Write an Ebook (or Several Ebooks!): How to Get Sarted

Writing an ebook is quite simple, and here's the best advice I can give: Start writing!

Sure, you need an idea first, but I bet you have one. But wait...before you decide that your memoir will make a great ebook, it's important to realize the following:

Ebooks are generally the domain of "how to" and "self-help." It would be difficult to acquire customers for, say, an autobiography, unless you already have an audience (for example, you have a popular blog, you're a bit of a celebrity in your field, etc.). Unfortunately, a book about your life's trials and accomplishments wouldn't be nearly as easy to sell as a book titled "How to Make Money by Playing Video Games" or "How to Get 6-Pack Abs in 15 Seconds a Day."

So be careful to pick a niche that lends itself to ebook sales. Ebook authors sometimes talk about a "desperate niche." That is, one that addresses problems to which people are desperately seeking answers; that's why ebooks so often revolve around relationships, weight-loss, money-making, etc.

You want to set yourself apart from the pack (there are way too many money-making ebooks...), but hopefully there is some degree of "desperation" in your subject matter. Just ask yourself: Am I solving a relatively urgent problem?

The number one mistake ebook writers make is writing the type of book they love to read. Sad, but true. Even if you're skilled at writing romance stories, biographies, travel adventures, or mystery novels, the chance of finding an audience is VERY thin. Using ebooks to fulfill your dream of being a fiction author may be gratifying in that you get to see your work published, but it probably won't be a success in the conventional success.

This is because if a reader wants to read a great novel, he'll go to his local bookstore or library and pick up something that has the backing of a "real" publisher. But when he urgently wants to cure a burning in his backside, he goes to Google, where he eventually comes across your new ebook, "How to Cure Your Hemorrhoids Immediately and Forever."

Anyway, you have your idea, write away. You just need a simple word processor. Eventually, you will probably turn it into a PDF, and you can do that for free down the road. When it comes time to sell your ebook, you can submit it to various sites that sell it for you (e.g., Lulu.com, or even Amazon), and you set-up your own site.

In my experience, uploading your book to a 3rd-party ebook seller will result in very few sales. I have an ebook available on Amazon that has sold almost no copies, but sells quite well on my site.

The hardest part about selling an ebook isn't the writing: It's setting up an effective website and promoting your book. Afterall, nobody will buy it if you're not getting traffic. For help publishing and selling your ebook (at no upfront cost to you!), check out MisterEbooks.com.
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Mister Ebooks (a.k.a., Mike) helps you publish and sell your ebook. Go here for more info: http://www.MisterEbooks.com