eBook Architects and our EBook

So, eBook Architects came through for my writer S.O. and I in a big way last week. For $210 we had the galley PDF converted into a file for Smashwords Premium files (available for ALL e-book readers and computers) and a file for Kindle. I also paid $125 for our own ISBN for the e-book file. This is not something we had to do, so we could have had everything for $210. I bought the ISBN for the electronic book (not through eBook Architects) so that in the future, if we parted from AuthorHouse with the paperback/ hardcover editions of the novel, we wouldn't have to worry about the electronic book- the ISBN belongs to us, not another publishing company. We are truly 100% self-publishers of the e-book.

Now comes the hard part: selling. Uploading the documents to Smashwords and Amazon Kindle was relatively easy. However, in the past 7 days, we've only sold 2 copies on Smashwords and had 6 free sample downloads (awesome perk on Smashwords: you can allow anyone to download a portion of your book for free to sample before buying). That means I'll have to invest more time and possibly money into advertising, neither of which I have much of now, but perhaps after the holiday season. Bad news on Amazon front: their system says it will take them 24-72 hours to check you book and make it available for Kindles. It's been a week, and I'm still getting the same message. At the same time, on Smashwords, someone can download a Kindle version of the book. Frustrating.

I will keep readers updated on experiences with sales and marketing, but I do recomment eBook Architects. The owner of the company was VERY easy to work with and saved me a LOT of stress. Hopefully it will pay off monetarily in the future as well. :)

Cafe Press- book-related products

I recently saw one new author turn to Cafe Press to create online t-shirts, mugs, and other paraphernalia advertising his book. I'm tucking this idea into the back of my head for possible future use. Cafe Press has free basic packages that allow you to create stuff with your logo or advertisement that can be sold online. For a yearly payment of around $70, you can do a premium package with them that has more design choices than the basic package. Cafe Press could be an option for those of you with your own website who could link it to your own "shop" on Cafe Press's site, especially if you have written something that has creative catch phrases, or you have fans, friends, or family who might enjoy items with tag phrases from your books. Little cost to you, some profit, and some "free" advertising.

Visit www.cafepress.com