Writing Fantasy Books

Self Publishing, A Miracle Of The 21st Century.
Are you a writer with lots of talent but no one will give you the time of day let alone a contract? Would you pay a professional publisher to make your book but can't afford it? Do you need a better tool than your plain old word processor to make your work look more professional and desirable? Do you possess special knowledge that if packaged in a book could make you millions? Well fret not your answer is very available to you now in the form of self publishing software tools!

These tools are electronic publishers that produce professional grade quality at a fraction of the price that it costs a traditional publisher to produce a book. They produce the work in the form of a PDF file which can be sent with an email, saved onto any form of memory storage media, downloaded onto your website, etc. This is hundreds of times more convenient than traditional publishing efforts and again at a very small fraction of the price.

The software is easy to use, designed to be used by a person with a 2nd grade level computer IQ. So, not even close to rocket science. A person can become proficient at using the program and start writing in a matter of hours. Yes, you heard me right -- you can have the necessary tools and be writing that book that you have been waiting a long time for in a matter of a few hours. Self publishing is a beautiful thing and I am just getting started.

When I said a fraction of the price of a typical publisher I only meant for one book. But think about it, you would have to continue to pay each time your next book came out which multiplies that fee over and over and over. But you only have to pay for the self publishing software once. It is very reasonably priced, and it is with you, at your beckoned call for life. Now that's a deal.

The last benefit of self publishing that I am going to talk about (not even close to the last benefit there is) is the true freedom of speech that you retain when you buy this tool. What I am referring to really is the editing process which for those who have already been published know can be a brutal process. Basically anything that you right is at the mercy of the publishing editor when you go the traditional route. But if you publish your own work it stays as you want it which is the way it should be. That's all for now, but if you want to know more just give me a ring, or fling me an email, or whichever you prefer.

Josephine Stungger has been writing for many years and enjoys helping young writers be successful in this field. She is excited about opportunities that are available through <a href="http://www.beginselfpublishing.info.">self publishing</a>. To find out more visit www.beginselfpublishing.info.

Successful Self-Publishing
Successful Self-Publishing Terence Tam Issue 1: January 2007 Inside this issue: Developing a marketing plan for your book. Discover how a carefully structured marketing plan can make the world of difference to the commercial viability and success of your book project. Read more. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Developing a Marketing Plan for your Book A marketing plan is a business development document designed to help you identify and plan out the actual activities that will promote and sell a product or service. It is a crucial planning tool that provides focus and check-list type clarity. Marketing programmes attempted without the backup of a proper plan, often fall victim to an unstructured, ad-hoc approach and money down the drain. Why should you develop a marketing plan for your book? A book may not seem like the kind of item relevant for the development of a marketing plan. This is definitely wrong. Your book is ultimately a product. It is a commercial item that must be promoted and distributed to a pre- targeted marketplace. Approaching the sale of your book in this professional and business-like manner is the best platform to realise any kind of commercial success. Core components of your marketing plan The marketing plan for your book does not need to be an elaborate, 20+ page document full of graphs and market research analysis. This will be your marketing plan, for your book. It does need to be a clearly written and sharply presented professional document, suitable for bookstore buyers/managers, publishers and distributors to review. However, it only needs to reflect the fundamental essentials that will influence the potential commercial success of your ‘product.’ Goals and Objectives Establishing clear goals and objectives for the commercial success that you would like to achieve from your book is the first step in the development of the overall marketing plan. Think of these goals in terms of numbers. How many units of the book do you aim to sell and over what period of time? Taking into account your estimated retail price per book, how much revenue (money made before costs and tax) and profit (money left after costs and tax) do you anticipate from your unit target? Target Audience: Who exactly are the people most likely to be interested in reading your book? Create a picture of this person in your minds eye, and describe this profile within the plan. Are they male or female readers? What age? What kind of social or economic background do they come from? What level of education are they likely to have? Unique selling proposition (USP): You now have a profile picture of the type of person most likely to read your book. Now, clearly define this next essential question â€" why would this person want to read your book? Does the book address important social issues such as politics, economy, health, war or religion? Is it going to evoke strong emotive response? Will it capture the minds and hearts of the audience? How? In what way will it strive to achieve this? The qualities that will entice your target audience are the qualities that make your book unique. These unique characteristics form the foundation of your USP. They are the core messages that should be openly and clearly emphasised in all your promotional and selling activity for the book. Study the back covers of books in your local store. How does the text describe the book? What unique statements does it emphasise to capture and hook your attention? These back covers may appear to be simple synopses, but they use the essential principles of a USP. Promotional Activities: What promotional activities will you implement to generate publicity and public awareness of your book â€" especially among your selected target audience? Will you use media, through public relations or press advertisements? Will you look for speaking or networking events relevant to your book topic? How much of a role will the internet play? Do you plan to host a book launch event? Developing a marketing plan is your opportunity to think precisely about what strategies and activities you will engage in, and structure them in a tangible form. A marketing plan also gives you the best forum to plan out the specific details for each individual activity - such as timeframes and dates, costs, essential contacts and suppliers. In summary, a marketing plan is not a ‘quick and easy’ document. It requires thought, research and planning. Developing one really should be approached as a project in its own right. I guarantee however, that the time spent will be a worthwhile investment in the commercial success of your book. It will represent all your hard work in a professional fashion, and create a strong business impression. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Terence Tam is the CEO of Book Pal and is a self publisher himself. His vision is to help both experienced and budding authors self publish their books. Book Pal also prints print on demand books to help the author print the number of books they require. Please visit www.bookpal.com.au ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Terence Tam is CEO of Book Pal, a company specialising in self publishing and book printing Australia wide. He is a self publisher himself. His company also excels in printing print on demand books.

