The ebook world is an exciting one. No longer do you need to be bound to conventional publishing models such as print on paper or CD-Roms. With ebooks you can have your entire digital content library in the palm of your hand.
Interested in writing an ebook? Want to know what it takes to craft an exciting story that will keep readers engaged? If so, then this article is for you.
The Basics
An ebook is just a digital copy of a book. In theory, it doesn’t require much in terms of content to be published. Simply put it online and you’re good to go. No need to go through a publisher or editor to get it into print. You don’t even have to do any of the actual editing work.
However, like any other form of creation, there is more than one way to write an ebook. For instance, you can either write in an engaging style that will pull readers into the story or you can write in a way that will make them want to leave the page as soon as possible.
Choose A Genre
This might seem like an obvious one, yet it’s important to note that not all ebooks fit into every category. For instance, romance novels typically fall into the category of adult fiction, but they can also be classified as young adult fiction or even middle-grade fiction depending on the age of the characters and the nature of the story. (Young adult fiction mostly covers the lives of adults, while middle-grade fiction is aimed at children aged between 8 and 12 and older teens.)
As a general rule, try to pick a genre that you know you have a talent for. If you’re not sure which genre your story fits into, ask a friend or family member who knows and loves your work. They can usually tell you which category your story belongs in. Don’t worry too much about whether or not your story will fit into a specific genre. Instead, choose a category that you know you can pull off and then write towards that goal.
The Goal
The final piece of the puzzle is the actual goal of the ebook. What is your story actually trying to accomplish? This question is often times more important than anything else. Without a strong idea of what you’re trying to achieve, it’s extremely difficult to write a compelling story. If you can’t come up with an answer to this question, then you might want to step back and reevaluate the kind of story you’re trying to tell.
In many cases, authors will put themselves in the story. This might be the main character or a supporting character who is the mouthpiece for the story. It can also be an author who is the main character in a book they’ve written. Basically, if it’s a work of fiction, the character who you write about should be someone you are intimately familiar with and possess some insight into their life and thoughts. Otherwise, it won’t feel authentic.
The Product
With any new product or creation effort there is a certain amount of trial and error involved. You aren’t going to put out a product that is perfect the first time you use it. You are going to have to learn and grow with the product you’ve made or created. An ebook is no different. For this reason, it’s important to follow some tried and tested techniques so you can improve the quality of your output. (For more on this, check out our guide to writing a bestselling novel in just 12 weeks.)
Before you put your ebook online, there are a few things you can do to polish it up and make it as good as possible. One simple yet effective tactic is to revise it several times. When you’ve finished writing, go back through your work and make some notes on the existing drafts. (This is also a great way to ensure you don’t lose your raw material if your hard drive crashes or crashes for some reason.)
The next step is to go through the work and correct any obvious spelling errors and grammar mistakes. It’s also a good idea to use a professional editing service to help you polish your story. However, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can also take a stab at polishing it yourself with a thesaurus, a dictionary, and a good set of grammar and spelling tools. (You can also download these tools for free from various websites such as LibreOffice, Gingersoft, or Microsoft Word.)
Once you’ve got your ebook looking pretty good, it’s time to upload it to the various online platforms that exist today. The most popular ones are Kindle, Nook, and Smashwords. However, you can also upload to various sites such as Google Play, Apple Books, and Barnes and Noble. (You can find a complete list of ebook platforms here.)
If you’ve chosen to publish your ebook with a well-known platform, you can rest assured that you’re going to be able to find many readers. Even if your book isn’t accepted at first, you’ll soon find other publications which will appreciate your work. Remember, not every book is going to be accepted by every platform. The more popular and well-known the platform, the greater the chance that your book will be accepted. This, in turn, can lead to greater success as more people discover your work. (This is called reach and impact, and it’s an important concept to understand when writing and publishing online.)
The Promotion
Once you’ve published your ebook, it’s time to begin promoting it. It doesn’t end with just getting the word out there. You’re going to have to actively push the product and gain as much traction as possible. This means getting the word out there to as many people as possible via social media channels such as Twitter and Facebook. (It also means creating blog posts and website content to attract potential customers.)
You can use various tools and tactics to gain social media traction. Some of the most popular ones are:
- Hashtags
- Boosting
- Liking
- Shopping
- Cross-posting
- Guest posting
- Blogs
- YouTube
- Live chat
- Email campaigns
- Press releases
- Attendance at events
- And the list goes on
Don’t be afraid to try new things. Even if you’ve got years of experience as a professional author, you can always benefit from learning new things and expanding your skillset. (You can also read other helpful tips for newbies here.) Above all else, remember to have fun! If you’re passionate about writing, then it’s always a good idea to have some fun with it. (You wouldn’t usually call a doctor to go to the dentist, so why are you calling a literary agent to get your ebook published?)
Now, you might be wondering how you’re going to sell all that content to people. That’s where the various online stores come in. Each one provides different ways for authors to monetize their content. Some prefer to use affiliate marketing strategies while others might want to sell and display ads. The main thing is to figure out how you’re actually going to make money from your ebook so you can continue writing.