How many other "struggling" eBook authors out there?

1. 60

   Damiendarbyposted 12 years ago

   
   I myself have ten eBooks published. It is a rough racket. How are my fellow eBook revolutionaries doing these days? Is 2012 treating you as well as the projections claimed it would?

   replyreport
   1. 84

      tsmogposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Haven't published any yet. I have a challenge with time to do anything. I need to research this first - ebooks, kindle etc. I have two pretty defined outlines w/ a couple chapters laid out for both now. Soon I hope.

      replyreport
      1. 60

         Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         What kind of eBooks are they? Fiction? Have you considered a ghostwriter?

         replyreport
         1. 84

            tsmogposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            The ghostwriter part - no, haven't considered it.
            
            One book is excerpted here Balancing Bipolar disorder with wellness and The Stigma of Mental Illness: How it can be overcome.
            
            I'm discovering from google analytics that my fiction does better. So, with the time constraints I have, I'm tossing and turning for awhile on it.

            replyreport
            1. 80

               manlypoetrymanposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               tsmog: wish you the best with your writings...I too have been processing a book I want to do in a series form...through ebook. I have put hours and hours into it...and am closer to the finish line then ever before!
               
               Does anyone have experience with "Smashwords"?

               replyreport
               1. 60

                  couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Yes, love Smashwords. They have a comprehensive and easy to follow step by step formatting guide. Auto vetter takes a few days after that. Then you get into the premium catalog and are distributed to every major publisher except Amazon. You get all the majors and most of the little ones I'd never heard of. The payout is decent.

                  replyreport
            2. 83

               ElizaDooleposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               Cripes that is good to know. I was beginning to wonder why books about fungal toenail infections were doing so well in the Serps!

               replyreport
2. 88

   WryLiltposted 12 years ago

   My eBooks are still in the works, but I believe they are just like free online information - if you don't choose the right topics/keywords, you'll never succeed. Although with eBooks, things like cover graphics and summary also help.

   replyreport
   1. 60

      Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Personally I think that the eBook cover aspect has gotten way out of control. Where once Indie authors sought only to produce good writing and the cover be damned, now it is a struggle to have the most dazzling. Prices have sky rocketed. If someone in their spare time (in the process myself) taught themselves Gimp and mastered it, they could charge 50$ a pop and you would need dump tucks to handle all the fiat currency.

      replyreport
      1. 60

         couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         True that. If I had the time to learn it and buy PhotoShop, I hear it's not that difficult to format a cover file. I paid about $50. and she took two weeks to do what could have been done in about 2 hours.

         replyreport
3. 65

   thecollecktorposted 12 years ago

   I am a beginner Ebook author with many ideas, yet have not found a free format I could use to both as a guide and a way to publish them.   I am excited about the opportunities and look to 2012 being my year as an ebook author and publisher

   replyreport
   1. 60

      couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Smashwords is 100% free to format, get an ISBN, and publish. If you follow the formatting guidelines exactly, you should have no problem. I didn't grow up with computers and I found it doable.
      
      You don't need a cover but they say it helps.

      replyreport
   2. 60

      tlmcgaa70posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      i have just started an ebook. i am writing it for the Amazon Kindle. it will then be sold on amazon.com as a kindle ebook. amazon offers a free guide that tells you step by step how to build your book for kindle. if you do not own a kindle amazon has a free kindle app for your computer. this is hopw i am writing my ebook.

      replyreport
4. 60

   Damiendarbyposted 12 years ago

   I would love to help you in any way I can. What is it exactly you are looking for? Publishing eBooks is free far and wide and shouldnt be a problem. All formats are free. If I can assist you in any way please let me know.

   replyreport
5. 84

   psycheskinnerposted 12 years ago

   I placed my ebooks with epublishers.  That way I had a good idea how well they would sell before--and they delivered pretty much according to expectations.

   replyreport
   1. 60

      Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Hey now there is an interesting comment. Could you be a little more specific about what you mean? Which epublishers? Are you talking about a pool of readers that sample the genre market?

      replyreport
      1. 84

         psycheskinnerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         I am talking about commercial epublishers like Double Dragon and Ellora's Cave.  With a little research you can quickly see how well their books, in your genre, are selling.  I found giving up half the royalties more than worth it given that they did everything but writing the book itself for me.
         
