Cat Creative is an excellent option for authors who want to incorporate more color into their website design. The template's color scheme is eye-catching and professional, with beige, pink, and green colors. The footer is large, clean, and colorful, with easy-to-navigate links to social media accounts and an Instagram feed. The homepage is well designed, with a headline, a call-to-action, a portfolio, an about section, services, featured posts, newsletter CTA, and freebie download.
The About page is excellent, featuring a mission statement, bio, and team section with circles that add a unique visual element. The services page is simple and easy to fill out, linking to a more detailed page for additional information. Finally, the portfolio page includes hover-over links on each item, making it an excellent choice for authors to showcase their work, including books, essays, or writing.
The clear CTA throughout the website makes it easy for visitors to engage with the author and their work. Finally, the blog is clearly and cleanly designed, with a visually appealing layout that is easy to navigate. Overall, the Victoria Squarespace Template is an excellent option for authors who want a professional, colorful, and well-designed website to showcase their work and engage with their readers.
The Gigi Rose Squarespace Template
Introducing Gigi Rose, a beautifully designed Squarespace template perfect for writers with a creative flair. This template embraces graphical elements and bold colors, which you can easily customize to suit your preferences. The template covers all the essential pages, including home, about, projects, blog, and contact. Notably, the projects page can be easily transformed into a dedicated space to showcase your impressive writing accomplishments.
Let's talk about the blog page, which is an absolute favorite. The overlapping images create a visually captivating effect that adds a touch of artistry to your blog posts. The blog page layout is thoughtfully designed, featuring a convenient search bar and the ability to filter posts based on categories. It's visually appealing and keeps your content organized, ensuring a seamless browsing experience for your readers.
You'll notice the clever use of + symbols and arrows throughout the template. These graphical elements serve as visual cues, encouraging visitors to explore your website further and discover more of your captivating content.
To enhance the template further, consider a couple of tweaks. Renaming the "info" page to "services" would provide greater clarity and help visitors understand the page's purpose. Additionally, transforming the FAQs on the services page into expandable accordions would maintain a clean and minimal design, while still providing helpful supplemental information.
Lastly, don't forget to include a prominent call-to-action in the header navigation bar. This encourages readers to take action by joining your newsletter or contacting you for writing, editing, or speaking engagements. It's a powerful way to engage your audience and drive meaningful interactions.
With its creative style and customizable features, Gigi Rose is a standout Squarespace template that will elevate your author website and captivate your readers with its artistic charm.
Verano Squarespace Template
The Verano Template is a colorful and modern Squarespace design that catches your eye. The template’s olive green, burnt orange, and cream color scheme and a mix of sans serif and handwriting fonts perfectly balance chic modernity and warm personalization. Remember, you can change the colors and fonts to suit your taste.
I love the layouts and clever design elements of this website. The website is highly effective AND attractive. The clever use of arrows, especially in the call-to-action section, increases the likelihood of user engagement. This is a great example of why buying a template is so much more effective than DIY – the designer is a knowledgeable and experienced professional who knows how to build a beautiful and effective website. A non-designer might not know why this subtle design element is also so effective.
The homepage covers all the essential sections, from a captivating headline with an image to testimonials showcasing social proof. The "Get Inspired" section introduces services, while quick links to the About section and newsletter signup keep visitors engaged. The latest blog posts and a final call-to-action round off the homepage. The clean footer links to main pages and showcases the linked Instagram account.
The About page stands out with creative shapes and color gradients while still covering essential content. The Services page is ideal for listing writing and editing services, providing an overview of the process, and instilling confidence in your expertise. Testimonials and FAQs further enhance professionalism.
The blog page is especially thoughtfully designed, displaying relevant blog post content without overwhelming the reader.
Overall, the Verano Template is a visually appealing and functional choice for authors looking to make a statement with their website.
CONCLUSION
In summary, if you're an author looking to create a stunning website that reflects your unique brand and style, consider using a designer Squarespace template. We've highlighted some of our favorite Squarespace shops that offer professionally designed templates, ranging from bold and colorful to sleek and modern. These designer Squarespace templates are designed to elevate your online presence and showcase your work in style, making them an excellent option for authors who want a website that stands out. And with the opportunity to customize these templates to fit your specific needs, you can be sure that your website will genuinely reflect your author brand. So why settle for a basic website when you can have a professionally designed one that represents you and your work?
Want our help customizing your Squarespace template? Click here.
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