The Business of Writing: e-Book and Print Book Layouts #MFRWOrg #ASMSG

Today on The Maze:

Everything you want to know about 

e-book and print book layouts...*

Book of Kells, Folio 19v, Breves Causae of Luke
(The Gospel of Luke), Wikimedia Commons.

*...but were afraid to ask!

So, you’ve written your Great [insert_your_nationality_here] Masterpiece, edited it to within an inch of its life, submitted it to an editor so that she or he can edit it to within a micrometer of its life (please invest in professional editing, for the love of All That Is Holy)… and now what?

Formatting it for publication, of course.

There are many companies that offer formatting services, and they charge varying rates. Unless you can code your own e-books (as I do), or you can create your own print book layouts (as I have learned to do), perform a search on “book formatting services” and then pick your poison, so to speak.

Some “poisons” are more lethal to the pocketbook than others, and your mileage may vary with regard to the output quality too.

In general, your best value will be to select a company that charges an up-front fee for services, not a fee plus a percentage of your royalties. To charge you a percentage on sales is patently absurd, because once the work is completed, the service provider adds no more value to your work and therefore does not deserve to receive an ongoing percentage from it. Period.

Such a policy knelled the beginning of the end between me and my ex-literary agent, who was trying to hedge his bets by publishing his clients’ unsold manuscripts. If your literary agent has started up such a side business, beware. All that practice does is line his or her pockets at the expense of performing his or her contracted job for you. Exclamation point.

The book service provider I have relied upon for several years is Lucky Bat Books. They offer a wide range of author services, including cover design and marketing, as well as e-book and print book layout. Their prices are very reasonable, they are a joy to work with, and I get nothing for sending you their way; I’m just very happy with the quality of their work. They do not charge a percentage of your sales.

Whether or not you choose to work with Lucky Bat Books, do not select any book services provider that charges you a percentage of your book’s sales over and above what you have paid up front for the work, be it cover design, interior layout, editing, e-book formatting and distribution, or promotion.

I realize that not everyone can afford to lay out the huge chunk of change required for professional services, but as a former software engineer who cut her programming teeth, decades ago, on conversion software, I am here to beg you not to rely on the Word-to-EPUB or Word-to-PDF software offered by such companies as Smashwords and CreateSpace. I have seen other authors’ books generated by these programs, and they are—shall I say?—less than ideal.

At least Smashwords is honest in nicknaming its program the “Meat Grinder.”

I even ran a test to export an EPUB e-book file from a print layout that I had created using Adobe’s InDesign book layout software, and its quality left a lot to be desired too.

My recommendation is to set up crowdfunding for your book rather than relying on these cheap-but-less-than-optimal conversion options.

The book layout process I follow varies by edition type, e-book versus print.


E-book layout process

1. I code the HTML, including setting up CSS templates for margins, line spacing, indentations, etc. An EPUB file is simply a rigidly formatted ZIP file, and HTML is its source language. I admit I'm not a CSS expert; a mentor shared her e-book template with me years ago, and I've been tweaking it ever since. For quick answers and to look up the latest HTML code sets, I rely upon the web site HTML Dog.
2. To test the book's format prior to conversion, I read it in a browser window that's sized to approximate the aspect ratio of the average e-reader. This also gives me another avenue for spotting last-minute typos and items to wordsmith.
3. Once I'm happy with how the HTML file looks in a browser window, I import it, the cover, and metadata into Calibre free library-management software.What is metadata? It is literally anything you wish to define about your book. Specific metadata tags that import directly into predefined fields in Calibre include:
   • Author
   • Series
   • Tags (Keywords)
   • Publisher
   I also code the book's description in the metadata section just to include it in the file for my reference.
4. Then I use Calibre to convert the HTML file to EPUB. Calibre offers a slew of output formats, but the two I use most often are EPUB and MOBI (primarily for reviewers who can side-load the MOBI into their Kindle devices).
5. At this point I check the EPUB file in as many e-reader emulators as I can. Calibre offers its own e-reader emulator; on my laptop, clicking on the MOBI version imports it into my Kindle-for-PC application, and if I upload the EPUB file to my Android phone, I can import it into my Nook-for-Android app.
6. Once I am satisfied with the result on as many platforms as possible, I run the EPUB file through EPUBCheck, a free online validation software created by the International Digital Publishing Forum. E-tailers such as Amazon and Smashwords also run your submitted EPUB file through EPUBCheck, but it's best for you to do this first and avoid any unpleasant surprises. Smashwords has finally upgraded the four years outdated and buggy version of EPUBCheck that it was using internally, so now I'm not gnashing and pulling teeth to upload my EPUB files to that platform.
7. If EPUBCheck has reported any errors, I fix them and revalidate. The biggest "gotcha", if you have been otherwise careful in your coding, is to have referenced image filenames that include embedded spaces, a practice that's allowed on Microsoft computers but not Apple or Unix machines. EPUBCheck flags this as a warning, but even warning messages will cause your submission to be rejected by Amazon, et al.
8. Once you have an error-free, warning-free EPUB file, you may upload it for publication on all your chosen platforms: Amazon, Nook, Kobo, etc.

