Yes You Can: Create Your Own E-book By Sharon and Mike King

Yes You Can: Create Your Own E-book Published at smashwords in 2 !" by Sharon and Mike King Co#yright 2 !" Sharon and Mike King This book is a work created from my own experience, any resemblance to any other guides to creating an e-book is purely coincidental.
$ll %ights %eser&ed

'ntrodu(tion Hi future author, I wont waffle on about grammar and punctuation, how you write is up to you, its your baby after all. Some people may get a bit sniffy about it, so at least try and spell the words write err sorry right. What Im offering up is a simplified guide to actually getting your book finished and looking like the real e-book that you dream of and can be proud of. So here goes. Disclaimer alert the help in this book is from my own e!perience, I hope that it helps you. Im not an e!pert, "ust an amateur who lo#es words and the ad#entures they take you on.

)able O* Contents 'ntrodu(tion

Cha#ter !: +rite your story Cha#ter 2: Make it look how the reader is used to seeing it Cha#ter ,: $dd the e-tras. bookmarks and hy#erlinks Cha#ter ": Create your (o&er Cha#ter /: Sna00y o#tionals: #i(tures et(1 Cha#ter 2: Publishing it

Cha#ter !: +rite your story $ou got a story in your head, we all ha#e, but you dont know how to put it together. Im here to help. Ill show you how I do it, who knows my formula might "ust work for you to. I use a piece of paper to make my plan, "ust like a "ourney from % to &. $oull get the idea as I use a short story about a mouse to demonstrate my method. Start and *inish )itle: 3randma4s birthday Start: 3ordon bakes a (ake End: 3randma4s birthday #arty 'e!t I add the in-between chapters like the route from the start to the end. )itle: 3randma4s birthday Start: 3ordon bakes a (ake Cha#ter 2: 3ordon #lans the sa*est route Cha#ter ,: Cousin 5e**ry Cha#ter ": Pi(king *lowers Cha#ter /: Cat trouble End: 3randma4s birthday #arty 'ow e#en at this stage nothings set in stone and you can add or remo#e chapters to enhance your story, Ill "ust continue for the moment with the (. 'e!t I add a #ery brief idea for each of the chapters) "ust a fla#our for me to write about later, not the full #ersion. 3randma4s birthday Cha#ter !: 3ordon bakes a (ake1 Searches internet to find a recipe, burns the first one, people think their house is on fire. Cha#ter 2: 3ordon #lans the sa*est route. %long skirting boards, past the kids in the garden, keep away from the cat. Cha#ter ,: Cousin 5e**ry1 'early drop cake when cousin *effry comes running round the corner, ha#e a chat.

Cha#ter ": Pi(king *lowers1 *effry hasnt got a present for grandma, they ha#e to get one. Cha#ter /: Cat trouble1 *effry sa#es +ordon and the cake. Cha#ter 2: 3randma4s birthday #arty1 ,ots to eat and party games to play. 'ow you ha#e the bones of your story and its time to get onto the computer and start writing. I#e found that sa#ing the work -+randmas .irthday/ as a windows 01-2334 document works best and is compatible with most e-book self-publishers.

5ut in the title of your book, this can still be updated if you change your mind.

6se the drop down and select Word 01-2334.

I usually sa#e onto an e!ternal dri#e, or send to myself on e-mail. 7hat way if you computer packs up or you want to work on it elsewhere you can. 8emember to sa#e often, I learnt the hard way and lost o#er 9333 words, now I sa#e e#ery half an hour or so, or if I lea#e the computer to do something else, "ust in case.

So now you ha#e your chapters and a brief description) so fill in the details and let your mind run riot o#er the keypad. :ake the story interesting and e!citing, but remember its your story and not e#eryone en"oys the same thing so you cant please them all. 7he best thing to do is "ust to please yourself. 'ow that you are writing your story, remember to sa#e it regularly. % few weeks, months or e#en years later when you#e finished writing, read it through in its entirety to ensure it makes sense. 8ead it again to correct any typos. 8ead it out loud to yourself or someone you trust to be honest. Dont take what they say as personal, it isnt, although it does feel like it is. :ake any changes and read it again. Dont forget to keep sa#ing. I tend to sa#e my first write as -+randmas birthday/. 7he read through changes as -+randmas .irthday 2nd draft/. 7he ne!t re-read and changes -+randmas

.irthday 4rd draft/. 7hat way if you make a complete mess of it you can go back a step. I know that sounds like youre o#er doing it, but it works for me.

Cha#ter 2: Make it look how the reader is used to seeing it1 'ow if you look at most books, they ha#e a format that people are used to seeing, Ill now gi#e you some pointers as to how to do this. 7he chapter list is often in a straight line and might include a link to a picture of the front co#er, a summary of, or introduction to the book to entice people to read it and sometimes, with factual books, a link to where you got your information. Co&er #age - optional some e-publishers insert your co#er for you Summary or 'ntrodu(tion Cha#ter !: 3ordon bakes a (ake Cha#ter 2: 3ordon #lans the sa*est route Cha#ter ,: Cousin 5e**ry Cha#ter ": Pi(king *lowers Cha#ter /: Cat trouble Cha#ter 2: 3randma4s birthday #arty %e*eren(es Do not use the windows table of contents short cut to create your chapter list, type it in yourself, it works much better later on and does not cause conflicts when uploading to the self publishing sites. ,ea#e a blank line between the title and the start of your writing, for e!ample Cha#ter !: 3ordon bakes a (ake +ordon didnt know what to gi#e his grandma for her birthday so he decided to bake an enormous chocolate cake. I like to align all the writing to the left, but you can put an indent into the writing if you prefer.