Self-Publish Your Book With National Distribution
Many writers struggle with constant rejection from the publishing world. A rejection, though a part of the industry, is difficult for writers at any stage in their career. You pour your heart and soul into a book, along with hours of work, only to hear a publisher indicate that it isn?t what they are looking for at this particular time. Many books that were otherwise snubbed by traditional publishing houses have gone on to be very popular. How? It?s simple. Self-publishing is an avenue that many new, or rejected, writers pursue.

When you hear self-publishing, perhaps you think about writing a book and taking it to a printer, paying for copies and doing all of the footwork to get your new work listed with major bookstores. But, thanks to the internet and an innovative new approach to publishing, that?s no longer the case. Sure, you still have to pen the book yourself but leave the printing up to someone else. A growing number of POD (print on demand) publishers are stepping up in search of the next bestseller. Print on demand is a term used to describe a publisher who handles all of the printing aspects, but on an as-needed basis.

The best self-publishing companies offer a variety of programs with the majority of them handling the issuance of an ISBN number and getting your book cataloged with all of the major online bookstores, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, etc. In addition, when a book is issued an ISBN number, it can be ordered at any bookstore. Your book may or may not be physically stocked at your local shopping mall, but the bookstore inside will have the capability to order it as requested. As your new title is listed nationally with every major bookstore?s catalog, it will steadily surface globally as well. A year after your book is released; don?t be surprised if search engine results show that it is listed with major online bookstores across the world, including Japan, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Germany, etc.

With print on demand publishing, or self-publishing, you will have to pay a fee to get your book in print. Longtime publisher iUniverse (http://www.iUniverse.com) offers publishing packages starting at $499.00 and up. In exchange for the startup fee, the company issues a printed version of the book while the author retains all electronic rights to the work and a 3-year contract with a 1-year automatic renewal. A generous 20% royalty is offered on the sale of every book with quarterly statements mailed to the author.

If you have been turned away by traditional publishers, or simply want to retain full control over your book, it?s cover design and content, self-publishing may be the way to go. If you have never been published, it is difficult to find a traditional publisher. With self-publishing, you will have documentation of your previously published work and royalty statements to show its success. Once your book is published, get out there and promote your work. It?s the best way to take your career from new to permanent status.

