You’re finally ready to admit it– you want to write an E-Book. You have an idea, and you have the know-how to write it. 

Or maybe you have already begun writing an E-book, but have hit a roadblock in taking your ideas and organizing them into a finished book, or somewhere in the process of going from completed manuscript to a digitally published book. 

If you have a completed manuscript and are looking for assistance with formatting your text into a polished book, ready to be sold in the digital market, contact River City Data. Their editors have the experience and professionalism needed to convert your E-book into formats that allow it to be sold on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Developing Your E-Book Idea

 

One of the first tasks is developing your idea for an E-book. One mistake writers make is selecting a concept that they are interested in without first understanding if it is an idea that is interesting to other people. 

Writers should conduct an audience analysis. What are people interested in who follow your topic? Accessible sources of information include social media groups about your given idea, popular websites, and by informally interviewing others.

Before Writing an e-book, potential authors should always look at what books are currently on the market. While you should not write an e-book to please what you think that readers would want to read, it is essential to know if your topic has already been overdone. In contrast, if your idea has never been covered, this may be because there is not enough market for it to make it worth your time and effort. 

The best strategy is not to follow trends when choosing a topic to write about, and likewise not to anticipate what the “next big thing” will be. Instead, write about a subject that you are passionate about and have the longevity to be interesting to readers for a long time as they discover your book online. 

Writing Your Book 

 

 

Some first time writers approach writing an e-book for the first time by jumping in and starting to write without a definite plan in mind. They may feel that merely beginning is the best way to proceed. However, several planning steps can make the writing process flow better and help avoid rewriting whole sections as you realize that the book’s structure needs to be changed.

Writers should plan out the structure of the book they wish to write. For fiction writers, this can involve any number of plotting plans that exist, or simply writing a brief synopsis of each chapter. 

For nonfiction writers, there are several planning options as well. Start with your general topic and create a mind map of the topic and what you would like to say. Take these ideas and use them to create a basic outline of the structure of your book. 

It is essential to consider how readers will approach your book. Will they be able to find the information when reviewing your book? Will they be able to see that the whole book offers something that other information available online does not?

Once you begin to write, set tangible goals for yourself. Whether this is writing a certain number of words per day, writing for a specific time each day, or some other criteria, this self-discipline will help you complete the process of writing your book. 

Many writers also find that it is helpful to develop a routine around writing. This can take whatever form works for you. For some writers, things like writing in the same place, same location, or with the same music playing helps to set the mood for productivity. 

Whatever works for you, developing routines and deadlines is key to writing success. Consider choosing someone to hold you accountable for these deadlines, or announce to the world that your book will be ready by a specific date.

Finding an Editor When Writing an E-Book

One step that many first-time e-book writers skip is the all-important process of having the book edited by an outside source. Writers may feel like it is unwise to invest money before making any with the project. This is an important step because many writers cannot see errors in their writing when self-editing as clearly as an impartial editor can. 

Marketing Your E-Book

One thing that separates successful from unsuccessful e-book launches is marketing. This can seem intimidating because you just got through the process of writing a book, and now you have to market it? It can also feel uncomfortable thinking about asking others to help you sell your book. 

Select low-pressure situations where you can market your book. Places like alumni organizations, civic organizations, church or other religious groups, or community groups that you volunteer with can be great places that are looking for people to lead events. These can be great opportunities to launch or mention your book while positioning yourself as an expert in your field. 

Other promotional ideas include creating promotional posts during specific times in social media groups as authorized by group administrators. You could also consider giving away a copy of your book, writing guest posts on blogs that have readers from your ideal reader pool, and creating social media profiles on your topic. 

Formatting Your E-Book

Many readers have the experience of purchasing an e-book that looks promising from the preview and covers found online only to discover that it is almost unreadable because it is formatted poorly. It can seem confusing to figure out how to best format your e-book so that it is readable on the major e-book sales sites. Smartblogger.com lists this as one of the most common mistakes new e-book writers make. 

If you have a completed manuscript, contact River City Data. We can convert your manuscript into e-book formats that will work on sites like Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Once the process is completed, you will have a digitally formatted book that will be available to millions of readers online.