Get 0% financing through PayPal's Buy Now Pay Later Program. Terms and conditions apply.
Cookies must be enabled to use this website.

How to Create an eBook & Get Published

Your complete guide to making a quality eBook that works across all popular eReaders, like the Kindle, iPad, Nook, and more.

Start Your eBook

The rise of eBooks has revolutionized the publishing world, empowering authors to share their stories with a global audience at the click of a button. In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore the entire process of eBook creation and publication - from crafting and formatting your manuscript to optimizing metadata, designing captivating covers, and navigating the various publishing platforms. Whether you're a seasoned writer or a first-time author, this roadmap will equip you with an eBook checklist and the tools to transform your words into a polished digital book masterpiece, ready to captivate readers across devices and transcend traditional boundaries.

The journey of how to create an eBook begins with creation! Whether you're a seasoned writer or a first-timer, learn more about the tools for everyone.

  • Content Creation Powerhouses: Unleash your inner author with Microsoft Word or Google Docs. Both offer user-friendly interfaces for crafting compelling content on a word document.
  • Embrace Design Power: For stunning layouts and visual content, consider Adobe InDesign – a designer's dream. Explore each online eBook template for a jumpstart, or find inspiration from blog posts on web design principles for eBooks.
  • Interactive Elements: Take your eBook to the next level with interactive features! Various eBook creator tools and software can add quizzes, animations, and more.

eBooks 101

Not sure how to get started with eBook publishing? The BookBaby blog has your answers!

What is an eBook?

eBook stands for electronic book, which is a digital version of your manuscript. They can be read on most mobile devices; including smart phones, like the iPhone or Android; tablets, like an iPad or Surface; and eReaders, like a Kindle or Nook. Read more

How Much Should You Charge For Your eBook?

Cruise any of the writer’s forums on the internet and you’re bound to find a log of discussions on the topic of eBook pricing. One of the biggest factors to consider in pricing your eBook is the percentage of sales you’ll receive from the retailers. Read more

How to design, format, and convert your eBook

One of the more frustrating areas of creating a digital eBook (post-composition) is making sure that your book is formatted, converted, and ready for worldwide distribution. Luckily, we have a great eBook template collection and articles on how to make your eBook design and formatting process a snap.

How To Format Your eBook

Whether you’re handling the technical aspects of eBook formatting or having a service like BookBaby take care of it for you, there are a few things you need to do in advance to make sure your existing content is optimally formatted for eBook file-conversion. Read more

eBook Formatting: What Page Size Should I Use?

What page size should you use when preparing for ePub format conversion? Standard 8.5 x 11″ page size ensures any included images will be large enough for an iPad. Read more

eBooks 101: Standard vs. Fixed Layout

One of the most frequent questions we get asked here at BookBaby is, "What's the difference between a fixed layout eBook and a regular eBook?" Read more

How-To Videos: Printed book Pagination and eBook Conversion tips

We’ve added two new videos to our self-publish production series: How To Set Up Your Book Pagination and eBook Conversion Basics. Watch and learn!

eBook Cover Design

Everyone always says "don't judge a book by its cover" but that doesn’t mean your eBook cover shouldn't look amazing!

How To Get Cover Design And Formatting That Fits Your Story

Authors spend so much time writing/rewriting/editing their books, but if you’ve done a poor job of crafting your metadata, readers will never find your book. And if your eBook cover design is lacking, no one will click on it. It’s that simple. Read more

Book Cover Design Tips for Independent Authors

We spoke with two graphic designers to get some insights on what makes for great design and why a stunning eBook cover design is more important than ever before. Read more

How to get worldwide distribution

Your book is written, formatted, designed and ready for potential readers. Now how do you get it into the eager hands of hungry readers? Today even completely unknown authors have the ability to get global eBook distribution to all the most popular eBook platforms through options like the Amazon Kindle direct publishing and more.

It’s Time To Publish Your Book Internationally

You’ve heard the phrase “content is king,” but it’s time to revise that to “distribution rules,” which is why you need to publish your book internationally. Read more

Your Book Needs to Be On Amazon, but...

Excerpted from our guide, "How To Publish On Amazon," get a glimpse into why Amazon is the most important (but not the only) retailer you need to focus on. Read more

Using BookBaby to publish your eBook worldwide

Everything you need: eBook conversion, promotion & distribution. Read more

Amazon Optimization

BookBaby makes your books available in many different bookstores, but Amazon is the 800-pound gorilla in the distribution room. This means you need to focus your attention on optimizing your metadata to get the best search results for Amazon’s search engine algorithm. Read more

How to promote your eBook

You’ve done it! Your eBook is published. Congratulations. You’ve done what many dream of doing (but rarely accomplish). This in itself is a huge a success. Take a few days to drink champagne and be merry; but don’t leave your book alone on a digital shelf for too long. Promoting your eBook through social media, content marketing, and launch parties is the essential next step and, believe it or not, it can be really fun.

  • Social Media Savvy: Promote your eBook on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Utilize targeted ads and engage with potential readers.
  • Content Marketing Marvel: Craft captivating blog posts and guest articles that showcase your ebook's value. Don't forget to optimize your title page and description with relevant keywords for search engines like Google.
  • Email Marketing Mastery: Build an email list and nurture leads with targeted email campaigns promoting your ebook. Design a captivating newsletter using a newsletter creator.
  • Landing Page Leads: Create a dedicated landing page to capture potential reader interest and drive ebook downloads. Use Google Analytics to track your progress and optimize your marketing efforts.

10 Tips for Hosting A Successful Book Launch Party

You’ve written your book and completed the hard work of producing it. Now, it’s time to release it to the world. In other words, it’s time for a book launch party. Read more

Marketing Planning for First-Time Authors

There are two ways first-time authors can plan their book marketing activities. The first is discovery-driven planning, which evolves through trial and error. A second technique views planning as narrative, conducted as you would when writing a novel. Read more

Five Simple Marketing Ideas Every New Author Can Use

It may seem like marketing your book is an uphill battle, especially for new authors, but if you stick with it and have an organized plan, you can gain momentum — and ideally, more book sales! Read more

Your Book Needs A Pre-Sale Period To Be Successful

A pre-sale period gives you an opportunity to build a foundation for your book’s success. Without spending the time and energy to make sure that foundation is ready, your book sales will suffer. Read more

How to Prepare Your eBook Files

Get a jump on eBook conversion with our free guide.

Get your free guide.

Have questions about publishing your eBook?

Drop us a line at info@bookbaby.com.

Frequently asked questions

Find answers to all your questions about publishing with BookBaby! See FAQs.

Thank you BookBaby for helping me realize one of my dreams of becoming a published author! From beginning to end, you made this process very easy for me. I am sure I will use your services again.

Sharon R. Foster, Live Lightly: A Summer of Poetry