Can YOU Write an EBook?
Table of Contents
- Introduction to eBooks
- Why and How to Write an Ebook??
- How to Format the eBook Properly
- Choosing the Launch Date
- What to do Before a Book Launch
- The Launch Plan
Introduction
One of the key differences is that self-publishing offers more control and flexibility in what a writer can do. They’re free to collaborate with publishers, create their own marketing strategies, and build their own teams. You won’t be dealing with printed books, for one. Self-publishing anyone? The cost of printing and distributing physical copies has long been a headache. But the advent of eBooks has largely eliminated that problem and made digital publishing accessible to everyone. These are eBooks, which can be read on devices like Amazon’s Kindle, on another tablet or smartphone, or even on a computer.
You won’t have to rely on an editor or publisher to tell you whether your book will be published. You won’t have to rely on a bookstore to put your book on its shelves. You’re in complete control of the entire process, from cover design to promotion. You can try the book before you publish it. You can preview your book on Amazon and see if people are already reading it and buying copies. You have the power of self-publishing, which means you will be able to control everything about your book.
Here are the steps for how to publish an ebook:
- Write a strong book
- Create an Amazon KDP account
- Format your ebook for publishing
- Upload your ebook to KDP
- Choose your ebook to publish date
- Build your book launch team
- Create hype for your ebook
- Publish your ebook!
- Create emphasis for it on your site
Why and How to Write an Ebook?
Here are the benefits of an ebook:
- They’re cheaper to produce
- Ebooks sell easier online
- You can grow your blog and its income
- Passive income
- Ebooks can be used to grow your business more so than physical books
- You can embed links directly to your site and products you sell
Here are the overall steps for writing a book and getting it ready for publication:
- Choose an idea
- Come up with a good book title and subtitle
- Create your mind map
- Write a thorough outline from your mind map
- Schedule your writing time and get your book done!
- Thoroughly self-edit
- Hire an editor to ensure perfection
- Hire a book cover design artist to bring your book to life
How to Format the eBook Properly
Common Mistakes
- Avoid hard indents
- Indentations vs block paragraphs
- Avoid double spaces after periods
- Be cautious with hyphens
- Quotes vs Apostrophes
- Be careful with the “enter” key
- Use the Style feature
Choosing the Launch Date and Team
Believe it or not, there are good and bad days to launch your book. Typically speaking, marketers say that the winter holiday season is when you should avoid publishing a new book because it will be supersaturated with ads by other brands. You can, however, use this time to your advantage. You can start the process of marketing your book during the holidays, and then when the beginning of the new year rolls around, you’ll be able to gain the traction you want.
So, why is an author really going to need a good launch team? Launching a book can be an exciting time for both authors and readers alike, but it can also be a stressful event. The truth is that a little goes a long way in book publishing, and this is especially true when it comes to a book launch team. You see, when you have a lot of people helping you out, you’re left with the impression of a very successful book launch. It’s kind of like that old saying, many hands make light work.
Launch teams play such an integral role in the success of a book launch. Authors need a solid foundation of avid fans to succeed, and groups like that won’t just magically appear. It takes a lot of time and effort to build a loyal fan base, so if you’re considering launching a book, don’t forget to make your launch team as soon as possible!
You really need a great group of people who can help launch your book to heights you wouldn’t reach otherwise.
Your launch team should be composed of people who:
- Love your book
- Want to help you
- Are very enthusiastic about your book
- Have some sort of following or online presence
- Are fans of you and your work
What to do Before a Book Launch
You don’t need to carry them out with perfection since they can be tweaked later.
But don’t launch your book without doing these key tasks:
- Book Description — Create your book description using the Book Description Generator at Kindlepreneur.com.
- Keywords — Select 7 keywords for your book.
- Categories — Choose 2 main types for your book in the KDP dashboard. Once your book is live you can email Amazon and request to have your book put into eight additional categories.
- Landing Page — Create a landing page for your book. This can be used to collect email addresses and give away a chapter of your book before its release (optional).
- Upload Manuscript — Upload your manuscript to KDP. Proofread your book using the KDP online previewer.
- Upload Cover — Upload your Kindle cover to KDP.
- Launch Price — Set your launch price at 0.99.
- Audiobook (Optional) — Get your audiobook created. Plan to release your book through Audible or ACX.
- Emails — Pre-write emails that you’ll send to your launch team.
- Goodreads — Goodreads account created and author profile setup. Your book will end up there either way, so it’s worth setting up an account to associate the book with.
- Launch Plan Model — Map out the specific action steps you are taking for each day of your launch. I have provided a model for this further down the post.
The Launch Plan
Your launch plan will depend largely on:
- Your objectives and purpose.
- Your platform. The bigger your platform and access to influences, the bigger (and more diverse) your launch.
When it comes to booking promotion, you have a lot of options. You can pay for ads, schedule promotions for your book on specific dates, and even write a helpful blog post on how to promote your book. However, there is a lot of competition on sites like Facebook, and the best thing that you can do to get your books seen is to invest in a novel book cover, a compelling book description, and a catchy book title. These three essential elements are a must and can help set you apart from the rest of your competition. Many times, a better cover, description, and title will allow you to get the attention of readers you wouldn’t have been able to reach otherwise.
Here’s how you can build hype for publishing your ebook:
- Link to your book within blog posts
- Create blog posts related to the topic of your book
- Create graphics for your book and place them in your sidebar and within blog posts
- Create a graphic to use on the front page of your website
- Create an email sequence to sell your book
- Continuously look for ways to integrate your book into blog post ideas and on social media
The Best Book Launch Promotion Sites:
Note: The price for each promo site varies depending on the niche and category.
- Email your list (if you have one)
- BookBub
- Robin Reads — $55 — (need 10 reviews and a 4.9 rating)
- BKnights (Fiverr) — $5
- BookSends — $40
- eReader News — Various Prices
- Booksbutterfly — $90
- The Fussy Librarian — Various Prices
- Bargain Booksy — $25
- eBooks Habit — $10
- Awesome Gang — $10
- Many Books — $29
- Digital Book Today — $40
- eBook Stage — $10
- Book Runes — $25
Keep in mind that results vary for each site and your performance will largely depend on your book’s quality. You still need the essentials: a great book cover design, a compelling book description, and an eye-catching book title.
For your free promo, contact:
- James H Mayfield (Note: his calendar is very busy.)
- Bknights (free promo)
- Awesome Gang
- Freebooksy
- Booksbutterfly
- You could even pitch your book to various media outlets.
Happy coding!