If you’re looking for an easy way to make money from home, consider writing an ebook. You’ll need investment in some digital copying equipment (most laptops come with them built-in), but beyond that, the rest is pretty much routine. You’ll need to sit down and put yourself in the state of mind that will create the book.
Here’s the deal: self-published ebooks are a great way to make money online. There’s no middleman, and you don’t have to deal with retailers. You’ll get to keep all the money. Your potential audience is the whole world. In fact, Kindle wrote an entire article about how to become an ebook author.
Let’s explore how to write an ebook in seven steps. (Also, see the full review of the perfect e-reading device, the Kindle Fire, at the end of this article.)
Step One: Set A Price
The most crucial decision you’ll need to make when writing an ebook is how much you want to charge for it. It’s a common misconception that ebooks are free, because you can always download them for nothing. That’s not the case. You’ll need to invest in digital copying equipment and the time to write the book, so you’re not going to be giving it away for free. You’ll have to set a price for it. This is where things can get tricky. You want to set a price that’s fair, but not so high that people won’t buy it.
The simplest way to figure out what price to set is by looking at what other authors are charging for their ebooks. If you want to write an educational guide on wine, for example, you could look at the “winesearcher” blog and see what they’re charging (it’s $27) and set a price goal of $27 for your own ebook. (You could always price your book higher if you think you can get away with it. The key is to set a fair price so that you don’t under or over-estimate the market value of your book. Also, see our guide to choosing the perfect cup for each wine!)
Step Two: Create A Platform
Once you’ve decided on a price, the next step is to create a platform for your book. Platforms such as Amazon and Smashwords can be extremely helpful in getting your ebook into the hands of more people. Creating a platform takes some trial and error (it’s not something you can just do overnight), but the results of having a structured platform are priceless.
You’ll need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of using various platforms. Do you want to primarily distribute your book through Amazon? Or do you want to use your own website and build your own reader base? The answer will depend on your goals. For instance, if you’re looking to make a quick buck, then using a widely-distributed platform such as Amazon may be the way to go. However, if you’re looking for a long-term viable business, then building your own platform may be the way to go (you can always use Amazon for additional distribution if you decide to go that route).
Step Three: Promote The Book
Now that you have a platform, you can begin your promotional campaign. The best way to go about this is by using social media. Start by creating a Twitter account for your book (@yourbookname). Then, find and follow other authors whose books are similar to yours (and don’t be afraid to “follow the footsteps” of other successful authors). Finally, use social media to engage with your audience. If you have a decent sized following, you can easily begin to build a community of readers around your book (just remember: not to overdo it and be annoying). The more you engage with your audience, the more they’ll come back for more.
Once you’ve laid the groundwork, you can begin to promote your book. Write a compelling description for your book. Then, write a short piece on why people should care about your book. (If you have a specific niche, you can write a guide on within that niche. For example, if you’re writing an ebook on baking, you could write about different flavors of cookies or cake alternatives.)
You can also try and sell your ebook at local coffee shops and restaurants. Many of these places will allow you to set up shop and charge people for whatever you want. You’ll need to look into the specifics of what’s allowed before you begin doing this, however (most places will not allow you to simply place an “author” credit on a piece of paper with your ISBN number on it).
Step Four: Add Chapters As You Progress
As you write your book, you’ll want to add additional chapters as you go. This will make your book more engaging and help people stay interested. You can add new chapters at any time, but it’s best to do this gradually. People will become disinterested in your book if they’re not finding it to be informative (it’s easy for someone to find a book on baking to be informative, but not exactly the same as writing a book about investing in real estate).
You can also add mini-chapters along the way. It’s not necessary to add new chapters, but it can be extremely helpful to do so. This will make the book seem more organic and prevent the feeling that you’re just throwing something together (as you write new chapters, you’ll find that the book is becoming more complete, with a clear theme and logical flow).
Step Five: Build A Reader Base
Once you have a decent amount of content in your book, it’s time to begin building a reader base. For this, you can either use free tools such as social media or paid tools such as MailChimp (if you want to reach a more targeted audience).
You can also consider doing something different than what you usually do. If you’re writing about wine, you could decide to host a dinner party to invite people to (this could be followed by a Q&A session). Or, if you’re writing about photography, you could contact local galleries and museums and see if they’d like to exhibit your work (your ebook would then function as the catalogue raisonne).
The important thing to keep in mind is that you’re not just selling a book. You’re also connecting with potential readers and earning their business (or personal) attention.
Step Six: Distribute Your Book
You’re almost ready to distribute your book. For this, you’ll need to create a table of contents and the cover (a high-quality JPEG will suffice). Then, you can send your ebook to any online book distributor. If you want to keep things simple, you can use Amazon’s CreateSpace or Smashwords.
You’ll also need to consider the file size of your book. If you’re sending it via email, most people will prefer PDFs (Portable Document Files) as they’re easier to interact with (via email) and are significantly smaller in size than a Word file.
Step Seven: Make Money
Finally, you can start making money from your book. For this, you can use affiliate marketing. If people click a link in a blog post and make a purchase after reading your book, you’ll earn a small commission. Some blogs will even give you a small stipend for promoting them (it’s something called “affiliate marketing”, where you’re not only getting revenue from sales, but you’re also creating more interest in a marketplace).
The entire process of writing an ebook can be extremely rewarding. You’ll not only have a finished product that you can sell, but you’ll also have the opportunity to connect with others who have a similar interest to you.