e books. What and how are they.

tote_alley_stressed

Hi, my son has talked about me making e books about various things but I am new to all this so could anybody please help. I love writing and after having an accident at work 15 months ago really need something that will also generate an income. Any advice gratefuly received.:j :j

misspixierocktastic

I can't help but i am very interested in this kind of thing too :-)

NigeWick

I have written my autobiography and am releasing as an e-book so that I can get an idea of how it sells, and, does not cost too much to produce. Having said that, I have spent some money on software that will allow me to sell copies that will each have an individual "key." The idea being that if I release it as a .pdf file, people would be able to just copy it and distribute it.

All an e-book is, is a file that can be read on computers rather than a printed book. They are usually much shorter than normal books and contain information that people want in easy to follow chunks. There are also people who will give advice on how to go about marketing them. But, you can get the basics for free if you look.

Nigel.

melipona

There are lots of examples here that some people sell on e-bay, That you can get them from this site possibly demonstrates that it is flawed as a money earning scheme.

Happy Christmas

homeworkeruk

There are two main ways of earning from ebooks (often referred to as self-publishing). The first way is to write a book on any topic, usually how-to guides, and charge a fee for the book. If you visit clickbank at https://www.clickbank.com/buy_products.htm you'll find hundreds if not thousands of current publications.

Alternatively you can write an ebook, filling it with links to relevant products/services/sites etc. and give it away for free, earning commission whenever anybody registers/buys from the links within the book.

This is a massive subject but there are many ebooks around that will explain just what's involved. I used to have an excellent 6 part CD course aimed at the UK market which covered this in depth but unfortunately it has been discontinued. PM me if you're interested in more information and I'll hunt out some free guides that might be helpful.

TheLettingsGuy

I sold an e-book on my old website and on ebay about 4 years ago. After buying Adobe publisher and getting someone to design a cover for the book (it really helps) I went right ahead and did it.

The problem is that in the UK the market (in my opinion) is too small so your book will need universal (ie.American) appeal. This is not as easy as it sounds and although I published a RRP of £19.95 my average price for each book sold was something like £3/4.

I hate to say it but like anything else, you need to offer something that is either unavailable or offers something new on the subject you are writing about.

I gave up but good luck anyway

aztec21

Yes I agree with you on the UK market being too small. If you can somehow appeal to the American market as well you have 6 times more potential customers.

The problem is that most markets with broad appeal are somewhat saturated so you will have to find a different angle of approach.

Best of luck because the e book market is highly competitive.

jeanette251978

Well you can get them for free if you research it, and you also get re-selling
rights too!

The key is research!

geordie_joe

jeanette251978 wrote: »

Well you can get them for free if you research it, and you also get re-selling
rights too!

The key is research!

And that is the problem with ebooks, the only way you can sell them is to give the buyer the resale rights too.

The problem is anyone can publish an ebook, as opposed to getting a publishing company to publish a real book. Because if this there is a lot of rubbish in ebooks, as well as stuff you already knew. Most people would not buy an ebook because they know it will be rubbish.

I have seen a lot of ebooks and been disappointed with every one, not one of them was worth the download.

destiny_star2006

Can anyone either guide me to the ebook thread or kindly tell me how to make one of these to sell to others? :beer: will buy u 2 pints lol:money:

geordie_joe

destiny_star2006 wrote: »

Can anyone either guide me to the ebook thread or kindly tell me how to make one of these to sell to others? :beer: will buy u 2 pints lol:money:

Selling ebooks is really hard, most people give them away and most people who get one find they are cr*p.

Having said that, if you want to make one then do a google search for ebook making software, you should find loads of it for free.

Here's the first free one I found.

http://www.snapfiles.com/reviews/NATATA_eBook_Compiler/natataebook.html

Don't know anything about it, but it should give you an idea of what is involved with turning your words into an ebook.