Author Website Essentials: Carrd vs WordPress vs Shopify (2026 UK Guide)

Last reviewed by Robert Prime — May 2026

Introduction

Every indie author should have an author website. It's the one piece of internet real estate you fully own — survives Amazon algorithm changes, social platform deaths, and email provider shifts.

But most authors build their website too complicated, spend weeks on it, and end up neglecting it.

This guide covers what's actually essential, the three platforms most indies should consider, and the UK-specific compliance you can't skip.

What an author website actually needs

The essential elements:

1. Your name and tagline. Author photo optional.
2. Newsletter signup with reader magnet (the most important element).
3. Book list — covers, titles, where to buy.
4. About / bio — short version (200 words max).
5. Contact — email or contact form.

That's it. A minimum viable author site fits on one page.

What you don't need on day one:

• Blog (only if you'll actually update it)
• Long bio with photos
• Press kit (until you have press to put in it)
• Author services pages (only if you offer them)
• Live chat
• Complex navigation

The three platforms most UK indies consider

Carrd (carrd.co)

Cost: £20/year (Pro). Free tier exists but limited.

Best for: Single-page author sites — the minimum viable option.

Pros:

• 30-60 minutes to build a complete site
• Mobile responsive automatically
• Custom domain support
• Newsletter form integration (ConvertKit, MailerLite, Mailchimp)
• Cheap

Cons:

• Single page only
• No blog
• Limited customisation
• No SEO depth

Verdict: Best starting point for new indie authors. Get something up in an afternoon. Upgrade later if needed.

WordPress (self-hosted at wordpress.org)

Cost: £60-£150/year (£40 hosting + £15 domain + optional theme/plugin costs).

Best for: Established authors with multiple books, who want a blog or SEO presence.

Pros:

• Unlimited pages, posts
• Strong SEO when configured right
• Massive plugin ecosystem
• Blog functionality built-in
• Easy to scale

Cons:

• Learning curve (2-4 days to feel competent)
• Maintenance overhead (updates, security, backups)
• Can get bloated if you install too many plugins
• Performance issues if hosting is cheap

Recommended UK hosts:

• Krystal (krystal.uk) — UK-owned, eco-friendly, £40-£80/year
• 20i — UK-based, reasonable performance, £40-£100/year
• SiteGround — global, popular with indie authors, £60-£150/year

Recommended themes for authors:

• GeneratePress Premium — fast, clean, customisable, £45/year
• Astra — popular, free + premium options
• Author Pro — book-specific theme

Verdict: The right tool for serious indie author careers. Worth the learning curve once you have 3+ books.

Shopify (shopify.com)

Cost: £25-£60/month + transaction fees + domain.

Best for: Authors selling direct (paperback, audiobook, signed copies, courses, merchandise).

Pros:

• Built for direct sales
• Handles payments, shipping, tax
• Mobile-optimised store
• Multi-currency
• Integrates with print-on-demand (Lulu Direct, BookVault)

Cons:

• Overkill if you're not selling direct
• Monthly cost adds up
• Transaction fees on payments
• Limited blog/content functionality

Verdict: Only when you're selling direct. Most indies don't need Shopify in their first 2-3 years.

Alternative platforms (briefly)

Squarespace — Pretty designs, easy to use. £15-£30/month. Better than Carrd but more expensive than WordPress. Reasonable middle ground.

Wix — Drag-and-drop builder. £10-£30/month. Popular but SEO limitations and platform lock-in. Authors increasingly leave Wix for WordPress.

Ghost — Newsletter + blog platform. £8-£25/month. Strong for authors whose primary content is the newsletter itself.

Substack — Free newsletter platform with built-in website. Limited customisation. Strong for non-fiction authors building audience via newsletter.

For most indie authors: Carrd → WordPress is the upgrade path. Skip the others unless you have a specific reason.

What goes on each page

Home page (or only page on Carrd)

• Hero: your name, tagline, photo (or stylised name)
• Latest book or featured series
• Newsletter signup with reader magnet
• Books list (covers, titles, Amazon links)
• Short bio (3-4 sentences)
• Footer: privacy policy, contact, social links

Books page

• One section per book (or series)
• Cover image + title + 50-word description + Amazon button
• Series first, standalones second
• Newest at top

About page

• 200-400 word author bio
• Author photo (optional)
• Awards/credentials/comp-author connections
• Personal detail or two (readers like)
• Newsletter signup
• Contact link

Newsletter / Free book page (this is often the most-trafficked page)

• The reader magnet (cover, description, what they'll get)
• Single signup form, prominent
• Reassurance: "No spam, unsubscribe anytime"
• Brief testimonial if available

Contact page

• Email address (or form)
• Note about response times ("I read every message but reply in batches")
• Optional: separate addresses for media, rights, general

