How to go about publishing an Ebook?

1. 76

   MasonZgodaposted 12 years ago

   How to go about publishing an Ebook?
   
   Any advice you have to give is most welcome appreciated. I am particularly concerned with the best self publishing company to work through. I have heard of LULU and Createspace. What are some hurdles you had to work through? How long did it take you to start making good money? How much money have you made off of your Ebook, and most importantly, how did you advertise or draw attention to your Ebook?
   
   Thank you so much!

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2. 97

   Theophanesposted 12 years ago

   I have yet to publish an e-book but I have been researching a looong time. I have heard a lot of not-so-pleasant reviews on LULU. Createspace gives you more visibility than most because it is connected to Amazon and you can really use that to your advantage, especially if your writing is stellar enough to list on their top 100 titles. There are however other options. Smashwords for example only does e-books and specializing in it might be helpful to you as a first timer.
   
   With that all being said e-books are a real hit and miss. People do love them but getting the word out can be difficult. If you are fortunate enough to have written a series you can always offer the first book for free. It allows people to get to know you and your writing and does drive in customers when you do want to publish one for money. Otherwise you're going to have to work at least twice as hard advertising as you did writing it and that can be a real issue for some. You will make as much money as you can sell e-books so this all depends on your own advertising abilities. Hope this helped a little!

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3. 47

   jellohelloposted 12 years ago

   Word of mouth advertising is one of the most effective, but you do have to get the seed planted.  Whatever you do, whichever company you work with, it's vital that you work with a professional editor and cover artist to make your manuscript as polished as possible. Speaking as a consumer, there's nothing I hate more about self-published books than shoddy proofreading.  If I see a misplaced apostrophe or misused homophone like then/than, I want a refund.  If the writer hasn't mastered English or doesn't have enough pride in his work to hire an editor, then how can I trust the factual accuracy of the book?  Presentation is important.

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