It’s been a long time coming, but I’ve finally gone ahead and redesigned my freelance site.
First and foremost, I transferred site hosting from DreamHost to SiteGround (affiliate link). As I wrote about previously, I was with DreamHost since 2006 so it was bittersweet to leave them, but their hosting quality degraded immensely. My websites loaded slowly no matter how much optimization I did, and it seemed as if server resources were stretched way too thin. Since switching to SiteGround, my sites load much faster (which helps SEO) and I prefer their cPanel more than DreamHost’s proprietary control panel.
Switching hosts also gave me the impetus to rebuild danmattia.com and my various other sites. I’ve long been unhappy with the design and layout of my freelance site, so I’m happy it’s finally redesigned, more responsive, and much better organized.
The one and only downside of the switch and redesign is the loss of images in previous blog posts. Unfortunately, going through and replacing the missing pictures is too time-consuming a task for me to prioritize, so I’m just going to charge ahead and ignore their loss. Going forward, posts from here on out will continue to use images, so no real loss.
Other than the slow speed of DreamHost, another big reason I wanted to switch hosting providers was because of the coming launch of Paladin Publications. I love freelance writing and I have no intention of stopping or slowing down, but I’ve also always wanted to branch out into other avenues of media production and publication. Paladin Publications will serve as the “umbrella” for all of my projects, including my freelance work, and help keep everything tied together under one brand.
I can’t wait to formally announce Paladin Publications soon, but for now, I’m more than happy with the relaunch of my freelance website.
Gone are the various pages that precious few visitors deemed to read. Instead, all relevant information (including pricing for my freelance services) is visible upfront on the homepage. Any information a visitor or prospective client would want is visible right there without the requirement to click onto another page. Hopefully this is more convenient for everyone and works out well in the long run.
I’m sorry to everyone for my lack of updates and blog posts here on the site. I’ve been extremely busy with freelance work, as well as launching the Patreon for my fantasy fiction. I’ve got a ton of news and information, and a 2018 post mortem, to share in the coming months, so check back here intermittently or go ahead and give me a follow on Twitter to stay up to date on my goings-on.
Of course, if you ever really need to get a hold of me, feel free to drop me an email and I’ll get back to you ASAP. If you notice any errors with the new website, I’d especially appreciate a heads-up so I can nuke them from orbit! Likewise, if you have any feedback on the new design, my services, or prices, please let me know.
2 thoughts on “New Site Launched!”
Good move switching over to SiteGround! DreamHost is notoriously slow nowadays and their support is really lacking.
Thanks! I agree. DreamHost used to be great but their quality really declined in recent years. I have nothing but good things to say for SiteGround though. My only complaint is I didn’t switch over sooner.