Daphne is a Writer, Business Owner, Motivator and Self-Starter and full-time Mom. She started Passion Parties by Daphne in the Summer of 2005 as a hobby while working full time. It has since become a full time passion for her and hope to quit her full time job soon. She enjoys writing articles about small businesses and family and tries to motivate other women with the same desire. She can be reached at 1-877-TOY-DIVA <a href="http://www.daphnespassion.com" title="http://www.daphnespassion.com" target="_blank">http://www.daphnespassion.com</a>

Successful Self Publishing-February 2007
Successful Self-Publishing
Issue 2: February, 2007


Inside this issue:
How to get your book into stores.
Pitching your book to retail bookstores and chains can be a time consuming and frustrating process. In this issue, we help prepare you for increased chances of success. Read more.

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How to get your Book into Stores

Getting your book successfully onto the shelves of a bookstore is easier said than done. Major bookstore chains are notoriously difficult to win over. Even smaller bookstores, where your chances of reaching the person with the purchase authority are more likely â€" are still very choosy and cautious. Especially when presented with new books from unknown authors.

Without the representation and backing of a major publishing house, you will be entirely responsible for every aspect of this process. Promoting your book to stores is not complicated. But it can be a long and disheartening process that requires persistence, staying power, determination, conviction and total
belief in the ‘great read’ quality of your work.


Identify your targets
The key to successfully selling into a bookstore is to start small. Identify and target smaller local bookstores and boutique stores specific to the topic of your book. Aim to saturate your entire local market place. Having a measure of regional success will also help in convincing larger chain stores that your book is a worthwhile commercial product, suitable for a national and even an international marketplace.


Develop and prepare your pitch
Initiating contact and approaching bookstore buyers in the right way is essential. Sending an initial ‘sales package’ followed up by a polite phone call, is probably the most effective platform for getting your foot in the proverbial door. The package should be based on a carefully developed sales letter, accompanied by a complimentary copy of your book.

By sending a package through the post, you are allowing the bookstore buyer time to absorb and consider your book and proposal. When you call a week later, you are then ‘warm calling’ rather than cold calling â€" as they have already had initial contact from you. They are a lot more likely to be receptive and interested. Getting your sales letter right is vital. Keep it at two pages maximum, and ensure it contains all the following core points:

* Introduction: introduce yourself and your book, and state that your reason for contact is to enquire as to their potential interest in purchasing your book
for stock.
* Book summary: a short (one paragraph) summary of the core plot of the book
* Book commercial impact: state who would want to read your book (target audience) and why (USP)
* Your credibility: clarify any background and experience you have in writing, or your specific experience and authority in the subject matter.
* Pricing proposal: put forward your proposal for the retail price of the book, and bookstore commission or preference for outright purchase.
* Business development: state that you are engaging in a comprehensive marketing programme for promotion of the book, and that the marketing plan is available for them to review.
* Guarantee: state that you will offer a full refund for books purchased outright, that do not sell within a specified timeframe (8-10 weeks)

Know what the bookstores want
Referencing to your marketing plan within the sales letter is important. It indicates your proactive and professional business approach to the sale of your book. Bookstores will want to know what you are actively doing to promote your book. They do not like to sit on dead inventory. If they feel confident that any books they buy from you can be promoted and sold through marketing and promotional activity directly driven by you â€" they are more likely to purchase.

Create strong relationships
The founding principle behind successfully selling anything is by establishing genuine and positive human connections. Taking the time to initiate and
cultivate lasting relationships with bookstore owners and buyers will dramatically increase your chances of getting your book on their shelves.

Even if initially, they feel your work is not right, by presenting yourself as a professional and credible author and self publisher â€" they are significantly more likely to be open to being pitched on any subsequent projects you may develop. Even if they do say no the first time, keep the relationship open and positive. Send a short follow-up email or letter thanking them for their time regardless. It could pay dividends in the future.