Print books that don't have a lot of complicated interior art insertion

1. I import the Word doc into InDesign, the de facto standard book-layout software for the publishing industry. I don't know InDesign well enough yet to execute complicated layouts, which is why I am still happy to employ Lucky Bat Books for titles such as the forthcoming, fully illustrated hardcover edition of King Arthur's Sister in Washington's Court!
2. I tweak the layout—defining custom paragraph styles, drop cap styles, etc.—until it all looks good, right, and salutary... and everything lines up across each "spread," which is a pair of pages representing an open book. If you have no scene-break graphics to insert, then this step is almost a no-brainer. I embed graphics for chapter headings and scene breaks, so this step can be time consuming for me, and it's more cost effective for me to do it myself these days. BTW, "spreads" PDF output is an economical way to produce a printed ARC, especially if you have access to a duplex printer.
3. I export the finished layout to a press-ready PDF file in "pages" (rather than "spreads") form. The "pages" (single page) PDF output is what is required for submitting your print layout to CreateSpace and IngramSpark.

Best of luck with your book layouts and all aspects of your writing!

***

I'm running a giveaway for an e-copy of Kings!
To enter, click HERE.

MailChimp subscribers to The Dawnflier receive exclusive giveaway opportunities.
Subscribe today so you don't miss out!

***

All this month, you are invited to…

— Follow Kim on Twitter
— Follow Kim on Pinterest
— Subscribe to Kim's YouTube channel
— Leave a comment on any page of The Maze, especially if you have done the Twitter, Pinterest, and/or YouTube follow<

… and each action this month is good for one chance to win a copy of any of Kim's e-books.
Please enter often, and good luck!

The Business of Writing: The Publication Plan #MFRWOrg indie publishing #ASMSG

Jonas with quill pen. Public domain.
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

"Plans? We don't need no stinkin' plans!"

Sorry; I couldn't resist riffing on the classic line from one of my favorite comedies of all time, Blazing Saddles. :) This was more or less how I approached independent publishing when I dived into the waters more than two years ago, and I don't recommend it.

There were many reasons why I didn't lay out a publication plan, not the least of which being that my father-in-law had just died, my husband the high school math teacher was executor but was up to his eyeballs in teaching (not to mention grief) so the lion's share of the estate administration fell to me, and I latched on to self-publication as a means of retaining my sanity through that complex and exhausting process.

The fact is that a publication plan can help you boost sales and maximize the return on your investment. And your plan doesn't need to be expressed in formal terms if your memory is good--or if you want to bookmark this page! :D

The major aspects of the publication plan are prepublication, launch, and promotion, and each phase entails a slew of decisions to make, most of which need to be balanced against your budget, schedule, temperament, and writing career goals.

Prepublication decisions to consider:

• The first aspect involves just how many publication details--e-book creation, conversion, cover design, print edition layout, audiobook recording, etc.--that you plan to handle yourself! Read my thoughts about book layouts and cover design for more information and my recommendations of companies to help you in these areas.
• The next most important consideration is that of establishing your own publication company and imprint(s). Making these decisions ahead of time will reduce your headaches later, and will allow you and your books to appear more professional to the reading public.
  
• Which edition formats will you be releasing for your book? The least expensive in terms of prepublication costs is the e-book, followed by audiobook (more about that avenue in a future post), paperback, and hardcover. Then of course there is the matter of foreign-language translations, comics and graphic novels if your genre lends itself to these types of editions, and some of the more esoteric decisions such as Large Print.
• If you're releasing your book as an e-book, are you going to stick with Amazon exclusivity (NOT recommended, in spite of the temptation to acquire increased revenue, because Kindle Unlimited has all but destroyed the free-market enterprise of books and has led to the devaluation of all authors' books, including yours), or will you be releasing to multiple platforms such as Nook, Kobo, and iTunes?
  
