Wednesday Writerly Way~ Formatting Your Manuscript for Publication

I'm on hiatus from my blog but The Indelibles Indie Life is one of my commitments. I take commitments very seriously so here I am posting again....SURPRISE!

By the way I'm still on hiatus. My real life intrusions have lessened some. I'm feeling better, sleeping better, and my heart isn't thumping out of my chest as much. Thanks for your patience.

 If you haven't indie published your manuscript before, you need to scrutinize formatting instructions carefully. The difference between paperback and e-books formatting is night and day. The difference in types of e-reader formats is also mind boggling.

In printed publishing, typesetters is not a do-it-yourself task. Or not one task to take on with a cavalier attitude. It's a critical function of book production. Yes, Amazon's CreateSpace has an interior format you can follow and other self-publishing companies which makes it seem easy BUT WAIT.

Is not as simple as it may appear. You think you can just copy and paste your text chapter by chapter into the space provided this is easy, but there are all kinds of tweaks involved to present a professional looking copy even with a template. You have to compare what you wrote to the "book" version. Things you may have to tweak...

• Font size
• Type of font
• Italics
• Bold
• Justified text. You don't want it to read like t      h       i      s at the end of the sentence.
• Headers and footers. I had a 2" drop of a header in one of my books that looked normal on the screen when I ordered the preview copy I noticed the drop.
• Chapter headings on a new page and spaced appropriately.

These are just a few things to look out for. It is always wise to order and pay for a preview copy before publishing. Then red pen the things you want to change in it.

Now e-formatting is a bug-a-boo at best. Even following the pages upon pages of instructions. Each e-reader has a different format, each need a creation of a metadata file for chapter headings so readers can search for individual chapters. It's a heck of a learning curve even with one e-reader format.

I cheat and use Smashwords, they do all that formatting stuff for me. I only have to learn one format, theirs. Well, I take that back. Since they have had problems with Amazon Kindle distribution, I publish with Amazon's Kindle myself so I learned two formats out of eight. I've honestly got better things to do with my time than learning all the formats...like writing, family, and living my life.

In indie publishing, you want your book to look as good as the mainstream publishers. Maybe even better, because of the typo they have. I've found multiple typos in mainstream published books because it's too expensive to change them all. Of course you can say the heck with all of that and hire someone to do the formatting for you. But as always, check their credentials. Your baby doesn't need a fly by night operation.

With Smashwords they have a list of formatters available for a price. I'd strongly recommend getting one of them if your manuscript has multiple pictures and graphics, or a cookbook. I learned from experience on this one. I self published Are You a Survivalist or a Prepper? and didn't utilize their services. Numerous kick outs by their meatgrinder which checks for errors in formatting and a month later, it was approved for distribution. That book only had six diagrams and photos in it.

Are you thinking of indie publishing? Have you indie published a book? What are your horror stories with formatting? Did you learn anything from this blog?

Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Wednesday Writerly Way ~ Online is Easy

Marketing online is easy with social media, right? I mean there are tons of sites that you can promote your books as an author. Is there such a thing as being online too much? How do you know you are reaching your target audience?

I'm on MySpace, GoodReads, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, SheWrites, belong to a large number of writerly sites for authors and readers alike, and follow blogs when written. If I spent any number of hours on these sites I'd never get any writing done on any WIP. Besides there are tons of indie and traditional authors doing the same thing...get to know me, howdy, I wrote a book, buy my book blurbs in 140 characters or less, and websites and blogs. It's a disorganized mess out there with tons of competition. So what's my angle?

I've been accused a time or two of having Montezuma's Revenge of the mouth...talking too much. My blog isn't any different. While most blogging experts say to keep blogs short and sweet, I do just the opposite. My blogs are meaty chunks of succulent details that you can't help but sink your teeth into and come back for seconds. The only thing short about me is my stature, but then only if I'm not riled up because I can get ten feet tall and in your face if the circumstances warrant it. I've made full grown, good old boys cower in fear. My blog is my perfect platform for my condition and it works for me.

Those other places, I check in weekly unless there is an event going on. I get weekly digests of who said what and when that happened while I was away. I do spent quite a bit of time, several times a day, in emails. There may be a three week backlog in my answering you back.  I'm there but not there. They are my silent salesmen working 24/7 just like this blog does. My Amazon author space and Smashwords is updated automatically as I publish. My blogs and twitter comments are posted on several site usually within twenty-four hours of posting them...I'm all about double or triple duty uses with one effort. That's because I have a life too, don't we all?

Be it tenacity or pure mule headed stubbornness, however you cut it. We as indie authors face the same challenges without a Big 6 publisher holding our hand or offering support. We have our own support and hand holding network of friends and authors...like Indelibles and a host of other sites.

So how much of an online presence do you need? A lot, but if you can find options that allow double duty for the same action, grab it and run. I'm averaging 5,000 to 10,000 hits a month on this blog so for me its exposure. If everyone that stopped by bought even one of my books, I'd be rolling in money. I realize the more likely number from sales is 10% of that. I spend a lot of time doing the analytics thing. I analyze what is the best use for my money and time is money. Although the experts say that blogging doesn't relate to book sales I beg to differ...mine does. In each of my books there is a section in the about author that I add contact information. Yep, this website is listed. It works for me. I can see the numbers.

