Authors in search of publishers may want to opt for the realm of electronic publishing and distribution and reach an ever-expanding digital marketplace. Smashwords is one such platform, where indie authors with finished, original manuscripts upload their book, price it and send it off to the internet audience. How does it all work?
A few words about Smashwords
According to company literature, Smashwords is the world’s leading indie book publishing and distribution platform with 2,000 new releases monthly, representing 13,000 authors. A total of 30,000 eBooks have been produced through Smashwords since its start-up in 2008. The enterprise is run by Mark and Lesleyann Coker, a husband and wife team, who are also co-authors of Boob Tube, a novel exploring the back stage of soap operas. Smashwords is an online operation with a physical location in Los Gatos, California.
How to self publish with Smashwords
The site instructions look amazingly simple. After registering with Smashwords, authors can immediately move to the publishing option. However, take caution and first review the free, downloadable style guide before venturing into this action. Written by Coker, the style guide gives aspiring authors a detailed explanation of formatting do’s and don’ts along with details regarding ebook distribution, digital formats used by readers and an expansive FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) section.
Smashwords 8-step publishing process
Once the author has integrated the style guide considerations into his or her manuscript, there are just a few steps before the book becomes an electronic document. Title your book, give it a short and glowing synopsis and then a more expansive one if you choose. Smashwords will broadcast your book in the language you select, and this choice mimics the language options found in most electronic readers and word processing applications. Then, determine whether your content is suitable for minors or if it should be given an adult rating.
The next step involves pricing. Smashwords states that 85% of the net sales proceeds go to the author. However for a full explanation of this important consideration, visit their Royalties and Earnings policy. No payment is made until the book accrues at least $10 for PayPal users or $25 for those who prefer a printed check. The pricing option category includes a free eBook, a reader-determined price or a set minimum price.
To hook readers, Smashwords encourages authors to allow for a sampling of their book content, much in the same way as Amazon.com allows for previews of many of its books. Authors make this decision and then choose the category of their manuscript, which will fall under one of these broad areas: Essay, Fiction, Non-fiction or Screenplay. Each category can be further detailed, so for example, Poetry falls under the Fiction category; Literature is included under Essay, and Screenplays and Non-Fiction allow for a range of specific areas.
Keywords are the next step in the publishing process, and help readers find your work by descriptive tags that mark its content, scope, subject matter and other identifying data.
At this point, the author is more than halfway through the 8-step publishing process. The next area is pre-loaded by Smashwords, and identifies publishing formats for your book. Smashwords will include your title in its website and catalog, and this passive marketing must let potential readers know if your content can be read on Amazon’s Kindle, the Barnes and Noble Nook, a Palm Pilot or a number of other formats. For best results, leave all categories checked.
Step six allows the author to upload a book cover. Once again, refer to the Smashwords style guide for formatting particulars. Next, upload your document. Only MS Word documents are allowed with a maximum size of 5MB.
Just before clicking the Publish button, authors read and acknowledge the Publishing Agreement, which calls for original work with the copyright owned by the author. Smashwords also reiterates the author’s agreement to allow for the non-commercial distribution and sampling of their writing.
Author awareness of ebook publishing
As with all enterprises, individuals need to be aware of the legalities involved. In the self-publishing world of eBooks, it is imperative that writers are clear about copyright matters since Smashwords publishes what is called DRM-free material. Lastly, authors need to have a realistic expectation of sales and understand their role in actively marketing their work.
Source:
Smashwords. Smashwords. Your ebook. Your way. 2011. 25 January 2011. http://www.smashwords.com/
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