For artists, writers, and creative folks, a website is the portal to showcase their creative work, so it's one of the most important tools needed for a healthy and robust career in the arts.

Many times websites get stagnant or cease to reflect the quality of the artist's work. Sometimes they were never quite right to begin with - too much text, poor quality images, lack of information, and cluttered graphic design, among other things, can poorly reflect on a creative person.

With that in mind, here's a checklist to help you give your website a tune-up if need be!

ARTIST WEBSITE CHECKLIST ___ Does the graphic design on your site reflect the tone and style of your creative work? ___ Do you have a current bio on the site? ___ Is there a headshot of you to go with the bio? ___ Is your news section updated regularly? ___ Is it easy for people to find out how to contact you? ___ Are the images/excerpts/samples of your work current? ___ Is the layout clean and readable? ___ Is it easy to navigate the site? ___ Are all the images on the site high quality? ___ Is all the text and copy short, snappy, and compelling? ___ Do you have your social media buttons with links on the site? ___ Have you tested your site on multiple browsers as well as on a mobile phone? ___ Do you feel proud/happy/joyful when you look at your website?

If you're feeling overwhelmed, enlist support. Hire a graphic designer or web coder to tweak and update it for you. If that's not possible, consider using a free site like Wordpress, Wix, or Squarespace to create a site that can be self-maintaining. Just make sure the final product is creative and professional - like you!

Photo by Kitty Kaht//cc