I consider book cover design to be one of the most challenging steps in the process of producing a finished book: It is critical to the marketing of a book. Everyone you ask for input seems to have a different opinion. Good covers are often a big investment. (Big might be a relative term.) You might have an idea but communicating that vision is another story (for most of us). If you are self-publishing, you may be the wrong person to judge the ideal design. Take your pick, it … [Read more...]
Using Amazon’s Kindle Kids’ Book Creator (and a Work-Around for 1 Shortcoming)
The Kindle Kid’s Book Creator (KKBC) is a new free tool from Amazon that allows anyone to create children’s illustrated eBooks. Why is this significant? Because books in this category—think Goodnight Moon, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Green Eggs and Ham—are more challenging and expensive to program than standard text-based narrative eBooks. Regular eBooks, also called reflowable text eBooks, can simply be uploaded as a MS Word file to KDP for conversion to an eBook. Another challenge: files … [Read more...]
Sideloading Large Kindle Mobi Files Using iTunes When Files are Too Big to Email
One of our specialties is programming complex eBooks and that can often mean that the final file can be quite large (here’s why*). If you are uploading the files into the stores then as long as the file size meets the requirements of the store, a large file won’t be a problem. But what happens if you want to have someone help you proof the eBook? Or you wish to share it with a colleague? The procedure is called sideloading and there are two steps. Sending the file(s) and loading them on the … [Read more...]
Fixed Format eBook Presentation-Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators
This past weekend the San Diego chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators held a symposium titled Self-Publishing: How it Works and I was one of five panelists. I focused my presentation on what I consider to be the key differences between traditional, i.e. reflowable, eBooks and publishing eBooks for children. I’ve posted the slides on Slideshare and they should be visible below as well. What are not covered in the slides are some key points unique to children’s … [Read more...]
Sideloading Mobi Files: Installing Kindle eBooks When You Don’t Buy from Amazon
Reading an Amazon Kindle Mobi eBook file is like reading a PDF, all you need is the free reading software designed for your device or app. But for many people the challenge isn’t finding the free software (click here for that), it’s how to get the darn eBook file onto your device! The most popular ways to do this are: Download the file and then transfer it via a cable. Import it into iTunes and then sync with your iOS device. Use a cloud storage app like Dropbox, Box, SugarSync, … [Read more...]
Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) Select and BookBaby
What do you do if you distribute your eBook through Bookbaby and decide you want to use Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) Select? Here is a 6 step program to make the switch easy and low risk. As you probably already know an eBook that is part of the KDP Select program cannot be sold through any other store—including your own website—for a 90 day period. Committing to a single store, even if it is Amazon, is a tough decision for many publishers. But for new authors, or those that … [Read more...]
5 Resources to Help You Create eBook Files Using InDesign
Sometimes it makes more sense for a publisher to learn how to create their own eBooks rather than outsource to someone like AuthorImprints. I had a call this week along these lines—I think the person was in front of their computer waiting for me to talk them through the clicks! It’s not something we do anymore but the good news is that there are several online training resources and of course books as well. In this post I want to point you to a few of those resources and just as importantly … [Read more...]
Where to Put Testimonial Blurbs in eBooks
The point of those short testimonial blurbs from experts or famous people is to convince you to buy the author’s book. She must be an expert! Look at what everyone is saying about her book! If you are shopping for a print book they can be invaluable. Sometimes placed on the front cover, certainly placed on the back cover, and often included in the front of the book, they are like a marketing brochure that travels around with your book. Without an online storefront the shopper often needs help … [Read more...]
How to Handle Consumable Content During eBook Conversion
Perhaps you’ve experienced this: you’re reading an eBook and click to a page that asks you to fill in information or answer questions. This is called consumable content in eBook publishing and examples include workbooks, forms, quizzes, questionnaires, check lists, etc. What got me thinking about this was some feedback I received regarding our recently launched eBook self-publisher survey. The writer was frustrated that we were not asking any questions that applied to PDF eBooks. For this … [Read more...]
Kindle MatchBook Moves Amazon Further Ahead-But will publishers sign-on?
Have you ever debated whether to buy the print edition, or the eBook edition? Both have their uses. Why can't they be sold with a bundled price? The answer is Amazon's Kindle Matchbook and it allows buyers of print books to buy the eBook at a deep discount--between $0 and $2.99 depending on your eBooks current price. Most people would probably not buy both so this becomes essentially an upsell for the publisher, and Amazon. Three important points for publishers to know: You decided … [Read more...]
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