Tag Archives: ebook

IndieView: Timothy Frost, author of, The Abigail Affair

The Abigail Affair by author Timothy FrostI’ve got a few thousand sea miles under my belt, all in and around the South China Sea, which is why a friend of mine recommended, ‘The Abigail Affair’. So I trundled off to Amazon, paid the ridiculous international wireless delivery charge, and got the book. About eight hours later I was finished. Yes, this is a, “Don’t interupt me I’m reading novel.”

You can read my review of The Abigail Affair hereAfter all that I had to get in touch with Tim, and invite him to spill the beans. Which he graciously agreed to do – herewith the beans.

“I thought, ‘What the hell?’ and uploaded it. I got some great reviews, and then it went from Smashwords on to Barnes and Noble and ended up in their Top 10 e-books with 14,000 downloads. I realized I should carry on writing, and that there was no need for an agent or a publisher any more.” – Timothy Frost 17 December 2010 Continue reading

IndieView: Scott Nicholson, author of, The Skull Ring

Cover for The Skull Ring, by author, Scott Nicholson

If you’re a reader, reviewer or writer, you should spend some time reading what Scott Nicholson has written. And that’s all I’ve got to say about that.

“Some writers say they only write for themselves, but I don’t believe in that, either. I think about the story. Tell a good story.” – Scott Nicholson 3 December 2010 Continue reading

IndieView: Valmore Daniels, author of, Forbidden The Stars

Cover for Forbidden The Stars, by author Valmore Daniels

As an indie author one of the things you’ve got to work hard at is making connections and marketing. Just about every forum I’ve joined, Valmore has been hanging out in the, “Introduce Yourself” thread and has always welcomed me to any new forum. If you head over to KindleBoards, you’ll also find, in the Writer’s Cafe, that Valmore shares things he learns with other indie authors. Lots of good karma points.

“For Forbidden The Stars I use an online editor program, and that came back to haunt me. From this point on, everything I write I will filter through a professional human editor.” – Valmore Daniels 2 December 2010 Continue reading

IndieView: Vicki Tyley, author of, Thin Blood

Cover for Thin Blood, by Author Vicki Tyley

Vicki is currently one of four Indie authors who are Amazon reader’s favorites for 2010. The book above has sold over 25,000 copies. By any standards that’s a successful book. Whether you’re just starting out on the Indie path or the soles of your shoes are worn thin, this interview will give you the inspiration and courage to keep going.

“I’m an Australian writer with an American agent. After a lot of effort, he’d been unable to sell Thin Blood, in large part because most of the publishers refused to even look at the book. “Americans don’t want to read Australian mysteries,” he was told… As of today, with sales in excess of 25,000 it’s an Amazon 2010 Customer Favorite.” – Vicki Tyley 24 November 2010 Continue reading

IndieView: Lexi Revellian, author of, Remix

Cover for Remix, by author, Lexi Revellian

A friend suggested that I get in touch with Lexi Revellian. He knows I’m on the lookout for quality indie books and their authors. I did and was impressed. Not just with the book, a fast, smooth read, reminiscent of a Dick Francis, but also with Lexi’s professional focus.

“I knew there was a market for the book from the reaction it got in the early days of Authonomy, and I’ve been proved right so far; to date Remix has spent four weeks in the top 100 in the UK Kindle chart, and sold over a thousand copies.”

Lexi Revellian ~ 11 Nov 2010

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IndieView: Joseph Robert Lewis, author of, “Heirs of Mars”

Cover for Heirs Of Mars, by author, Joseph Robert Lewis

Joseph Robert Lewis was a great interview. He’s a good example of the new generation of Indie Authors putting out quality work. His ethos and professionalism are impeccable, as is the book. Oh, yeah, it’s a great story too! If classic sci-fi is your thing, or you just love a good story with interesting characters and a cool plot, then this one’s for you.

“Indie publishing is just like industry publishing. A handful of people will skyrocket to wealth and notoriety, partly by talent and partly by luck, but most of us will just grind away with small audiences and small profits, if any. The benefit, however, is that there is no gatekeeper preventing you from trying.” – Joseph Robert Lewis ~ 1 Nov 2010

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IndieView: Zoe Winters, author of, “Blood Lust”

Cover for Blood Lust, by author, Zoe Winters

The name Zoe Winters will be familiar to many in the Indie book circles. Zoe writes  paranormal romance and returns after a brief sabbatical from internet life to give us this exclusive interview in which she threatens my life, tells me about her book, writing methods, and her take on Indie Publishing.

“I write for myself first and my audience second. So basically an ideal reader is someone who likes the stuff I like… I tell the stories I have to tell and hope that there are enough readers out there who enjoy them” – Zoe Winters ~ 1 Nov 2010

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IndieView: Steven Lake, author of, “The Oort Perimeter”

The Oortperimeter, by author, Steven Lake

Steven Lake, featured in today’s IndieView, is a prolific author. More importantly he’s a good writer, and he loves writing. There’s nothing more pleasurable, from a reader’s point of view, than finding a new author, whose writing you love, and finding out they’ve written a whole pile of books.

Steven writes full-time. Lots of good advice here for new writers. Continue reading

eBook Distribution

As the title says this post is focused on eBook distribution. For Print On Demand (POD), there is a whole bunch of players, same good and some really bad. A really good post on the subject written by David Carnoy is here. If you’re just starting out on this journey then David’s post is a valuable use of your time. I really liked;

Creating a “professional” book is really hard.

Barrier to entry may be low, but creating a book that looks professional and is indistinguishable from a book published by a “real” publishing house is very difficult and requires a minimum investment of a few thousand dollars …

On that same page you’ll also find a link to how to publish an eBook. This world of Digital Publishing is changing fast – very fast – so please be aware that what I write here is relevant to this time – it will change. For distribution for “Tag” I have chosen DTP Amazon and Smashwords. Between these two you cover pretty much the whole market for eBooks and they’re both free to join.

Quick Note for writers living outside of the USA. Both of these sites will require you to get an US Tax number. You can do without, however you will then be subject to a withholding tax of approximately 40%. Of the two above, according to everything I read in forums, Amazon is by far and away the most important. Distributing to the Kindle will get you to a market that buys eBooks at the moment authors are saying that the difference between the two is 8 to 1. No doubt that will change as more devices (like Apple’s iPad) come on-line, but that’s how it is right now.

A word of advice; you may be tempted to get your book out there quickly. Remember then that first impressions count – a lot. Make sure that your product is the best it can be, editing, cover plus all the other little bits and pieces that you will need. That’s the reason I have not yet published ~ I’m still working on the product. When I was still trying to get the book traditionally published I was amazed at how long it took to get a book out. Working in the technology space I am used to getting things to “go-live” in 3 or 4 months and suddenly people were talking YEARS. Well, if you go the non-traditional route it doesn’t have to take years but it can, and probably should, take months.

Regarding David Carnoy’s comment above about how much it costs… I am just below US$ 7,000 for Tag. That of course excludes my time and also any of the marketing costs which are coming next.