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This article has been written by Terence Tam, CEO of Book Pal, a self publishing and book printing company based in Brisbane, Australia. Terence is a self publisher himself and is a keen supporter of experienced and budding self publishers. He also specialises in print on demand books. Terence can be contacted at terence@bookpal.com.au . Also, please visit http://www.bookpal.com.au

Publishing to the World Wide Web made easy
Any new endeavor can be a daunting experience. Do you remember how it was when you started a new job, not knowing anyone in the organization or the internal politics etc.?

Well, using any new software program can also be a traumatic process for many, even if you have the manual that came with the software program sitting right beside you.
And, if you are going to build and publish a web Site yourself, you will need a software program. Fortunately, most of the modern software programs for building Web Sites are very user friendly. You do not need a detailed knowledge of HTML anymore. you do not even have to know what the acronym "HTML" stands for, because modern Web Site building software programs use WYSIWYG.

Sorry if I am confusing you. "WYSIWYG" simply stands for, "what you see is what you get". In other words, you can simply type in what you want, and it will appear on the Web Site when published. Now, what can be simpler than that?

But what programs to use? The software market is a very competitive one, and there are dozens of good programs from which to choose.

Factors to consider in choosing a program are these:
1. How many Web Sites do you want to publish?
2. What is you budget?
3. How much time do you intend spending on building and publishing Web Sites.

Regarding point number 1 above. If you wish to get one only web Site published, and in a hurry, I would suggest you get some assistance from someone experienced in the field. But perhaps you want the challenge of learning something new!

Point number 2. Commercial software programs can range in price from around $50 to several hundreds of dollars. The saying, "you only get what you pay for", applies to a certain extent only. There is now a very good public domain Web Site building software program available. Being in the public domain area, means it is free. Yes you heard me correctly it is completely FREE.

There is a download link to this software on a link given in the resource box at the end of this article.

Regarding point number 3 above, if you do plan to publish several sites, there are advantages in paying for one of the better commercial products. And, the most expensive are not necessarily the best.

Well, you now have your web site built, and it is set to be published, but how do you go about this?

You will need to find a hosting service. This is not difficult, because there are thousands of them out there. But once again you will need to consider point number 2 above. What is your budget? Most web site hosting providers have fee structures ranging from economy for normal sized web sites, to much higher fees for the larger sites.

Your first web site(s) should fit into the economy range. And as a guide to fees, if you are paying more than about $5 a month for economy hosting, then I would suggest that you are being overcharged. It is a very competitive market, so shop around and get a really good price.

The first web site link I have in the resource box below is economy hosted, and this site has a total of 32 pages with text and graphics. So the economy size should more than meet your needs.

There is another alternative that you should consider, and that is free hosting.

Yeah! I know nothing is really free. And, there is a catch, but free hosting is certainly worth considering.

Free hosted sites are generally supported by advertising. Now, that advertising can be obtrusive, or more hopefully unobtrusive. Personally I find pop-up advertisements about as annoying as spam email. And that is pretty annoying! So, if your feelings about pop-ups are similar to mine, make sure you know what you are getting before you decide on a free hosting provider.

I give an example of a free hosted site in the resource box below. It has a strip of unobtrusive Google advertisements at the top of each page. Included in this strip is a Google search box, which can be handy for those accessing your web site.

Good luck with your Web site building and publishing. It can be a lot of fun!

Ian McKenzie is Director of Ian McKenzie's Domains. An example of a free hosted web site is given at http://www.ianswebsites.info. A download link to free web site building software is given at http://www.websitesonwww.com. With incredible pricing customers expect from Ian McKenzie's Domains® and a long list of FREE extras, you'll have everything you need to get started online.

