There is no step in the self-publishing process more important than writing a book worthy of reading. It’s the “product”, of course, and all other steps in the publishing journey begin with your words. In traditional publishing the author has a team, or at least an editor, to shape the book into the masterpiece you hope it can become. But what happens when you self-publish? In this guest post, Leslie Lehr shares a 12-step checklist every author should follow. Leslie is an award-winning … [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...]
Slow down! 4 Questions Before You Set Your Book’s Release Date
Surely you must have a date in mind for releasing your book or eBook, or at least an approximate timeframe. As you’ve probably heard from others, this is critical to your marketing program. Unfortunately most self-publishers are so wrapped up in the writing and production details that they have little time to devote to marketing matters and instead intentionally, or unintentionally, focus on marketing after the release of their book. Rather than try to change this reality I want to ask four … [Read more...]
Amazon Blocked from Bookstores but the Door is Open to Professional Self-Publishers
One of the bigger industry stories to break this past weekend was Amazon’s so called retreat from traditional book publishing presumably because they can’t get their author’s books into bookstores. Amazon’s strategy seems to have run into 3 problems: Distribution to physical bookstores is still critical if you want mega-sales (70% of book sales are print books). The ranks of physical bookstores are decreasing (ironically, thanks to Amazon) giving existing bookstores more leverage. … [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...]
eBook Quality and How to Avoid a Kindle Refund
Whether you program your eBook yourself, or hire an eBook conversion firm like AuthorImprints to help you, you are ultimately responsible for making sure your book looks and reads well for your readers. Did you know that Amazon offers eBook refunds within one week of purchase? Poor eBook quality is one of the reasons people return eBooks. Poor quality is not limited to Kindle eBooks In this article from The Guardian the author (and commenters) talks about their experience reading Kindle eBooks … [Read more...]
Amazon KDP Spell Checker Catches Errors on Upload
I was uploading a client's mobi file into their KDP account the other day and discovered Amazon had implemented a handy spell check routine that runs as part of the upload process. It's a great idea and should address one of the more annoying issues we see in eBooks (not to mention apps for political campaigns). Before I go on I should add that the messages boards on KDP report this feature as far back as February (2013) but some people say it doesn't always seem to be active. Perhaps Amazon … [Read more...]
Save Time Using a Text File to Organize Your Book’s Vitals
Do you find yourself writing a new book description or bio each time you fill out a book promotion? Do you have your ISBN and ASIN numbers memorized? What about sending someone a link to buy your book? These occasional, but important, needs were taking a lot of my time so I came up with a format and system to log my book's vitals. First of all I use a text file, not a Word document or Excel spreadsheet (although if I had lots of books, or needed to produce reports, I'd probably use Excel). … [Read more...]
Kindle Quality Notices from Amazon-Unreadable Text When Viewing eBooks with a Black Background
One of our authors received an email from the Amazon Kindle support team informing her that they had received a complaint from someone trying to read the author's book using the black background for reading (very useful at night, just ask my wife). Here is the message: "Text in your book is unreadable for readers using color devices and reading on a black background. This may have occurred due to forcing the font color to black in your source file. To correct this issue, please remove all … [Read more...]
7 Things to Keep in Mind When Converting Books to Ebooks
There are lots of guides and tools to help you convert your manuscript or book to an eBook. But based on my conversations with authors and the dozens of “final” eBooks I’ve reviewed there are a number of areas that could use special emphasis. A few of these are mistakes to avoid and a few are pointers. Pay attention to these seven recommendations and you’ll deliver a quality reading experience. Just like a print book, you are ultimately responsible for the final product so proof … [Read more...]
