Why write an ebook? Why not? We live in a wonderful time where we as individuals can self publish our own work and make money at it. It’s never been easier or more cost affective to take something you have created and put it out their for the masses.
At the very least writing an ebook is going to require time. Time for you to write your ebook, edit it, and format it for an ebook reader. Things like cover art can be done through an ebook sell, such as Amazon.com, for free. A lot of the effort of creating an ebook has been made easy for you, the writer, by removing a lot of the stress, time, and waiting that one would normally experience going through a traditional publisher.
At most an ebook is going to cost you time and money. The time to write your ebook, the money it costs to have it edited by a professional editor, the money it costs to have someone professionally design your own cover art. It all depends on how far you want to take it.
I have been documenting my experiences of writing and self publishing. I hope to share my experiences with you in this and future blog posts. Hopefully answering any questions you might have about the process so you do not have to hunt around digging for answers much like I have had to do.
When I say self publish an eBook I am also talking about self publishing a physical book. Companies like Amazon.com offer people a way to sell their self published books on the Kindle eBook reader. They also offer people a Pint On Demand (POD) option which means when someone buys a physical copy of your book, one is created as needed to complete the sale. In almost the same way you can upload your book so it can be sold for eBook readers, you can also upload your book so a physical copy can be sold and not cost you a dime.
In both the eBook and POD options you have the choice to set the price of your book which allows you to determine how much commission you will make for each book’s sale. Wether it be an ebook or a POD book. Isn’t living in the future cool?
Recently sales figures show that eBook copies have been out selling physical copies of the same books. This means that people who are buying books are choosing to buy electronic versions. This could be for any number of reasons. Perhaps its because they don’t have to carry around heavy books anymore. Maybe its because of the ease in which you can purchase an eBook. Or still it could be because eBooks tend to cost less than physical books. Whatever the reason may be, its clear that people are making the shift from paper books to eInk eBooks.
Amazon.com is now selling more Kindle books than paperback books. Since the beginning of the year, for every 100 paperback books Amazon has sold, the company has sold 115 Kindle books. Additionally, during this same time period the company has sold three times as many Kindle books as hardcover books.”This is across Amazon.com’s entire US book business and includes sales of books where there is no Kindle edition. Free Kindle books are excluded and if included would make the numbers even higher.
For anyone who has not yet read on an eBook device like the Amazon Kindle, I can honestly say from my own experience that reading on such a device has been a great experience. Its like staring at a piece of paper. I have never once experience eye strain from reading on an eBook device. The technology is sound and proven.
Creating something and getting paid for it has never been easier. In fact I think the hardest part is just creating. Give yourself some time each day. Even if it is just a couple of minutes and write, photograph, or create. Whatever it is. Just create!
