Writing Book Review: Publishing E-books for Dummies by Ali Luke
Publishing E-Books for Dummies by Ali Luke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I found this book to be superior to APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur. How to Publish a Book as a handbook for self-publishing, and it was indispensable as I worked on the release of Rumpled, especially in the technical aspects of preparing a clean and professional file. Like most “for dummies” or “idiot’s guide” books, this one is not necessarily compelling reading if you’re going to sit down and read it straight through, but it offers valuable and easy-to-follow instructions for various aspects of publishing e-books, from securing cover art to preparing the file to marketing. It also takes into account that many writers may be on a tight budget and offers lower-cost alternatives while not downplaying the importance of professionalism.
While the encouraging tone is reassuring, one of my main criticisms of the book is that I think it sugar coats the reality of self publishing a little bit, setting high expectations with the rare authors who have made it really “big” going this route. I think it would be easy for inexperienced authors to have an inflated expectation of their success. Still, those who have read this book probably have a slight advantage over those who don’t, and I would recommend it without hesitation to anyone planning to publish an ebook. Read it quick, though, because technology changes fast and I expect it may be out of date before too long.