         Just my approach, but I am more than happy with it.

         replyreport
         1. 84

            tsmogposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Thank you for the insight psycheskinner, with your experience!

            replyreport
         2. 60

            Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Good to know thanks, we eBookers have to stick together

            replyreport
         3. 59

            JChan13posted 12 years agoin reply to this

            My debut novel is out with Siren BookStrand in ebook format.  lLike you, I had to give up about half the purchase price but they gave me input on everything from the cover to even the edits.  They did not insist on changes, but rather asked me to consider certain things that made it more in line with what they publish.  I have only been released about a month now, but I'm pleased with the initial sales.  Considering it's my first book and I don't have a following built up yet, I am pleased.  I'm pretty much on my own for marketing though, and need to do a lot more to try to put my title out there.  But Siren did the most important parts and I am working on edits for my second release now and intend to let them list it as well.  I'm not able to quit my "day job", which of course would be the ultimate goal, but at least they made it easy for me to get my foot in the door in the pubishing world.

            replyreport
         4. 60

            couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            What's the website for double dragon? I looked up double dragon and came up with a martial arts site.

            replyreport
   2. 60

      Eugene Hardyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Which e-publishers if you don't mine me asking.  Other than Barnes & Noble, Amazon.

      replyreport
      1. 60

         Eugene Hardyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Double Dragon and Ellora's Cave, huh, I'll check them out and try to publish with them after my 90 days are up with Amazon.
         
         Thanks!

         replyreport
         1. 60

            Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            You're in KDP huh? I have 10 eBooks in that program myself and am very displeased, in fact, very much so. How has your experience been?

            replyreport
            1. 60

               Eugene Hardyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               Not that good so far - only two since December.  It's poetry, which I have noticed to be a hard sale anyway.  Since this is now my life long profession I'm willing to be patient.
               
               I'm some what shy so I have avoided doing open word, but it looks like I'm going to have to grow some stripes over my spots.

               replyreport
               1. 60

                  Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  If there is anything I can do to help you Mr. Hardy, let me know. I am all for the empowerment of Indie Authors.

                  replyreport
                  1. 60

                     Eugene Hardyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                     Same here Mr. Dardy.
                     
                     Right now I'm looking into free, effective and non-intrusive ways to promote my writings and poetry.
                     
                     I'm testing out ideas.

                     replyreport
                     1. 60

                        Damiendarbyposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                        If you haven't already, look into "Inbound Marketing," I know it sounds ubber commercial, but I don't see it that way.

                        replyreport
6. 84

   psycheskinnerposted 12 years ago

   I tried one self-pub ebook--the sales were a tad underwhelming.

   replyreport
7. 56

   charm_bakerposted 11 years ago

   Greetings all - I'm a new eBook publisher and I'm excited about the future of both my Free eBook and the one I offer for a small fee.  I'm published through Smashwords, and I like the fact that they tell you exactly how to format for ePub (the eBook publishing standard) so that your eBook can be made available in various digital formats.  While some writers don't want to be bothered with or are intimidated by eBook formatting, the clean style that is required is really the most effective way to write our articles anyway.  Things like learning to use the proper Heading tags and omitting excessive font and paragraph styles are actually additional elements of SEO writing.  I'm thrilled to have graduated to the next phase of online writing for pay - creating your own digital product.  I say to anyone thinking about writing their own eBook - go for it!

   replyreport
8. 61

   shaylove727posted 11 years ago

   I've published 2 ebooks so far: Diary of a Sex Addict: Based on a True Story and Girl, Come and get your Blessings: An Inspirational Book for Women.

   replyreport