E-Book Creation and Distribution

A Perfect E-Book From Your Manuscript

What's Included?

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Frequently Asked Questions

• Why Do I Have to Pay In Advance?

  When you purchase an à la carte service from me, it’s set at a price that is considerably lower than I might otherwise charge.

  That lower price is possible because:

  1. The work is done according to pre-defined criteria, which means I know exactly what I’ll need to do to complete it, and you know exactly what you’ll get, and when.
  2. You’ve paid in advance, which means I can also predict my revenue and workload over time.

  This is not unlike other pay-in-advance exchanges, such as when you buy an ice cream cone or fast food. The outcome is predictable by all parties, as is the price.

• Why Not Use a Free Solution?

  Whether you use the built in EPUB export features of some word processors, use a stand-alone program, or one of the online options, you’re going to get a “cookie cutter” result.

  There’s a reason such solutions are called “meatgrinders” — they take what you give them and make what they can of it, often compromising along the way.

  Free converters (like exporting from Word or importing into Calibre or other applications) do their best to interpret the formatting of the original document by adding a lot of extra code that, in turn, makes the resulting EPUB file a bloated mess.

  The bigger the file, the more Amazon and other online marketplaces will charge you (as a deduction from your royalty) every time someone buys your book.

  When I create an EPUB file, I make sure the underlying code is optimized for minimal size, which ensures you won’t be unduly penalized for a giant download with every purchase.

  Meatgrinder solutions — whether they’re converters built into other programs, or free-standing applications — often offer a choice of templates to create a particular look and feel for your e-book.

  The trouble is… that means your e-book looks just like hundreds — maybe thousands — of other books on the market.

  That’s probably not the best choice for your brand. Your books should all look like they come from you, not from a cookie-cutter assembly line!

• Can I Trust You With My Manuscript?

  When you hire me to create an e-book out of your manuscript and cover art, you have to send me… your manuscript and cover art. There’s really no other way to do it, right? I mean, I’m very good at what I do, but I’m not magic.

  So what’s stopping me from making an e-book out of your intellectual property, slapping my name on it, and selling it on Amazon and everywhere else as if it was my own? Why should you trust me?

  1. I have literally dozens of my own books I’ve written and sell, am writing, or plan to write. I simply don’t need your book.
  2. Perhaps more to the point, I don’t want your book! That’s your book. I have my own, and I have enough of an ego to want to be known for something I’ve created, not something you created I pass off as mine.
  3. Folks have been coming to me to create their e-books almost since Amazon started selling them in 2007. This is (part of) my job.
  4. Related: I’d have to be some kind of idiot to risk my livelihood on the chance that I’d make enough money stealing someone’s book it’d be worth destroying my reputation and my ability to earn a living.

  I’m not going to steal your book.

• How Does This Work?

  First, make sure your manuscript is edited and ready for publication. It should be formatted in standard manuscript format in a .doc, .docx, .odt, or .rtf file.

  You’ll also need a cover, which should be a .png or .jpg / .jpeg file at least 2,560 pixels high and 1,650 pixels wide, with a height / width ratio of 1.6:1.

  Don’t have a cover? That’s okay! You won’t be able to do the à la carte option, but I’ll still be able to help you. Keep reading!

  Fill out the form below. In addition to your name and email address, I’ll need to know the word count of your masterpiece, as that determines the base price of the work.

  The à la carte e-book creation service assumes a “standard” prose e-book. If you need special stuff, like charts or tables, interior images, footnotes, a fixed layout, and such, you’ll have a chance to let me know on the form.

  Special features mean special treatment, so the à la carte option (and pricing) won’t apply to your project, but as with the e-book cover, don’t despair! Complete the form; I’ll still be able to help you.

  Upload your manuscript and cover and submit your payment information. Payment is done through the secure, encrypted Square payment processing service, and I never see your payment details.

  The e-book creation service is first come, first served, so once I get your payment and your files, I’ll reach out to you to let you know when the work will begin on your e-book.

  From that date, expect ten to fifteen business days to get you your EPUB and MOBI files (maybe even faster, depending on the size of your manuscript and how quickly you respond with requested revisions, if any).

  Did you have special requests, or need an e-book cover? You won’t be uploading anything or paying anything just yet. Simply submit the form and I’ll get back to you to learn more about your project and provide you with a fair quote.

• What Do I Get?

  You’ll receive two e-book files and, as a courtesy if you request it, upload service to your accounts at Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing platform and Direct2Digital, a platform that distributes e-books on your behalf to all the other major and minor e-book marketplaces around the world.

  The e-book files will be in EPUB and MOBI formats.

  The EPUB format is the international standard format for e-books. It’s natively compatible with all e-book reader devices and apps except Amazon Kindle devices and apps. The file will be 100% compatible with the EPUB 3 standard, guaranteed to be technically acceptable to all marketplaces and devices that use EPUB files.

  The MOBI format is compatible with Amazon Kindle devices and apps. It is based on the EPUB format and will be created by converting the EPUB file I create. MOBI is most useful if you wish to sell your e-book independent of a marketplace (perhaps via your own website) but have customers who use Kindle devices and apps, as your customer will be able to “side load” the file onto their Kindle device or into their Kindle app.

• Will My E-book Look Exactly How I Want?

  Standard e-books are, by design, intended to give the reader a great deal of flexibility and latitude to create their ideal reading experience.

  Changes readers can make include, but aren’t limited to:

  • Font choice
  • Text size
  • Margin width
  • Line spacing
  • Color of text and screen background

  Additionally, because the reader can change so much when it comes to the way the book displays on a screen, and because there are so many different screens on which they might read an e-book (computer, tablet, phone, dedicated e-reader, etc.) pages in an e-book don’t necessarily correspond to pages in a print book. The text is intended to flow in a way that caters to the reader’s optimal experience, not the author’s.

  This is the kind of e-book I’ll create for you when you purchase the à la carte e-book creation package. It’s ideally suited for most books.

  If you have specific layout and typographic needs — perhaps your book is a children’s picture book, or a graphic novel, or a technical work with a lot of charts, graphs, formulae, or other specialized content — I can still help you! Let me know what you’re looking for when you complete the application form, and I’ll provide you with a custom quote.

• Can I Make Changes Once I Review The E-book You Create?

  When I turn in your e-book file, you’re encouraged to review it to look for technical or formatting issues that might have crept in during the e-book creation process. I will correct those. This is the revision process, included in the price you pay in advance.

  If you want to re-write something, change a character’s eye color, cut a paragraph, or make other editorial changes, I will have to charge you for the time it takes me to make those editorial revisions.

  In other words, when you upload your manuscript, it should be your final draft, the version of your book that is well and truly done.

  If I make a technical mistake during the e-book creation process and you point it out during the revision round, I will fix it and create a revised file. Editorial revisions will be billed separately and may delay the delivery of the finished product.

• How Do We Get Started?

  I’m so glad you asked!

  Completely fill out the form below, upload your manuscript and cover art, and make your payment.

  You’ll get an automated acknowledgement that I received your uploads and your payment. Then, I’ll reach out to you within one business day to let you know when I’ll be starting on your e-book, and when you can expect it to be delivered.

  Let’s go!

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