Saving Time with Kindle Previewer Tool

Kindle Previewer is a free tool that emulates how your book will look on Kindle devices and applications and shows how the text displays for any orientation or font size. Once you’ve finished formatting your MS Word manuscript for KDP and saved it as a filtered web page, you can use Kindle Previewer to check the layout of your book and make sure it’s displayed properly. You can also check that the Table of Contents and any links are working properly.

It’s a lot easier and quicker to make changes to your book now, rather than waiting until after it’s been published to KDP!

Using Kindle Previewer

1. Go to https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/help?topicId=A3IWA2TQYMZ5J6 and download the latest version of Kindle Previewer (v2.9 at the time this book was published).
2. Open your formatted MS Word manuscript and select “Save As” to save the document as a “Web Page, Filtered” (for PC) or “Web Page” (for Mac).
3. Open the Previewer and then open your filtered web page. The previewer automatically converts the web page into the mobi file and opens it.
4. The tabs at the top of the document allow you to preview it in several different Kindle viewers. You can also select “Devices” from the menu bar at the top of the screen to see what your file will look like on an iPhone or iPad.
   
   
   For more tips like this one, check out our latest guide on self-publishing “Publishing and Selling Your Ebook on Kindle” available on Amazon’s kindle store at http://amzn.to/1gJSDmj

Publishing Your E-book the Easiest and Quickest Way Possible--New Book Tells You How!

Many authors are daunted by the process of self-publishing and think it's too much to learn.  Month after month they put off publishing and selling their e-book on the world's largest online bookstore--Amazon.
I took the plunge a year ago and along the way I took notes on everything I learned through the process of self-publishing.  A friend of mine, Louisa J. Dang, and I put our notes together and published an e-book titled "Publishing and Selling Your Ebook on Kindle." 
We cover all of the main problems you may stumble upon when editing, formatting, converting, publishing, and marketing your e-book on Kindle.
It's a book that I'm very proud of.  The information in this book will speed up the learning process for those looking to self-publish their e-book quickly.  I hope you'll give it a try and if you like it, please leave a review or tell your friends about it.  Thanks!
Note:  In this book, we cover the process of publishing online from beginning to end.  This book mainly focuses on publishing via Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing, so if you're looking for a book that focuses on other publishing platforms, then you may want to wait for additional books from us or check out others.
Here's the link to our book http://amzn.to/17QAspk

New book cover for "House of Mirrors" thanks to Jeanine Henning!

I've given HOUSE OF MIRRORS a book cover makeover.  I tried to make a homemade cover to begin with but decided it's better to go with a design professional like Jeanine Henning of J.H. Illustration.  If you're looking for a professional book cover artist, please check out Jeanine's work at J. H. Illustration or her website.
Here's my new book cover for HOUSE OF MIRRORS:

Free e-book publishing platforms to sell your ebook

I'm planning on launching my debut novel "House of Mirrors" within the next two weeks, so I'm looking at all of the available platforms.  So far, I'm sold on trying Amazon's Kindle Select first.  You have to make your book exclusive to Kindle while enrolled in the program, but considering that's where most people do their book shopping, it makes good marketing sense.
I researched the various platforms available to indie authors, and I posted it below for others who are not interested in making their e-books exclusive to Kindle. 
If you're looking for free e-book publishing platforms on which to sell your latest e-book, then take a look at this short list.  These are free to sign up with unlike others who charge a fee.  I made a note of the ones who offer a 100 percent royalty.
Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing 35% - 70% royalty
Smashwords 60% - 85% royalty
KOBO Writing Life 70% - 80% royalty
PubIt! 40% - 65% royalty
EbookMall 50% royalty
Scribd 80% royalty
Blurb 80% royalty
MyeBook 90% royalty
PaySpree 90% - 100% royalty
Click2Sell 90% - 95% royalty
* Payhip 100% royalty
* BookTango 100% royalty

Ebook publishing sensation Hugh Howey and Kindle Select

Remember all of those rejection letters from print publishers to which you sent manuscripts? Many unpublished writers can now thumb their noses at the big NYC publishers and do it themselves through digital self-publishing.  In fact, many are making on average $10,000 a year and then there are some raking in only $500.  But the world of digital self-publishing has many new superstars in its ranks--namely Hugh Howey, 37-year-old author of a popular dystopian series "Wool."  A recent article on CNN's website reported that Howey earns on average $150,000 per month.  October 2012 he sold 20,000 copies of "Wool" in one day!  Guess what he used to get his digital publishing career started?  That's right the Kindle Select program.  I'll post more details about the Kindle Select program and how it works.