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Self-publish a Book or eBook

All of the resources an aspiring author needs to self-publish a book or ebook (i.e., electronic book, also referred to as e-book) are available online. Ebooks especially are very quick & inexpensive to set up, yielding a high return on investment. The best part, however, lies in the fact that you could concentrate on your writing, essentially taking ownership of your intellectual property.

Ebooks continue to increase in popularity, and while markets have become more saturated, it's still a profitable means for generating income. Although there is some truth as to the supply of books and ebooks being high, an important question is raised: How many of them actually provide value in the form of quality information?

We think most would agree that specialized knowledge (backed by years of experience and/or education) is timeless, and for an author who is both respected and respectful — the sky's the limit.

Books vs. eBooks

Is it more beneficial to publish a book or ebook? Firstly, there are advantages to reading from traditional paperback/hardcover books over digital sources; the opposite is also true. The disadvantages of either are few but worth mentioning.

From a nature pespective, since books are made of paper, their production requires the cutting down of trees — making them less environmentally-friendly. Another downside to books is that any citations or references made within the book itself quite obviously can't be accessed directly; if connected to the Internet, ebooks (through the usage of text or graphic links), on the other hand, can direct readers to the relevant Web address(es). Conversely, reading ebooks off of a computer screen could be a little hard on the eyes. Also, studies have shown that more information is retained while reading books.

Last but not least, ebook authors in general tend to not be positioned as credibly as authors who publish to books. This is, of course, changing rapidly as younger, more tech-savvy generations get online. While on the topic, the popular expression 'If you're not on the Internet, you're not in business' also comes to mind. Established authors with a strong marketing sense are aware of this, with many of them having already transitioned to full digital.

The Bottom Line

But which one, book or ebook, is best for increasing the bottom line? There cannot possibly be an answer to that question. It's whatever you're more comfortable with. Fortunately, the option of selling in both forms (with the two including virtually the same content) exists.

From an objective standpoint, ebooks win for their profitability while books have the edge for reading (although many would debate the latter). We understand that it's a strange paradox, seeing that as a publisher you want to please buyers by accommodating them as best you could, at the least in terms of providing a great reading experience. But the process of getting the information seen in the first place is also crucial.

For some authors, publishing a book is just too complex, too time-consuming, and too expensive. More legal implications are also involved with publishing & selling printed books, depending on how they're ultimately distributed (eg: through [physical] retail outlets, etc).

On the other hand, ebooks can be packaged rather effortlessly; they can also be sold/distributed in large numbers if you own a traffic-generating site. And with hand-held touchscreen devices, they're not only easily accessible (meaning instantly downloadable), they're pleasant to view (not to mention conveniently stored/organized).

Got Writer's Block?

What if I'm an expert in something, would love to publish a book or ebook, but can't write? That's a very common question that beginning authors ask themselves — but it's redundant. Anyone that knows how to spell in a language they're comfortable with, can write. The quickest way of having those words translate into valuable guides, stories, and so on is to write from the heart. It's important to keep in mind that your target audience will most likely be a lot like you. In fact, it's what will have them take interest in your product in the first place.

People are constantly looking for solutions to their problems in hopes of enabling them to finally get results. And if your book and/or ebook truly holds the key to unlocking the treasure chest, then you shouldn't hesitate to put an appropriate price tag on it. As a side-note, poor business decisions like charging significantly below the going rate from launch won't allow you to sell more; it just sends the message that your product is worth less. Discounts can, of course, be offered to individuals or groups of individuals from a lower income bracket (eg: students, the elderly, etc).

The Process

What follows are basic steps for creating an ebook. We've excluded the process for publishing a book since it's more complicated and generally has more nuances attached to it that detract from the purpose of this tutorial — which is to get you up & running both quickly and methodically.

To publish an ebook:

1. Type out your content, saving it in plain text format
2. Revise it — making spelling, punctuation, vocabulary, and concept corrections as needed
3. Offer a free copy to five individuals (that encompass your ideal customer [based on interests, demographics, etc]), requesting constructive criticism in exchange (with the goal being to have at least three reciprocate)
4. Based on their feedback, revise again (addressing common complaints, points of confusion, etc)
5. Style it through a rich-text editor, adding images along with anchor, contextual, and/or referenced links, if applicable {An example of an anchor link would be a link from a heading in the Table of Contents to that particular section of your ebook. Referenced links usually direct readers to outside sources (such as a third-party Web page or hosted digital file like another ebook). Contextual links could be either an anchor link or referenced link, except that it appears within the body of content}
6. Convert it to PDF (the most popular and universally-accepted), EPUB, KF8, Apple Books (for macOS and iOS) or any other ebook-ready format supported by your affiliated publisher of choice

Regarding this last point (i.e., number 6), there are several online publishers you can decide to partner with. That said, we highly recommend selling your ebook entirely self-published, distributed independently through your own proprietary website. Simply put, no other outlet allows for as much control in terms of creative freedom (tied to the content itself) and the delivering of your content (i.e., through your desired business/marketing strategy).