Bookslut points to an interview with young author Scarlet Thomas, who expounds on a range of topics, including the use, or lack-thereof, of her website.

I have no idea why I have the website. I don’t have it to increase my sales or anything — I don’t even have those ‘buy the book’ links on it. I find all that capitalistic self-marketing a bit grubby and I just can’t do it. I think my website probably puts people off the idea of me and my books anyway. In fact, as soon as I get around to it, I’m going to delete the whole thing. Earlier in the year I had a really persistent stalker, and then when I took the site down — for ONE DAY — and replaced it with a message saying “fuck off and die”, the books press all went mental about it. The Bookseller said something like “I wonder what’s upset young author Scarlett Thomas”. Great journalism — I mean, if you’re a journalist and you wonder something about someone, why not ring up the person (or their publisher, or their agent) and ask them about it? It’s not hard to find my phone number — the stalker managed it. Anyway, then that dick McCrum ran something unpleasant about it and it all got out of control. So yes — I need to abolish the website, I think. But I probably won’t. I got my Russian publisher through the site, which is always what I think before I don’t delete it.

Hm. That’s kind of what I think when I get ready to delete this site.