We hear so much about all the bad things that happen on the internet. There's no denying it, some unsavoury and all too often very nasty stuff certainly does go on there. However, I'm writing this post in praise of the nice things that can befall you on the web too. A week or so ago, in a state of high anxiety after several weeks of formatting and e-formatting N & H into a variety of different versions, things weren't going too well and I felt about ready to tear my remaining hair out by its roots and use it as kindling to set fire to my hard earned manuscript. Believe me e-formatting is not for kids, and definitely not the straightforward task I'd imagined - i.e. just copy and paste, convert to HTML, et voila! How very wrong I was!
I'd written the book using Microsoft Word on three different computers, each of which had left their own residual formatting traces. I'd also committed the cardinal crime of using the Tab button 4,231 times ( e-books have a fit of the vapours when they see a Tab and it sends their formatting all over the place). My book was going to look like total gibberish on an e-reader! However, once I'd calmed down a bit and taken the time to search the internet for some answers to my questions - I found help was at hand, in fact many hands, all there just waiting to assist me.
I discovered many kind souls had actually taken the time and trouble to share their own hard earned experience, sparing the rest of us the hours of learning angst they had undoubtedly suffered. We live in cynical times and I can hear my head asking, 'What's their angle? Self-promotion? Do they expect me to buy their book?' But there is no angle - not really. We all know there's crap around the roses, and that it's wise to be careful where you tread, but people are basically okay. That's what I choose to believe anyway. However, having said this, please don't go all-out-hippie on me (no offence to peace and love, man) and drop the anti-virus subscription.
Here are a few sites I found particularly helpful with regards to e -formatting:
The Smashwords Style Guide by Mark Coker. This is a free e-book which can be downloaded from Smashwords
Kindle Direct Publishing Forum (search on Google). You have to join up but if you already have an Amazon ID and password you're halfway there. In the forum you'll discover plenty of help and advice on just about every topic imaginable and members of the forum are eager to help. If you ask a question the response is knowledgeable and fast, least that was my experience. I found this particular article very helpful indeed - How to Transform a Word File To A Kindle Ready Mobi Book - author jtbigtoad (thinks: maybe not real name?).
Another excellent resource is Guido Henkel's free guide to e formatting
Good luck.
I'd written the book using Microsoft Word on three different computers, each of which had left their own residual formatting traces. I'd also committed the cardinal crime of using the Tab button 4,231 times ( e-books have a fit of the vapours when they see a Tab and it sends their formatting all over the place). My book was going to look like total gibberish on an e-reader! However, once I'd calmed down a bit and taken the time to search the internet for some answers to my questions - I found help was at hand, in fact many hands, all there just waiting to assist me.
I discovered many kind souls had actually taken the time and trouble to share their own hard earned experience, sparing the rest of us the hours of learning angst they had undoubtedly suffered. We live in cynical times and I can hear my head asking, 'What's their angle? Self-promotion? Do they expect me to buy their book?' But there is no angle - not really. We all know there's crap around the roses, and that it's wise to be careful where you tread, but people are basically okay. That's what I choose to believe anyway. However, having said this, please don't go all-out-hippie on me (no offence to peace and love, man) and drop the anti-virus subscription.
Here are a few sites I found particularly helpful with regards to e -formatting:
The Smashwords Style Guide by Mark Coker. This is a free e-book which can be downloaded from Smashwords
Kindle Direct Publishing Forum (search on Google). You have to join up but if you already have an Amazon ID and password you're halfway there. In the forum you'll discover plenty of help and advice on just about every topic imaginable and members of the forum are eager to help. If you ask a question the response is knowledgeable and fast, least that was my experience. I found this particular article very helpful indeed - How to Transform a Word File To A Kindle Ready Mobi Book - author jtbigtoad (thinks: maybe not real name?).
Another excellent resource is Guido Henkel's free guide to e formatting
Good luck.
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