I did something really smart or very stupid during the Smashwords "Read an e-book" promotion. I set all my books for free except one. Over 100 books flew into people's e-reader formats. But Jo, that's money out of your pocket. Yes, it is. I advertised the sale everywhere listed above, but only 100 books were downloaded. That's good news and bad by my calculations. I really expected the number to be higher on the bad side of the scale considering it was five titles. Conversely, my sales to B&N and Apple accounted for 200 books paid for tipping the scales the other way. So I lost some money during the promotion but made twice as much in sales in other areas...go figure. It was a gambled risk that worked out. Sometimes an author just wants to see what happens and to get books into readers' hands.

Seeing how I advertised the sale everywhere along with quite a few other authors the numbers of downloads didn't sway the numbers too much. So the question I pose is why spend hours upon hours promoting a book online? Use your time and resources wisely. I know I do.

Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Smashwords Read an Ebook Week Promotion

This just in (news ticker sounding)...

Smashwords is doing their Read an Ebook Week Promotion again this year.  March 3-9, 2013. It's a wonderful way to get your books into readers' hands and I am participating.

The reduced prices look something like this on all of my books @ Smashwords this week only!

Escape From Second Eden    Sale price $1.00
(The reason this one is only 75% discounted is because I've given away 2,000 copies already.)
Are You a Survivalist or a Prepper?    Sale price FREE
The Author Business      Sale price FREE
The Sacrificial Lamb    Sale price FREE
Zombie Apocalypse:Redemption    Sale price FREE




So if you've wanted a copy of my ebook, one or all, but couldn't afford it, Grab your copy today!

What are you still doing here?

Publishing Smashwords Style

When I first thought about e-publishing I went to people whose opinion I respect...my compuserve buddies. Over the years I had watched other author publish with Lulu, e-universe, and a host of other self publishing companies.  To say the least, I was overwhelmed by options. Yes, I've thought about self-publishing for almost five years. Not because I couldn't find an agent or publisher willing to publish my novels, but due to personal reasons.  Then I started hearing the rumblings about Smashwords.com. They offered me something other self-publishing houses didn't offer.  Control and the experience I lacked in self-publishing.

What I liked most was all the information I needed was at my fingertips in the Smashwords guides everything from style to marketing. The fact that all the information is free was an added perk.  Mark Coker's baby has grown to a huge market. Instead of just offering books to Kindle or Nook e-readers, he offers all formats for all people whether they have a Nook, Kindle, or simply a computer. A link for a downloadable e-reader for the computer is also free for those like me who do not have an e-reader, but want to break into the e-version marketplace. It's not that I'm against paying for services, but as an author who still maintains a day job, free is great.

The Style Guide to publishing on Smashwords is simply no style. No format- no margins, a simple font, basic indents and centers. I actually have my word processing program formatted this way now. It saves a lot of headaches later when uploading my novels.  The concept of no styling is foreign to standard word processing users.  It looks strange to see all the words at the top of the page and all the text as far left as the paper allows.  Printing out and proofreading in this style is eyestrain, but it appears proper on e-readers. Yes, I check after uploading onto their site. Never forget this last step because first impressions are lasting ones.

I can remember waiting overnight in a queue to upload my novel.  Smashwords has fixed this issue. Now, I can go from manuscript to e-version in as little as fifteen minutes.  Talk about almost instant gratification! With so many traditionally published, like me, or the novice author jumping on the bandwagon of self-publishing and e-publishing, Mark is doing something right. With close to three BILLION words available and almost 60,000 titles available it puts a serious chink in Amazon Kindle's library as a strong contender.  I've noticed a bunch of copycats out there over the past six months...it is the ultimate form of flattery. Mark has taken the guess work out of self-publishing/e-publishing.  The market guide has step by step guides for  successful marketing campaigns. This too makes the process simple.  This is not to say self-publishing is for everyone.  If your sales are in the toilet then you haven't done something right.  It is all about YOU, the author.

Now, for what my readers have been waiting for...2 days and counting until the release of "Zombie Apocalypse: Redemption."  It will be a sweet e-launch deal for lucky readers of horror! On the 31st for everyone stopping by this blog to celebrate the launch, I will forward a coupon for a FREE downloadable e-copy of the novel via Smashwords.com!!!! I know a lot of you have been waiting on pins and needles because of the fifty plus e-mails per day for the past three weeks!

I will publish one more blog on the day of the release with directions on how you can have our very own, free e-copy so stay tuned.

As always keep writing and loving the Lord.

Smashwords Promotion

As many of you may have heard Smashwords is having a Summer/Winter promotion. I have joined with both titles I have posted there.
New pricing until end of July. Beat the heat and grab a book to curl up with.

Escape from Second Eden https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/40926  -75% off -your cost is $1.00
The Sacrificial Lamb http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/50862
-50% off- your cost is $1.50