When placing dialogue in the te!t, do not flow in the same paragraph, lea#e a blank line. -What are you doing;/ 7he reader asked an!ious to find out what was going on. -Im writing a book</ She e!citedly replied, her only thoughts on what she was going to write about ne!t. $ou get the idea) it makes it easier to read and helps stop the reader from getting confused about whos saying what.

Cha#ter ,: $dd the e-tras. #age breaks. bookmarks and hy#erlinks1 In this section we will see how to add formatting to impro#e the look and readability of your book. Page breaks When you start a new chapter you insert a page break so that it starts neatly on a whole page and doesnt lea#e you with a one-liner as you read and look like this.

%s you can see it would be #ery annoying to look at a book like this, so the page break makes it neater and more pleasing to the eye.

Bookmarks
6nlike a paper, written book an e-book is usually read on a portable de#ice, phone or computer so it needs touchable links to "ump between the chapters. 7hese links are put on as -bookmarks/ and -hyperlinks./ 7he -bookmark/ is placed in the te!t so that when you touch a chapter at the start of the book you can "ump to the one you ha#e chosen. 7he -hyperlink/ is placed at the start of the book, on each chapter in the list. Ill show you. 5lace your bookmarks inside the chapter titles throughout your te!t as follows.

6y#erlinks Hyperlinks are placed at the beginning of the book in the chapter list. It is easier than you think.

Cha#ter ": Create your (o&er 'ow how you create your co#er is to you. Some people seek professional help others do it themsel#es. I like playing around with photos or mucking around using the paint program on windows, it all depends how confident you are. Some e-publishing sites ha#e programs to help you get creati#e, you pick colours or styles from their selection and they do it for you. =or the co#er of this book I used windows paint program. I set the si>e at an appro!imate ratio of 2 wide ! 4 long, ?@33 ! 2?33 pi!els. Some sites reAuire the image as a "peg, some accept 5'+, I sa#e both options "ust in case.

'ow go play and let your imagination run riot, but remember it should say something about the book to the potential reader or its "ust a pretty picture.

Cha#ter /: Sna00y o#tionals: (o#yright. #i(tures et(1 Co#yright % copyright notice placed at the beginning of the book, is your disclosure that the piece of work you ha#e created is all yours and that you ha#ent "ust coped someone elses. It is your responsibility to make sure it follows legal guidelines. $ou can see different options anywhere on the internet, but I go with a straight forward simple one. %t smashwords.com they like you to ha#e a hyperlink to their page, "ust insert it as per te pre#ious instructions, you#e done it before so you know what to do. Yes You Can: Create your own e-book Published at smashwords in 2 !" by Sharon and Mike King Co#yright 2 !" Sharon and Mike King This book is a work created from my own experience, any resemblance to any other guides to creating an e-book is purely coincidental. $ll %ights %eser&ed If youre writing a fictional book like the one about +randmas .irthday Id put something like 3randma4s Birthday Published smashwords in 2 !" by Sharon and Mike King Co#yright 2 !" Sharon and Mike King This book is a work of fiction, any resemblance to the names and characters; living or dead, is purely coincidental. $ll rights reser&ed

Pi(tures $ou can add "ust about any picture you like as long as it is yours to add. .y that I mean you ha#ent "ust grabbed it off of the internet or pinched someone elses. Bheck on the sites that ha#e pictures to use that you closely follow their guidelines as to what you can use it for, how much you ha#e to pay, how long you ha#e use of it and if you ha#e to name the owner of the picture. I sa#e any picture I use and add it into the book using the insert tab and I always ha#e it run in line with the te!t, "ust click on ten e! line in your word document and insert it as below. I tend to sa#e as 5'+ as I think it gi#es a better Auality picture, but some sites only accept pictures sa#ed as "peg. ,ea#e a blank line between the te!t and where you want the picture to be.

'ow you ha#e your picture in place, good "ob< $ou can add any picture you like such as maps or photos, hyperlinks to other sites or other books that you ha#e out, your personal web pages e#en. %bo#e all ha#e fun and dont e!pect to be a best seller straight away or retire on the proceeds. 'ot e#eryone has the stamina to finish what they start, if you#e got that far then youre an author.

Se(tion 2: Publishing it $ou#e made it this far so congratulations, you only ha#e three stages left to go getting paid, uploading and getting people to buy it. $ou#e read it through yet again, probably found a typo, I usually do. $ou#e checked that all of the hyperlinks work. $oure happy with your co#er page. ! +o to your bank or building society and get your -SWI=7.IB/ or -I.%'/ code, you can usually find it at the top of your bank statement with the sort code and account number that you use e#ery day. If not pop in or gi#e them a call. $ou will need this when uploading your details and so that you get paid for any sales. 2 Bhoose your e-publisher, I like smashwords they ha#e a user friendly system that tells you if there are any formatting errors in your document when you upload it. Disclaimer alert I dont work for smashwords, I "ust like them. 'ow follow their easy to use system and upload your details, it can take a day or so for your book to be out there for people to look at or buy) so dont pop the champagne yet e#en though youre grinning like a Bheshire cat. When they tell you that its all done, get popping. , %d#ertise tell all your friends and family, get them to tell e#eryone they know, get on all the networking sites that you can, e#en create a blog, do whate#er you can to get it noticed. 7here are a lot of e-books out there now and youre a newbie, dont e!pect the money to come rolling in by the barrel load and dont e!pect the people you know who say theyre going to buy it to actually do "ust that. ,ifes full of disappointments, sorry but its true. *ust bask in the glory of what you#e achie#ed and carry on ha#ing fun with your writing, I intend to. I look forward to seeing your name out there. 7hank you for reading. 7is(laimer alert: the help in this book is from my own e!perience, I hope that it helps you. Im not an e!pert, "ust an amateur who lo#es words and the ad#entures they take you on.