Review: Learn E-book Publishing Success from a Master
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 10, 2012
This is a gem of a book for the price (free on Smashwords). It's a good read for aspiring authors who are just starting to self-publish and need some guidance getting started in the seemingly chaotic, unorganized, and ever-expanding galaxy of the self-publishing industry. As founder of Smashwords.com, Mark Coker leans heavily on Smashwords' self-publishing platform to help the reader understand what it takes to publish and distribute an e-book(s) successfully. The book complements his other free companion pieces, the "Smashwords Book Marketing Guide" and "Smashwords Style Guide." The three books together are great primers for using Smashwords and leveraging it as a distribution and marketing tool.Coker's book offers 28 secrets to publishing a successful e-book. Some "secrets" are common sense, and the book doesn't go into great deal on how to take advantage of them. The biggest "secret" to success is to write a great book that resonates with readers, but Coker doesn't explain how to do it. That's up to you. He does, however, generally point writers in the right direction, getting them to think about the different elements of self-publishing success. For example, he suggests writers think beyond the price to generate sales. Should a book be priced at $0.99 or $9.99? It depends on the writer's objective. Price is just one aspect of book sales an author should consider.Coker does not offer as many specifics in this book as he did in his marketing and style guides, but I appreciate the holistic view of self-publishing he offers. Experienced self-published authors may have a few "duh" moments when something strikes them as common sense. Nevertheless, it's worthwhile for any writer to read this book and learn from one of the masters of the self-publishing industry.I give Coker's book five stars and highly recommend it to all writers, including those interested in traditional publishing who might be persuaded to self-publish after reading the book. If nothing else, the price point -- free -- should be an incentive.