Another Million Dollar Dream
When the itch of literature comes upon a man, the only thing that will relieve it is the scratching of a pen. A Victorian vicar wrote that and he wasn’t wrong. I’d had the urge to write since I was a young man and I indulged myself from time to time. I scribbled the odd short story, I wrote pornographic letters for a couple of contact magazines, I sent ideas to TV stations, I wrote scripts and I collected a lot of rejections â€" as most writers do. One day I got a letter inviting me to visit a TV producer to discuss my work. I wept. The producer didn’t want to use my script; she liked it, but she was looking for writers for the revival of an old courtroom drama. Did I think I could write thirty episodes? Why not? I said. Go away and study the law, courts and court procedure, she said. As soon as the contracts are signed I’ll send you the story lines, she said. I read books. I spent my days in London’s famous courts. I made friends with people, on both sides of the law. I made lots of notes. A couple of months passed. We wrote to one another: I told her how much I had learned and how anxious I was to get started on the scripts; she repeatedly assured me that the contracts would soon be signed. I noticed, at the bottom of one of her letters, that her title had changed. She was no longer assistant producer of xxx, she was now producer of xyz. I congratulated her on her promotion. It was the last letter I ever received from her. I had not understood that the change of title meant she had been promoted out of the old job, with responsibility for the courtroom drama, and that she would have no more use for me. It took a few weeks, but I got the message. It was a blow. I probably wept. I promised myself, that I would not write anything speculative again for TV or anyone else, I would write a novel instead. And I wouldn’t send it to publishers; I’d publish it myself. I thought I may even give it away; hand copies to people on street corners; read passages to people on trains and, if they liked it offer a copy to them; or just leave copies in coffee shops and on park benches. I began writing The Workers, a sexy, violent, funny story from the London underworld. After writing about fifty-five thousand words, I allowed the son of a friend to borrow my laptop for a homework project. Don’t download anything and don’t add any programs, were my parting words. Two days later he brought the laptop back with a killer virus on it. Every word of The Workers was lost. I wept. Luckily I had a few chapters in hard copy and I tried to rewrite the rest, but it’s hard. I just didn’t seem to be able to get the scenes down. I had all but given up when I saw an article about Alex Tew and his Million Dollar Website. It was a great idea, Alex had sold a million pixels to fund a university education, I thought may be able to sell a few pixels to fund the writing and serialization of The Workers. I decided that, once I got going with a monthly deadline, I would be able to squeeze all the lost ideas out of their hiding places in the dark corners of my brain and onto the screen. I didn’t have any trouble finding a Million Dollar Script, a Google search produced plenty to choose from. I decided on a script offered by ozwebfx. The script was less than a hundred dollars and Ozwebfx uploaded it for a small fee. Within a few hours, on the 31st February 2006, chapter one of The Workers, Say Goodbye To The Monk was uploaded to my new site, http://YourBigHomepage.com.

Sam Nikolas is a Londoner now living and writing in rural England. All rights reserved.

