Everyone has at least one book to write, whether for business, a novel, memoir, or children’s. Many entrepreneurs write a short book as a giveaway, to sell and to show their expertise. Some people are writing their memoirs for family and friends. Others want to publish the next best-selling novel, hoping to sell the movie rights.
The shortest book you can publish on Amazon, with a spine, is 36 pages? Anyone can write a 36-page book about something they know in one or two days and get it edited and published in a week or two. Be sure to have your book edited by a professional to give it the polish it needs.
For those who want a longer book, 98 pages allows room for you to put the title of the book and the name of the author on the spine. Many people are opting for the comfortable 120–135-page book. These days, a full-length book is anywhere from 250-350 pages. The days of the 500-page book are long gone due to the short attention span of readers.
Another format that many professionals are choosing are eBooks. The way Amazon works is, the more books you have, the more you build your algorithms and the more books you sell. Some entrepreneurial writers are only offering eBooks and growing their list with a series of short books.
You can get samples of your book from Amazon before your book is finished to proof and see how it looks and to hand to beta readers. Beta readers can be an effective way to test your book to get feedback about how it’s looking and if it’s missing any key ingredients.
To get started, join KDP, Kindle Direct Publishing, with the same password as your Amazon account. Sign up, go to templates and create your template. 6” by 9” is industry standard. Choose the template with sample content. Replace each area with your own title, chapter list, and so on. You are on your way.
A good format to follow for any book is to publish the paperback first. That way, friends, family and colleagues will have the actual book on their bookshelves, and you make that revenue right from the beginning. Then wait 3-4 weeks and publish the eBook. Also, you can make a PDF to use as giveaways and promotions. Then, if your book merits it, make it into an audiobook through the ACX program associated with Amazon.
Two great tools for any writer or entrepreneur are YouTube tutorials and Fiverr. There is an array of YouTube tutorials for any task. For those tasks you don’t want to do yourself, Fiverr is a great resource to find professionals waiting to serve you for reasonable fees.
Self-publishing has never been easier. Amazon has many wonderful attributes, and many traditional writers opt to go the self-publishing route; it’s easy and can be completely free.
Don’t wait, pen on paper, fingers on keyboard and . . . Go!
