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Article by: Caroline Lewsey, freelance writer at Globe Soup.

It is notoriously difficult for writers to get published if they go down the traditional route. The market is very competitive, complicated, and often difficult to negotiate. Finding a publisher willing to give you a chance can seem impossible too. Fortunately, technology has given the independent author the chance to forge their own path and publish on their own terms. E-books allow indiet writers the opportunity to self-publish, bypassing the traditional publisher altogether, and while sales of e-books for traditional publishing are said to be declining, the indie publishing market is thriving, with many independent writers finding great success in the digital market. 

There are many advantages to self-publishing an e-book. Firstly, it’s quick. Once your book is ready to upload, it can be up for sale in as little as a few hours and you can reach a larger audience simply by uploading to multiple platforms at the same time. E-books are often a cheaper alternative for readers allowing you to reach more people who, now more than ever, may not be able to afford your book otherwise, and no one can deny the environmental advantage of an e-book. The digital format doesn’t just save paper, it also reduces the large carbon footprint associated with traditional printing. 

Here are our tips for self-publishing an eBook. 

Fine Tune Your Work

There are a lot of things to consider when you think your book is finished. How long is it? Is it too long or too short for the audience you’re targeting? Does it flow as a single story? Is there continuity?  One of the best things to do when you think your book is finished is to read it out loud, or have someone read it to you. How does it sound? When you hear it out loud, sometimes it is easier to spot where changes can be made to make it flow better. The smallest of changes can often make a big difference. 

Next is the question of editing. You should never overlook the importance of editing your work before self-publishing. One of the biggest mistakes new writers make is publishing their book too soon, when it’s still badly edited. And while e-book platforms often allow you to go back into your work and edit, even after publication, it’s best to get it right the first time. Multiple errors often put readers off, losing you some number of sales in the long run. Grammarly is an excellent tool to help you spot errors in grammar, spelling, and clarity. It even offers suggestions to help you get it right. You can also enlist the help of friends, family, other writers, and colleagues. Get them to read your book looking for spelling, grammar, continuity, and flow errors. If you aren't sure of either your or your friends’ editing skills, you can enlist a professional's help. Just remember that whatever you spend on editing will affect the overall return on your book. Don’t spend a fortune on editing services (or book cover design) thinking you’ll definitely make the money back in book sales. Instead, only spend whatever you can afford to lose.  

 

Get the Cover Right 

Getting the right cover right in any type of publishing is very important, but with an E-book, there is the added pressure of getting it to stand out as a thumbnail image. Obviously, the cover should suit the story content or genre, be eye-catching enough to draw in readers, but also be clear enough to be effective as a thumbnail picture. You should also make sure your cover holds all the vital information about your book. Title and author’s name obviously, but also remember, if your book is part of a series, you should include the volume numbe. There are plenty of cover designers out there if you don’t have those skills, and there are also websites that can lead you in the right direction. Reedsy, a website designed to help you build your book from beginning to end by connecting you with resources such as designers, publicists, marketers, and editors, is an ideal choice to help you find the right cover designer for you.  

Choose a Platform 

Once you’re happy with your book; it's been edited and shared with beta readers, friends, and family, it's time to choose where to upload it.  There are many platforms out there and most allow you to upload the e-book for free, charging you a small percentage of your earnings. And while they all charge something, the percentages can vary significantly from platform to platform. It is also worth noting that on some platforms, what you decide to charge for your book may affect your royalty percentage, so make sure you read all the small print before you commit.  Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KPD), Apple iBooks Store, Barnes & Noble Press (formerly Nook Press), and Kobo Writing Life are leading the industry in this field, so we’d recommend you start there.   

You can of course choose to upload your book to multiple platforms at the same time, how much time you have to spend doing that may make that untenable but if that is what you want to do, and, if you can afford it, you can use an aggregator, a website who can do the distribution for you. If you choose to do this, you only have to upload your book once, and the aggregator will distribute it to multiple platforms for you. Smashwords and Draft2Digital are a couple of examples of popular aggregator websites.  

 

Choose a Format 

There are plenty of things to consider when choosing the format for your eBook. For example, some platforms only accept certain formats, and some formats can only be read on certain devices, and whether or not your book has illustrations is also a consideration, so it's worth giving it some thought before you choose. There are three popular formats used when uploading to a platform, 

• Fixed layout E-books are perfect for E-books that contain multimedia, meaning you can add pictures or video, making it ideal for books that are illustrated. With this format, your pages are fixed the way you set them out according to your specific design. Fixed layout can be used with Amazon, Apple iBooks store, and Blurb bookstore.  