Write a Non-Fiction Book First to Sell More Than You Ever Dreamed!
Why do people buy non-fiction books? Most readers buy books to solve problems or help with fulfilling a need. For example, when I started speaking for a fee I went out and bought a couple of popular books about speaking. Browsing in the bookstore, I was attracted to Lilyan Wilder's book "7 Steps to Fearless Speaking" I read the back cover. I noticed she could help with 7 easy steps. I skimmed the table of contents, read a few lines and immediately liked her easy to read style. It went in my purchase basket. Because I wanted to hear from several authorities on the subject, I picked up another book by Nido R. Qubein, "How to Be a Great Communicator: In Person on Paper, and on the Podium." His cover design was white with clean lines and a personable picture of him on the front. His style of writing was not as easy to read but it still went in my purchase basket as well. Which brings us back to my original point; people buy non-fiction books to solve problems. To identify your targeted market, pinpoint a problem they have and the solution of course. Problems come in all shapes and sizes. Usually a general category problem applies to all types of markets. • Hobbies. Is your tennis game, golf game, bridge game as good as you'd like? Are you considering taking up horse-back riding? Want to improve your computer skills? What ever the case may be, your desire to improve or change your level of performance is considered the problem. • Health. The first thing you do when your doctor diagnose your cholesterol is high and you need to lose 20 pounds. You go look for a book that will walk you through step by step to lose weight or lower cholesterol. You turn to someone that has solved the problem to learn from their experience. • Mental State. Are you feeling stressful about the economy? Are you noticing unexplained physical symptoms possibly related to stress? Once again, you have a problem and you are looking for a solution in book form. Someone who has outlined easy steps or ways to de-stress in our society. • Personal Finance. Worried about lay-offs, down-sizing, retirement? Books that offer financial solutions to economic problems during shaky times are guaranteed to succeed. • Marketing. We live in a competitive society. Small business owners and managers everywhere need a growing database of customers and clients. Therefore, they seek out how to books that offers solutions on improving their advertising copy, improving their business image or their website. Each of the problem categories describes a problem and a need for a solution. The main goal of your marketing plan is to identify the problem your book solves and then present the solution. The more intense the problem and the easier you can make your solution, the more readers will seek out your book. Your task becomes to re-structure your knowledge into bite-size reader solutions. Appeal to the masses, by letting them know what's in it for them and how easy the solution is with your book. For example, let's consider the book title I mentioned earlier about speaking. The title could have been: "How to Overcome Your Fear of Speaking" instead of "7 Steps to Fearless Speaking" The latter is more appealing because it alludes to only 7 steps to my solution. Don’t put it off any longer. If you wait, you can be this time next year without fulfilling your dream of writing a successful book. You have the solution. Now write it down. While you're at use the tips above and write a book that sells well. Make it different. Make it count. Make it yours. ==================

© Earma Brown, 11 year author helps small business owners and writers who want to write their best book now! Send any blank email to iscribe@writetowin.org for free mini-course 'Jumpstart Writing Your Book' or visit <a href="http://www.writetowin.org">Write a Book</a> for more book writing tips.

Digital Poster Printing for Growing Business
With the modern complexities of life now days, it is but important to be abreast with the latest and the more effective ways of advertising and promoting your services and products to let your business grow and be wide known popular. That is why poster digital printing is recommended for a sure win advertisement for your growing business. It can be noticed that in poster digital printing the pictures, images and illustrations are clearer and sharper because of the modern way of doing it. Even the smallest detail in the poster could be understood by its viewer. Large format printing from your digital files, photo enlargement from your own slides and negatives are just some of our latest innovation to attain that effectual poster digital printing for your growing business. Poster digital printing is recommended for growing business that wants to be more known by its target customers, for their digital poster will already build good impression for their company. For the demand in continuous innovation of poster digital printing, commercial printing companies specially those that specialize in poster printing made sure that they are powered by creative team and skillful workers that conceptualizes and prints the digital posters for your growing business. Here are some of the choices in poster digital printing that you can choose from to have your goal attained for your growing business. We are offering pigment based inks for large format printing and glossy paper for heavy weight materials. Since it is not good to look at it on a matte paper for the density of black ink on it is not very high. Also, dye based inks for large printing is recommended for prints will be clearer and sharper with the use of glossy paper again. That is why if you want to have the advantages in poster printing, then it is the right time for you to try on poster digital printing afterwards access its results in your growing business. Our poster digital printing has an improved resolution that would impress your target clients and eventually would stop at your business. After all, that is the primary purpose of your poster to attract customers for your business to grow even more. It is true that poster digital printing costs a bit higher than the conventional posters that we have yet are we going to sacrifice the good quality that would ultimately draw-in customers for your growing business. More often quality really matters for it will be the first focus of the interested clients since just after the accepted invitation of the prospect clients would made their decision to go with the business or not. After all, if you will have poster digital printing it is guaranteed that your expenses will be given back to you by the customers that were hooked up and it can even be higher than that. Competitive price for your poster digital printing is what we’re offering and satisfaction guaranteed for your money spent will be regain.

With the modern complexities of life now days, it is but important to be abreast with the latest and the more effective ways of advertising and promoting your services and products to let your business grow and be wide known popular. That is why poster digital printing is recommended for a sure win advertisement for your growing business.