  For the record, I do keep at least one title in Kindle Unlimited at all times as an advertisement for my other titles, since I code the Amazon links into the "other books by" section of my KU edition. And I shower frequently. ;-)
• Are you going to pay for professional editing services (PLEASE help improve the "indie author" image by choosing this option, and my editor Deb Taber is one of the best in the business!), or not? If you do follow the wise path of hiring professional editorial services, keep in mind that you may need to schedule the delivery of your manuscript to the editor at least three months in advance of your target release date.
• What release date are you shooting for? Publisher sites such as Kindle Direct Publishing, Kobo, Smashwords, and Draft 2 Digital allow the establishment of future publication dates so that your book can collect preorders; at the time of this writing, Nook Press does not. BTW, my next KU release may be preordered now, and it's called The Challenge--thanks for your support of my work!
• How do you plan to build buzz about your book? Online via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.? Via a "cover reveal" or "preorder party" blog tour or Facebook event? As many of those options as your schedule, your budget, your family, and your heart can tolerate??
• If you have a smart phone, create an account at Square so that you can process credit cards for book sales at your personal appearances. This needs to be done at least a month in advance of your first in-person sales event, to give them time to mail you the device and for you to tinker with setting your price points, coding sales tax, etc.
• Establishing a separate bank account for processing online transactions such as Square, KDP, and other deposits, as well as for paying writing-related expenses is not mandatory, but I have taken this step as a precaution against online theft and I do recommend it even if you don't establish a formal company for your books.

Launch:

• Where do you plan to announce your release? Online via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, your blog, etc.? Schedule Facebook and other online events at least a month in advance!
• I strongly recommend scheduling a "release blitz" blog tour at least two months in advance of your planned release date to maximize the number of reviews your book will receive at the time of launch. Reviews cannot be posted for books in the preorder phase, so having reviews lined up and ready to post on Launch Day becomes crucial, since many free book-promotion sites have minimum requirements for the number of reviews a book has (and often a minimum "star" rating too) before they will feature it.
  
  Speaking of launch tours, The Challenge has a Cover Reveal scheduled for July 7 and the Release Blitz is scheduled for July 14. THIS FORM governs the signup for both, and thank you for participating! :)
• Do you plan to announce the launch at a personal appearance such as a fan convention? If so, then you need to have physical advertising material--bookmarks, book cards, swag, etc.--prepared to hand out, as well as any vinyl banners or other advertising tools you plan to display.

Promotion--some aspects of which I touched on above--is a whole topic unto itself that I will discuss in more detail next week!

***
Liberty has won the Books Go Social 
2015 Best Self-Published Work award!

All this month, you are invited to...
— Follow Kim on Twitter
— Add Kim to Google+
— Subscribe to her YouTube channel
— Leave a comment on any page of The Maze, especially if you have done the Twitter and/or YouTube follow
...and each action this month is good for one chance to win an e-book copy of Liberty. Please enter often, and good luck!

The Business of Writing: Book Layouts #MFRWOrg indie publishing @luckybatbooks #ASMSG

Today on The Maze:

Everything you wanted to know about 

e-book and print book layouts...*

Book of Kells, Folio 19v, Breves Causae of Luke
(The Gospel of Luke), Wikimedia Commons.

*...but were afraid to ask!

So, you've written your Great American Masterpiece, edited it to within an inch of its life, submitted it to an editor so that s/he can edit it to within a micrometer of its life (please invest in professional editing, for the love of All That Is Holy)... and now what?

Formatting it for publication, of course.

There are many companies that offer formatting services, and they charge varying rates. Unless you can code your own e-books (as I do), or you can create your own print book layouts (as I have learned to do), perform a search on "book formatting services" and then pick your poison, so to speak.

Some "poisons" are more lethal to the pocketbook than others, and Your Mileage May Vary with regard to the output quality too.

I'm not going to list any specific companies to avoid; in general, your best value will be to select a company that charges an up-front fee for services, NOT fee plus a percentage of your royalties. To charge you a percentage on sales is patently absurd, because once the work is completed, the service provider adds no more value to your work and therefore does not deserve to receive an ongoing percentage from it. Period.

I will state that such a policy was what knelled the beginning of the end between me and my ex-literary agent, who was trying to hedge his bets with clients' unpublished manuscripts. If your literary agent has started up such a side business, beware. All that practice does is line his/her pockets at the expense of performing his/her contracted job for you. Exclamation point.

The book service provider I have been relying upon for three years and counting is Lucky Bat Books. They offer a wide range of author services, including cover design and marketing, as well as e-book and print book layout. Their prices are very reasonable, they are a joy to work with, and I get nothing for sending you their way; I'm just very happy with the quality of their work. Oh, and they do not charge a percentage of sales.

I realize that not everyone can afford to lay out the huge chunk of change required for professional services, but as a former software engineer who cut her programming teeth, decades ago, on conversion software, I am here to beg you NOT to rely on the Word-to-EPUB or Word-to-PDF software offered by such companies as Smashwords and Createspace. I have seen other authors' books generated by these programs, and they are—shall I say?—less than ideal. At least Smashwords is honest in nicknaming its program the "Meat Grinder."