• PDF is the perfect format for sending your book to people and it allows for easy sharing between people and can be read on any device. The downside is it cannot support illustrations and it creates very large files which are not ideal for a lot of mobile devices.  

• Reflowable E-books are great for novels and unillustrated content, as the pages are not set out specifically the way you designed them, allowing for the text to be adapted according to the device it is being viewed on and the size of its screen. The lines of text will change to suit the device's specific orientation.  

There are pros and cons to each format, so it might be worth doing a little research to help you choose the right format for you. Kitaboo has an excellent article about the differences between the formats and how to choose the format that is right for you. 

 

Get The Pricing Right 

Publishing an E-book has many advantages, and a lower production cost is one of the biggest. However, the reduced cost of production should be reflected in the price you charge. As an indie writer who is self-publishing, you are in the position to charge what you think is best.  

Start with a little research into E-books already published that are similar to your own and that should give you a general idea of where to start, but there are also other considerations. The length of your work is one, short stories, novellas, and novels will all be completely different. In addition, the platform you choose will have some bearing on your choice, as some platforms take a higher percentage fee than others.  

Which country you are publishing from matters too. Prices in the US versus the UK for example, are different. Readers in the UK tend to prefer cheaper books, while Americans are often willing to pay a little more, but keep in mind, pricing on E-books is fluid and you can change it when you want. Keep your eye on the market, if prices change, go back and adjust your price.  

 

Write a Gripping Book Description 

Writing a great book description is as important as marketing because, without it, readers don’t know why they should read your book. Once a reader has found your book online, you have a brief moment to hook them in and make them want to buy your book. Your book title and cover can only do so much, that’s when the description you write becomes irreplaceable. You should aim to include just enough information about what is going to happen to make the reader yearn for the answers to the questions forming in their mind. An E-book description should be as captivating as possible so that when a reader discovers your book on a platform, they are hooked quickly enough to buy your book. There are great tips on how to get the best out of your book description in this article on the Blurb website. 

 

Use Metadata to Boost Your Visibility 

For a lot of us, the word metadata is scary. It seems technical and confusing but, simply put, metadata is words or phrases you could use to describe your book, such as the author’s name, book blurb, genre, and even your title. These are all things readers will use to find a book through a platform’s search engine.  

Think about how you would describe your book and come up with a list of keywords and phrases that best reflect the book you have written, then test it out. Go into one of the platforms and type those keywords into their search engine. If you have the right words, the books that come up in the search should be similar to yours. If not, try again with different keywords until you get the results you want. Once you have the correct list of keywords, you can go back and weave those words into your book blurb, author bio, and your title. Adding a subtitle is also a great trick to weaving in metadata. 

  

Upload Your Book 

Have you finished writing and editing your book? When all the formatting and proofreading are done, and you’ve chosen a cover, it’s time to upload your book to the platform, or platforms of your choice. Publishing an E-book may seem daunting but there is a lot of information available for writers if you do your research. There are plenty of step-by-step guides online if you look for them which can help you make the process a lot easier. When everything is ready and uploaded, get onto social media, post about your E-book that is about to launch, and send out emails to people on your mailing list. You've done everything you can, it’s time to sit back and see what happens, and start on the next one. 

Create Your Marketing Team 

You can create an effective marketing team without it costing you money. Gather as many people as you can to help you promote your work. Social media and word-of-mouth are often the best way to spread information. Use friends, family, co-workers, book club members, writing groups, and fellow writers to help you spread the news of your book launch as far as possible. The further it spreads, the faster your book will get noticed. 

Writing and self-publishing a book in any form can be intimidating, but the technical aspect of creating an E-book can make it worse. You have most likely spent a lot of time, energy, and passion writing this book so don’t rush the publishing process. Relax and do your research. Knowledge is key to making it simple. If you are still in doubt, or you are sure you don’t have the skills, get some help. Self-publishing does not have to mean you have to do it alone.  

Caroline graduated from Glyndwr University in 2020 with a first-class degree in English and Creative Writing. An avid reader since childhood, she enjoys spending her time writing short stories, working on her novel and writing occasional non-fiction blog content.