To do your own site, you need hosting and you need software to design your site. I have been designing and updating my own site for several years using Microsoft Front Page 2000. My initial cost for the software was substantial at the time, but I have not updated it since…well…2000, and it still does what I need. I use http://www.ezchristianhosting.com/ at $4.95 a month, and I have never had a problem with the site being down or with their support. Most of the time, support gets my problem solved within a couple of hours. The only times that it has taken longer than that were when there was a wait time for the servers to update certain processes.

I’ve been envious of some other writers, though, who have their sites professionally designed. Examples: Mary Yerkes, Ginny Smith, Cecil Murphey.

So, I decided to check out the website builder offered by EZ Christian Hosting. They offer a 10- day free trial, so I took them up on the offer. The designs they offer are awesome, just what I thought I wanted, but I had trouble finding a theme I thought would be good for a writer-editor. Also, I realized I wouldn’t have as much flexibility with my layout with the site-builder. If I chose to convert my site to their web-builder plan, I would be paying $17 a month rather than $4.95. I do highly recommend taking a free trial, though. And, if you don’t have design software on your computer, you will have to use a web-builder or buy software.

I also tried the new website service offered by Vistaprint. Here’s what my trial site looks like:

http://www.emilyakin.vpweb.com/

With Vistaprint, you can start out at $4.95 a month for a 3-page site and upgrade to higher-priced plans depending on your needs.

My trial at Vistaprint is good for 30 days, so I’ll have to take it down by September 10th, because I’ve decided to stick with my current arrangement and learn how to better utilize my software. I’ve redesigned my site from the ground up. It’s not finished, but take a look: http://www.emilyakin.com/.

Next post: I’ll list the free website services that I tried and provide a short evaluation of each. Subscribe so you won’t miss it.