I even ran a test to export an EPUB e-book file from a print layout that I had created using Adobe's inDesign book layout software, and its quality left a lot to be desired too.

My recommendation is to set up crowd funding for your book rather than relying on these cheap-but-less-than-optimal conversion options.

The book layout process I follow is:

For e-books:

1. I code the HTML, including setting up CSS templates for margins, line spacing, indentations, etc. An EPUB file is simply a rigidly formatted ZIP file, and HTML is its source language. I admit I'm not a CSS expert; a mentor shared her e-book template with me years ago, and I've been tweaking it ever since. For quick answers and to look up the latest HTML code sets, I rely upon the web site HTML Dog.
2. To test the book's format prior to conversion, I read it in a browser window that's sized to approximate the aspect ratio of the average e-reader. This also gives me another avenue for spotting last-minute typos and items to wordsmith.
3. Once I'm happy with how the HTML file looks in a browser window, I import it, the cover, and metadata into Calibre free library-management software.What is metadata? It is literally anything you wish to define about your book. Specific metadata tags that import directly into predefined fields in Calibre include:
   • Author
   • Series
   • Tags (Keywords)
   • Publisher
   I also code the book's description in the metadata section just to include it in the file for my reference.
4. Then I use Calibre to convert the HTML file to EPUB. Calibre offers a slew of output formats, but the two I use most often are EPUB and MOBI (primarily for reviewers who can side-load the MOBI into their Kindle). 
5. At this point I check the EPUB file in as many e-reader emulators as I can. Calibre offers its own e-reader emulator; on my laptop, clicking on the MOBI version imports it into my Kindle-for-PC application, and if I upload the EPUB file to my Android phone, I can import it into my Nook-for-Android app.
6. Once I am satisfied with the result on as many platforms as possible, I run the EPUB file through EPUBCheck free online validation software created by the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF). E-tailers such as Amazon and Smashwords also run your submitted EPUB file through EPUBCheck, but it's best for you to do this first and avoid any unpleasant surprises. Smashwords has finally upgraded the four years outdated and buggy version of EPUBCheck that it was using internally, so now I'm not gnashing and pulling teeth to upload my EPUB files to that platform.
7. If EPUBCheck has reported any errors, I fix them and revalidate. The biggest "gotcha", if you have been otherwise careful in your coding, is to have referenced image filenames that include embedded spaces, a practice that's allowed on Microsoft computers but not Apple or Unix machines. EPUBCheck flags this as a warning, but even warning messages will cause your submission to be rejected by Amazon, et al.
8. Once you have an error-free, warning-free EPUB file, you may upload it for publication on all your chosen platforms: Amazon, Nook, Kobo, etc.

For print books that don't have a lot of complicated interior art insertion:

1. First I import the Word doc into InDesign, the de facto standard book-layout software for the publishing industry. I don't know InDesign well enough yet to execute complicated layouts, which is why I am still happy to employ Lucky Bat Books for titles such as the forthcoming, fully illustrated hardcover edition of King Arthur's Sister in Washington's Court!
2. Then I tweak the layout—defining custom paragraph styles, drop cap styles, etc.—until it all looks good, right, and salutary... and everything lines up across each "spread," which is a pair of pages representing an open book. If you have no scene-break graphics to insert, then this step is almost a no-brainer. I embed graphics for chapter headings and scene breaks, so this step can be time consuming for me, and it's more cost effective for me to do it myself these days. BTW, "spreads" PDF output is an economical way to produce a printed ARC, especially if you have access to a duplex printer.
3. Finally I export the finished layout to a press-ready PDF file in "pages" (rather than "spreads") form. The "pages" (single page) PDF output is what is required for submitting your print layout to Createspace and IngramSpark.

Next week: the Book Cover. Meantime, best of luck with your book layouts and all aspects of your writing!

NEWS FLASH:

My ancient Rome historical romance novel Liberty is a finalist for 
Best Self-Published Work 
and for Best Cover of 2015!

Your vote is very important to me, so if you have found this post about book layouts useful, please click HERE 
and vote for Liberty in both categories.
This poll closes 25 June 2015, and you can vote every day.
Thank you so much!

***

This month, you are invited to...
— Add Kim as a Favorite Author on Amazon.com
— Follow Kim on Twitter
— Add Kim to Google+
— Subscribe to Kim's YouTube channel
— Leave a comment on any page of The Maze, especially if you have done the Amazon, Twitter, and/or YouTube follow
...and each action this month is good for one chance to win an e-book copy of Liberty. Please enter often, and good luck!