Publishing Success Steps
Even if your best friend owns a top publishing company, giving you an immediate "in," this does not guarantee publishing success. First, you have to write a quality book that has a clear target audience. And your book must answer a common problem or need that audience shares. Then you have to develop a marketing plan, and stick to it for at least two years. Let's begin with the process that should commence before you write your first word. Begin by reading A LOT. Read both books you passionately love and books you can't seem to make it past page five. Then figure out what the author did in the book you loved, and what was wrong with in the book you couldn't finish. Write down these points so they are crystal clear to you. Read other people's books for inspiration and to discover what you should avoid as a writer. The next step is to plan out your book. Narrow down your subject, and then divide it into chapters. Each chapter should address a specific aspect of the problem your book is going to solve. In each chapter, break the specific aspect down into several parts. This will help your readers take in your information a bit at a time instead of overwhelming them with every bit of information clogging up the pages until they feel like they're about to go blind. It's not quite spoon-feeding the information to your readers, but it's close. The next two steps are obvious. Write your book and then revise it. And then revise it again. And perhaps again. Of course, writing is extremely hard, and writing a book can seem like an impossible task. There are many books out there that give you guidelines to help you become familiar - and even love - the process of writing and revision. Find a number of books about writing. Better yet, find a number of books about writing the specific type of book you aspire to write. These can serve as roadmaps on your writing journey. Once you've written your ebook and revised it at least twice, show it to someone else whose opinion you respect. If you're lucky enough to know a good editor, see if you have something to barter for him or her to go through your manuscript. Or join a writing group and let the other members critique your work. Then take all these ideas from other people, and revise your manuscript one last time. And then stop! Put down that pen! Get your hands off the keyboard! One of the most important steps to actually producing a book is to know when to stop writing and tinkering with it. You've finally written your ebook! Pop open the bubbly! Give yourself a night out on the town! Okay, now that this necessary celebration is out of your system, what do you do next? How to turn your ebook into Profits Ebooks are a revolutionary way to publish your book without incurring the costs of print production. All you need is a relevant and targeted subject and some inexpensive software, and you can transform your manuscript into a book. The problem, in terms of actually seeing any profits from your ebook, is that the market is overwhelmed with ebooks, and many of them are not worth the time it takes to download them. Just because the ability exists to easily produce an ebook, doesn't make it good writing. Make sure your book does not simply rehash old material. You will injure your credibility as an author by claiming to offer valuable new insights and disappointing your audience with material they've read a zillion times before. So spend enough time writing and revising your book to make sure it's of the highest quality and presents the most current information. A good book will eventually sell itself; false claims about your book will make it extremely difficult to sell any future books you may write. Assuming you have determined that you do indeed have a quality product that answers some question or need of your target audience with NEW information, how do you know how much to charge for it? Rule number 1: Set a price for your book equal to its value. An under-priced book will only give the impression that your book isn't worth very much. To figure out a fair price, estimate how much time you put into creating it and how difficult it was to transform the necessary information into understandable and engaging writing. Figure out how much your time and effort is worth, and then price it accordingly. The goal is for you to be adequately compensated for your talent, your time, and your effort. Once you've figured out a price that is high enough to convey the value of the book, but not so high as to be out of the reach of your target audience's mean budget, then it's time to offer it for sale on your website. To attract sales, you will need to develop a promotional campaign, particularly if you are an unknown author. There are multitudes of books about self-promotion that will guide you in your efforts. Choose a plan that is both creative and professional. Learn how to write a catchy yet informative press release, and send copies of your ebook to sites that specialize in ebook reviews. Learn how to write powerful sales copy, or hire someone to write it for you. This is an essential. You absolutely need excellent sales copy to sell your book. Make sure the copy includes all the reasons your target audience needs your book, and the benefits they will derive from buying it. Use graphics in your promotional materials. Beautiful graphics have the power to instantly convey the quality and value of your ebook. Graphics can also convey the amount of valuable information the book contains, and your careful attention to detail. Professional graphics sell professional books. They reassure the customer that the product is what it claims to be. Consider excerpting chapters for articles. You can offer these tidbits for free on your website as a sort of demo of your book. Include an order form for your ebook at the end of the excerpted articles. Finally, when you set-up your download link, make sure to simplify the process. It's a good idea to offer a few bonuses that make your book even more enticing to purchase, but make sure the bonuses are valuable and high quality. Too many bonuses that are basically a load of useless stuff will compromise the impression your audience has of your ebook. The goal is to convey to your audience that they are getting a quality product for a good deal. That means applying restraint, especially when it comes to adding bonus items. Too much free stuff offered diminishes your credibility. Make sure your book is a quality product. Make sure it is relevant and current. Develop an effective marketing plan that includes excellent sales copy and excerpted articles. Then offer your book for sale, and wait for your audience to discover you!