What every UK author site needs (legally)

1. Privacy policy.

• Required if you collect email addresses
• Explain what data you collect, why, how long, who has access (your ESP)
• Free templates: shopify.com/uk/tools/policy-generator or termly.io

2. Cookie banner.

• Required if you use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, or any tracking
• Must offer accept/reject options
• Free WordPress plugins handle this automatically (Cookiebot, Complianz)
• Carrd doesn't have native banner support — add via simple JavaScript

3. Newsletter signup with double opt-in.

• GDPR requires double opt-in for UK subscribers
• Your ESP handles this if EU/UK mode is enabled

4. Email contact.

• Either visible email or working contact form
• If contact form, ensure submissions reach you reliably

Domain name strategy

Use your author name as domain when possible:

• sarahmarsh.co.uk (UK preferred)
• sarahmarshbooks.com
• sarah-marsh.com

Avoid:

• Series-name-only domains (what if you write a different series next year?)
• Genre-name domains ("ukcosymystery.com" — limits you)
• Numbers and hyphens (hard to say aloud)

Where to register:

• Namecheap — most-used by indies, £10-£15/year
• Gandi — French registrar, good privacy, £15-£20/year
• Cloudflare Registrar — at-cost prices, often £8-£12/year

Skip the £80/year domains at hosting companies — overpriced.

SEO basics

If you want search-engine traffic to your site (mostly relevant once you have a blog):

• Install Yoast or Rank Math on WordPress (free)
• Page titles that include your name + genre ("Sarah Marsh — Cozy Mystery Author")
• Meta descriptions for each page
• Sitemap submitted to Google Search Console
• Fast hosting + lightweight theme
• HTTPS enabled (free via Let's Encrypt; built-in on most hosts)

For most indie authors: SEO is secondary to email list. Don't over-invest in SEO until you have meaningful blog content.

Migration path

A realistic indie author website journey:

Year 1 (debut): Carrd one-page site. £20/year. Done in an afternoon.

Year 2 (3-4 books): Stay on Carrd, or migrate to WordPress if you want a blog. £60-£150/year.

Year 3+ (established): WordPress with a proper theme, occasional blog posts, well-optimised newsletter funnel.

Year 5+ (six-figure author): Optionally add Shopify or Payhip for direct sales. WordPress remains the content/discovery hub.

Don't try to do year 5's setup in year 1. Start small. Upgrade as needs grow.

Common mistakes

• Building too much before launching. Three-month website build before you have a book = wrong order.
• No newsletter signup on home page. The whole point of the site, often missing or buried.
• No reader magnet. Asking readers to "subscribe" without an offer.
• Stale blog. Last post from 2022 with current date — worse than no blog.
• Slow hosting. A £3/month shared hosting kills site speed and Google rankings.
• No mobile optimisation. 60-70% of author-site traffic is mobile.
• Forgetting GDPR. No privacy policy, no cookie banner = exposure.
• Author photo too dated. A 2017 photo on a 2026 site looks abandoned.
• No clear "where to buy" links. Every book listed should link directly to Amazon (and other retailers if wide).

UK-specific considerations

• .co.uk domains signal UK author specifically. Useful for UK-focused work.
• UK GDPR + Cookie Law (PECR) — both apply. Cookie banner needed for any tracking script.
• UK-themed author photos (countryside, British architecture) reinforce UK author brand if that's your positioning.
• VAT on hosting — UK-registered hosts add VAT; offshore hosts may not. Deductible business expense regardless.

The bottom line

For most UK indie authors, the right answer is: Carrd one-pager (£20/year) for the first 1-2 years, then upgrade to WordPress (£60-£150/year) when you have a blog or multi-book catalogue worth showcasing.

Skip Shopify until you're selling direct.

Don't spend more than a weekend building the initial site. The work that matters is writing the next book — not perfecting the website.

Most indie author websites get under 50 visits a month for years. That's fine. The site exists for the few hundred visitors who do come, who matter enormously (book journalists, podcast bookers, agents, your newsletter signups).

Frequently asked questions

Do I really need a website?

For serious indies, yes. For complete beginners with 0-1 book: not yet. Build the site once you commit.

Can I just use my Amazon Author Central page instead?

Author Central is necessary but not sufficient. You don't own it (Amazon does), can't capture email signups, can't customise. Use both.

What about Linktree?

Better than nothing. Worse than a real website. Linktree works for social bios; doesn't replace an author site.

Should my website match my book covers visually?

Yes, where reasonable. Same colour palette, same fonts, same vibe. Visual consistency reinforces brand.

How often should I update the website?

Add new books as they release. Refresh the bio when major life changes happen. Otherwise: leave it alone. A stable site is fine.