Steps to Publishing Success

Even if your best friend owns a top publishingcompany, giving you an immediate "in," this does notguarantee publishing success.

First, you have to write a quality book that has aclear target audience. And your book must answer acommon problem or need that audience shares. Then youhave to develop a marketing plan, and stick to it forat least two years.

Let's begin with the process that should commencebefore you write your first word. Begin by reading ALOT. Read both books you passionately love and booksyou can't seem to make it past page five. Then figureout what the author did in the book you loved, andwhat was wrong with in the book you couldn't finish.Write down these points so they are crystal clear toyou. Read other people's books for inspiration and todiscover what you should avoid as a writer.

The next step is to plan out your book. Narrow downyour subject, and then divide it into chapters. Eachchapter should address a specific aspect of theproblem your book is going to solve. In each chapter,break the specific aspect down into several parts.This will help your readers take in your information abit at a time instead of overwhelming them with everybit of information clogging up the pages until theyfeel like they're about to go blind. It's not quitespoon-feeding the information to your readers, butit's close.

The next two steps are obvious. Write your book andthen revise it. And then revise it again. And perhapsagain. Of course, writing is extremely hard, andwriting a book can seem like an impossible task. Thereare many books out there that give you guidelines tohelp you become familiar - and even love - the processof writing and revision. Find a number of books aboutwriting. Better yet, find a number of books aboutwriting the specific type of book you aspire to write.These can serve as roadmaps on your writing journey.

Once you've written your ebook and revised it at leasttwice, show it to someone else whose opinion yourespect. If you're lucky enough to know a good editor,see if you have something to barter for him or her togo through your manuscript. Or join a writing groupand let the other members critique your work.

Then take all these ideas from other people, andrevise your manuscript one last time. And then stop!Put down that pen! Get your hands off the keyboard!

One of the most important steps to actually producinga book is to know when to stop writing and tinkeringwith it.

You've finally written your ebook! Pop open thebubbly! Give yourself a night out on the town!

Okay, now that this necessary celebration is out ofyour system, what do you do next?

How to turn your ebook into Profits

Ebooks are a revolutionary way to publish your bookwithout incurring the costs of print production. Allyou need is a relevant and targeted subject and someinexpensive software, and you can transform yourmanuscript into a book.

The problem, in terms of actually seeing any profitsfrom your ebook, is that the market is overwhelmedwith ebooks, and many of them are not worth the timeit takes to download them. Just because the abilityexists to easily produce an ebook, doesn't make itgood writing.

Make sure your book does not simply rehash oldmaterial. You will injure your credibility as anauthor by claiming to offer valuable new insights anddisappointing your audience with material they've reada zillion times before. So spend enough time writingand revising your book to make sure it's of thehighest quality and presents the most currentinformation. A good book will eventually sell itself;false claims about your book will make it extremelydifficult to sell any future books you may write.

Assuming you have determined that you do indeed have aquality product that answers some question or need ofyour target audience with NEW information, how do youknow how much to charge for it? Rule number 1: Set aprice for your book equal to its value. Anunder-priced book will only give the impression thatyour book isn't worth very much.

To figure out a fair price, estimate how much time youput into creating it and how difficult it was totransform the necessary information intounderstandable and engaging writing. Figure out howmuch your time and effort is worth, and then price itaccordingly. The goal is for you to be adequatelycompensated for your talent, your time, and youreffort.

Once you've figured out a price that is high enough toconvey the value of the book, but not so high as to beout of the reach of your target audience's meanbudget, then it's time to offer it for sale on yourwebsite. To attract sales, you will need to develop apromotional campaign, particularly if you are anunknown author.

There are multitudes of books about self-promotionthat will guide you in your efforts. Choose a planthat is both creative and professional. Learn how towrite a catchy yet informative press release, and sendcopies of your ebook to sites that specialize in ebookreviews.

Learn how to write powerful sales copy, or hiresomeone to write it for you. This is an essential. Youabsolutely need excellent sales copy to sell yourbook. Make sure the copy includes all the reasons yourtarget audience needs your book, and the benefits theywill derive from buying it.

Use graphics in your promotional materials. Beautifulgraphics have the power to instantly convey thequality and value of your ebook. Graphics can alsoconvey the amount of valuable information the bookcontains, and your careful attention to detail.Professional graphics sell professional books. Theyreassure the customer that the product is what itclaims to be.

Consider excerpting chapters for articles. You canoffer these tidbits for free on your website as a sortof demo of your book. Include an order form for yourebook at the end of the excerpted articles.

Finally, when you set-up your download link, make sureto simplify the process. It's a good idea to offer afew bonuses that make your book even more enticing topurchase, but make sure the bonuses are valuable andhigh quality. Too many bonuses that are basically aload of useless stuff will compromise the impressionyour audience has of your ebook. The goal is to conveyto your audience that they are getting a qualityproduct for a good deal. That means applyingrestraint, especially when it comes to adding bonusitems. Too much free stuff offered diminishes yourcredibility.

Make sure your book is a quality product. Make sure itis relevant and current. Develop an effectivemarketing plan that includes excellent sales copy andexcerpted articles. Then offer your book for sale, andwait for your audience to discover you!