How to Publish an Ebook: Resources for Authors

Note from Jane: This Tuesday, in partnership with Digital Book World, I’m teaching a live, online class on e-book publishing for new authors. Click here for more details and to register.

About the only thing that remains constant in ebook publishing is that it changes—everything from the services to marketing strategies. Here, I’ve attempted to round-up all the good resources I know of related to (1) how to publish an ebook, (2) finding the right e-publishing services, and (3) staying on top of changes in the industry. If I’ve neglected to mention an important resource, please let me know in the comments.

Getting Started & Principles

5 Things Beginners Need to Know About E-Book Publishing (Jane Friedman)
The Basics of DIY E-Book Publishing (Writer’s Digest, Jane Friedman)
How to Self-Publish an E-Book (C-Net, David Carnoy)
10 Questions to Ask Before Committing to Any E-Book Publishing Service (Jane Friedman)
Do You Hold E-Rights to Your Traditionally Published Book? (Jane Friedman)
Self-Published Authors Have Great Power, But Are They Taking Responsibility? (Writer Unboxed, Jane Friedman)
5 Things I’ve Learned From Self-Publishing (James Calbraith)
How an Enterprising Author Sold a Million Self-Published Books (Copyblogger)
How to Make Money on E-Books (JA Konrath)

Sales, Marketing, and Promotion

A Checklist for Marketing Your E-Book (Jane Friedman)
How Readers Discovered a Debut Novel (Goodreads)
3 Keys to Successful and Sustainable Indie Authorship (Tay Nguyen)
Amazon KDP Select: Is It Worthwhile for Authors? (CJ Lyons)
Book Promotion: What’s Working at Amazon in 2013? (Lindsay Buroker)
Maximizing Digital Sales (Digital Book World, Carolyn McCray)
How to Get Reviews for Self-Published Books (Writer’s Digest, Joel Friedlander)
10 Ways to Find Reviewers for Your Self-Published Book (Empty Mirror)
The Indie Reviewers List (The Indie View)
3 Barriers You Must Eliminate to Maximize E-Book Sales (Writer’s Digest, Jane Friedman)
Rethink Cover Design for a Small, Small World (Digital Book World, Elle Lothlorien)
How to Sell Self-Published Books: One at a Time (Cathryan Howard)
Stats From My Latest Book Launch (Nathan Barry)
Power Pricing: How Should I Price My E-Books? (Kobo)

Tools for Creating E-Books

Calibre (free conversion tool)
Sigil (free formatting tool, for more technically inclined people)
PressBooks (free formatting tool)
Apple iBooks Author (will limit you to Apple iBookstore)
Scrivener (not free, formatting and conversion tool)
AerBook Maker (makes sense for multimedia-driven work)
Apple Pages (formatting and conversion tool)
See this Wikipedia entry for more information on editing software
E-Book Creation: A Guide for Writers (LJ Cohen)

Major E-Book Retailers

Amazon. Sells 50-70% of all ebooks, more for some authors and titles.
Kobo. Gaining ground, international presence.
Barnes & Noble Nook Press. Considered No. 2 e-book retailer.
Smashwords. Also a distributor; see below.
Apple iBookstore. Widely considered a hassle; most authors use a distributor to reach.

Major E-Book Distributors & Services

Smashwords. Authors often use Amazon KDP, then add Smashwords to hit all the other retailers.
BookBaby. A slightly different model than Smashwords—you pay upfront, then get 100% net sales.
eBookParternship. Similar to BookBaby.
Vook. They keep changing their service, but they’re one of the few games in town if you want to create and distribute an enhanced (multimedia ebook) without using iBooks Author.
There are other major e-book distributors only available if you work with your agent or have a minimum number of titles, such as Argo Navis and INscribe Digital.

Authors Who Blog About E-Book Publishing

Joanna Penn
Joel Friedlander
Self-Publishing Podcast
JA Konrath
David Gaughran
Kristine Rusch
Dean Wesley Smith
Bob Mayer

News & Trends About E-Book Publishing

Digital Book World
Mike Shatzkin
FutureBook

Note from Jane: This Tuesday, in partnership with Digital Book World, I’m teaching a live, online class on e-book publishing for new authors. Click here for more details and to register.

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