I am the owner of E-Books Download , I sell ebooks and software and templates and lots of digital downloads.... http://www.e-booksdownload.com

Top 5 Shenanigans of 5 Print-on-Demand Publishers
5) Cosmetic corporate connections

Publisher B has a new corporate overlord in Amazon, but offers no carriage with Ingram, which means no order availability through many bookstores nor major website listings with competitors Barnes & Noble.com, Powells.com, Bamm.com, etc.

Hint: Find a publisher that offers wholesale distribution through Ingram (which includes listings on Amazon, too). Publishing is already competitive enough; your distribution channels shouldn't be.

4) Disavowing any knowledge

Publisher P calls itself a traditional publisher, even though it uses the same on-demand technology as other PODs. They require an exclusive 7 year contract (twice as long as most traditional agreements) and absorb all your rights before you discover the truth.

Publisher L doesn't call itself a publisher at all, but rather a conduit toward publication. It even features a picture of a machine "publishing" your book for you. Do you want a hot-water heater handling your pride and joy?

Hint: Sign a non-exclusive contract that you can cancel in 30 days written notice and pick a publisher that uses real live human beings to format your book.

3) “Free� on-demand publication

Free things require no commitment, which is a harsh finale for a book you labored to write. We have heard of authors who "published for free" and then the author forgot who published their book! As Vince Lombardi says, “The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.� Getting what you pay for was never more appropriate, as authors of free services can attest.

Hint: You get out of something what you put into it; choose your publisher accordingly.

2.5) "Free" publishing that isn't actually free

I have to slip in this bonus shenanigan. Publisher T claims they will publish your book for free, yet require a $3,985 investment from the author. Last time I checked, that wasn't free. Their justification? They reimburse the payment to you once your book sells its 5000th copy.

Hint: Ask them the percentage of times they actually reimburse their authors. Ask for the titles of the books and author's names. Then get the contact informaton for every one of those authors and confirm it.

2) Traditional publisher affiliations

Traditional publishers make the lions share of profits because they take a gamble on every author. Publisher U has executives from the traditional publishing industry; which means they know how to take an author's money up-front AND in the long run on the back-end.

Hint: If you pay to be published, make sure you make a higher royalty than a traditional publisher pays. And make sure you don't confuse "20% net profit" with a "20% retail royalty".

1) Charging to be profitable

In this competitive publishing environment, publishing is hard enough without having your publisher charging you for things that should be free. Publisher X recently introduced an option for $249 that lets you set your own retail price. And when you see this bar graph comparison, you will understand why: http://outskirtspress.com/marketing/case-owp.gif

Hint: Having pricing flexibility is certainly better than not having it, but you shouldn't have to pay for it.

Learn more about publishing your own book with a free e-book at <a href="http://outskirtspress.com">www.outskirtspress.com</a>. Brent Sampson is the President & CEO of Outskirts Press and the award-winning author of "Self-Publishing Simplified". A free ebook edition is available at <a href="http://outskirtspress.com/publishing">http://outskirtspress.com/publishing</a>.