Category: product development

How to find the precise book subject that others want to buy

I particularly liked a posting by Rob Carver who suggested that writers simply talk to the ultimate buyers in their market to see what they want to read and buy. (This was part of a very interesting discussion in the Linkedin Group called Ebooks, Ebook Readers, Digital Books and Digital Content Publishing.) Getting new book [...]

Friday June 14th, 2013 in article selling, article writing, articles, Blurb, digital publishing, e-publishing, editing, fiction, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, niche marketing, niche publishing, Nook, novel writing, open publishing, pre-testing, product development, public speaking, publishing, self-publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, speaking, webmarketing, writing | No Comments »

Don’t pick a “must-use” title before writing your book

Never start writing a book with some title in mind that you aren’t willing to improve, change, or totally replace. When I taught college journalism, an early assignment was to have the students write a 500-word newspaper feature piece. I’d tell them to write it, then see what they had to put in print, then [...]

Sunday June 9th, 2013 in article writing, articles, Blurb, digital publishing, e-publishing, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, niche publishing, Nook, novel writing, open publishing, product development, publishing, self-publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, writing | No Comments »

List 3-5 benefits or needs to attract your book readers

Why would anybody actually pay for your book, or even read it free, if it doesn’t bring them some benefit or meet their need(s)? Granted, some folks have to at least look at what you publish, like your mate (if they want to eat), maybe your kids and folks, and anybody else who will fan [...]

Thursday June 6th, 2013 in articles, Blurb, digital publishing, e-publishing, editing, fiction, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, Nook, novel writing, open publishing, product development, publishing, self-publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, webmarketing, writing | No Comments »

(#9 of 10) Let’s publish your new ebook at Kindle

Our goal in this series is to help you compose a book and get it published in both paperback and ebook (digital) form in a bit over a week. If the book is ready to go—final proofing is done and corrected, the Word layout has been modified from its paperback and pdf format into the [...]

Sunday June 2nd, 2013 in ancillary publishing, articles, digital publishing, e-publishing, Kindle, novel writing, open publishing, product development, publishing, self-publishing, webmarketing | No Comments »

#8 Converting your original book layout to an ebook format

Once you have completed your book and had it proofed, you can go ahead and offer your book for sale as a digital book. You needn’t wait for the bound copy to be printed or even sent to the printer. You will be doing the latter while you set up the digital versions and get [...]

Thursday May 23rd, 2013 in articles, digital publishing, e-publishing, fiction, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, niche publishing, Nook, novel writing, product development, publishing, self-publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, treasure hunt, writing | 1 Comment »

Your book’s cover is its own best salesperson!

Your book only needs three kinds of covers, but they can all be designed from the same model. 1. Your bound books will require a full cover, meaning a front, a spine, and a back. (In the rare case you produce a cloth-covered book–a hardcover book–the needs are the same except that you might also [...]

Monday May 20th, 2013 in articles, Blurb, digital publishing, fiction, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, niche marketing, niche publishing, Nook, novel writing, open publishing, product development, publishing, self-publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, webmarketing, writing | No Comments »

What must you have in your book?

Take an hour, for starters. Go some place where you won’t be disturbed and write down your book’s purpose statement. It may be easier to start with a working question, like “What will your book be about?” The answer is the “purpose statement.” Your book will help realize that purpose. The statement might be: “The [...]

Monday May 13th, 2013 in articles, Blurb, e-publishing, editing, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, Nook, product development, publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, speaking, writing | No Comments »

How many book pages a day should you write?

A hard reminder: if you really want to write a book (even better, get it published), the whole writing issue is up to you. Novelists often write two to five pages a day, unedited. Old veterans can plunk out 10-20. Nonfictionfolk pretty much write once they have the facts. Somebody wrote the story of the [...]

Wednesday May 8th, 2013 in articles, Blurb, digital publishing, e-publishing, editing, fiction, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, Nook, open publishing, product development, publishing, Smashwords, writing | 1 Comment »

Why publishing is upside down in your favor…

Long ago there were monks who “printed” books with quills. Later, the printing press appeared in Europe. Many authors sold books first, then wrote them if enough people bought enough copies in advance to pay for the printing. Move past World War II. If you wanted to be a published author (particularly of novels or [...]

Monday April 22nd, 2013 in ancillary publishing, articles, Blurb, digital publishing, e-publishing, fiction, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, niche publishing, Nook, novel writing, open publishing, product development, publishing, self-publishing, small publishers, Smashwords, webmarketing, writing | No Comments »

Why aren’t you, your kids, and your folks in print right now?

Do you have a book inside you just shouting to escape? Do you have something to say and time is running out? Are you afraid that if you don’t get to it soon, will you be the zillionth person who dies bookless? Maybe it’s a novel, a kid’s book, a joke book, a memoir, or [...]

Monday April 15th, 2013 in articles, Blurb, digital publishing, e-publishing, editing, fiction, iPad, Kindle, Lightning Source, LSI, Lulu, niche publishing, Nook, novel writing, open publishing, product development, publishing, Smashwords, writing | No Comments »