When you’re done writing and editing, it’s ready to print!

This is probably the best part of the process. In the traditional scenario, design and formatting does not begin until the book is written and edited. If you are writing and editing in InDesign, when you are done writing, the book is ready to release.

If you print on-demand, it can be available to your readers in a couple weeks or less (even today, depending on the suppliers you use). If you need a printed proof, it will take a couple of weeks. If you’re on Createspace with its online digital proof, you can be selling the book on Amazon within a week (on Createspace’s Website within a day).  If you produce an ePUB or downloadable PDF, they can have it to read in a couple of hours [though it can take a month or more for iBooks to accept it]. A Kindle book might take another hour or so. All from the same content. In most cases, you can do it at very little cost to you—other than charges to see a proof and minimal distribution costs.

ebook conversions

As an example, I released a book over the weekend when I wrote this section. It is a short book called, Basic Book Typography. In it I took out the typographic teachings from this book (and others) to make a more directed version for a wider audience. I did this while I was waiting for the general release of CS6 on April 23, 2012. The typography book avoided any of the version-specific areas.

I finished editing and proofing on Thursday, April 19. I finished the conversion to Kindle on Friday, April 20. I uploaded the printed book to Createspace on Friday, April 20. I uploaded the Kindle version Friday, April 20. The files were approved by Createspace and KDP on Saturday and I approved them.

On Monday I made the changes necessary to convert the formatting to a version that would work better for ePUBs—which are required by Nook and iBooks. By Monday night I was getting Amazon to repair some of the linkages for the printed and Kindle versions (to get them both listed together).

On Tuesday morning I checked out the new book page in NookBooks at the Barnes & Noble site. It takes a while longer to get things approved for the iBookstore.

Next I’d normally go get a new section set up on my Website, post release notices in my blogs, and start tweeting about the new book. However, on Tuesday I back back to the book I was writing, Writing In InDesign Second Edition, to get it ready for release the following week.

This type of rapid release cycle is now normal

It will become second nature to you after you do it a few times. It is really fun as well. Once Writing In InDesign Second Edition wasready for release, I began to ramp up my marketing efforts. I wrote some friends who might be willing to read and review it, and went on from there.

AS I was posting this I wrote and released a new book

I decided a long time ago that I wanted to release the ePUB and Kindle conversion information from Writing In InDesign Second Edition as a separate booklet.

Yesterday seemed like the day to do it.

So, starting yesterday morning and finishing by 7 pm last night, I edited, rewrote, formatted, and uploaded a Kindle version (KDP Select) and a 5×8 booklet of my newest book, Converting your print book to ePUB & Kindle versions: Using InDesign CS5.5 & CS6. Yes, it is up and ready to go! It will not be loaded into the Amazon database for a few days. But you can get the printed booklet for $7.77, and the Kindle version for $2.99

What a wonderful world this new self-publishing paradigm is!

Related articles

• If you care about your readers, write in InDesign! (hackberry-fonts.com)