Question: If you publish your book only in electronic form, is it good or bad?
Answer: If you indie-publish your work as an eBook, whether it’s “good” or “bad” will largely depend on the writing.
If you market it properly, you’ll make some money.
Category Archives: Dead Tree Books
Writers don’t need publishing companies. They haven’t needed publishing companies for more than a decade.
Writers also shouldn’t self-publish. With the maturation of the indie publishing community, there are professionals (the exact same professionals who work for publishing companies) who can help any anyone with a manuscript go from writer to author.
Question:
What Windows application can I use to create beautifully looking e-books, withe possibility to export in both PDF and Kindle?
Answer:
There are a few options.
But first: PDF isn’t an ebook format. Please don’t make the mistake that others have by trying to sell a PDF file. If you want to create an ebook, there are two formats: ePub and Amazon’s format. That’s it. PDF is for creating fixed-format documents; eBooks are reflowable files that allow a reader to read them in the most comfortable way possible; larger font, smaller font, font they like to read the most, landscape or portrait, etc. PDF files don’t play well with eReaders or apps, and they’re – ultimately – a format for making a document look the same on screen as it does if it were printed; it’s a print format, not an ebook format.
To your answer:
Kindle Scout is a “reader powered” publishing program offered by Amazon where authors can submit their new never-been-published books and be considered for a publishing contract by Kindle Press.
Books that make the cut will be published by Kindle Press. They’ll receive a publishing contract with 5-year (renewable) terms, a $1,500 advance, 50% eBook royalty rate, and Amazon’s “easy rights reversion” so you can get your book rights back when you’re done.
What makes this program unattractive is the 20% lower royalty rate than if you’d published through Kindle Direct Publishing yourself. This rate is still 35% higher than if you’d published through a traditional publisher, so it’s kind of a push in my book.
What makes this program something you should look at is the advance (it’s not much, but it’s more than you’d get if you published yourself) and the all important “featured Amazon marketing.” If you’re an author, you know that writing the book isn’t the hard part; it’s getting people to know you’ve written a book. Amazon – the 800 lb. gorilla in the room when it comes to selling books and eBooks – sells more books than everyone else combined. If they’re going to feature your book, then – by all means – you should welcome that!