A Complete Guide to Writing Your First Ebook

The following guide covers: 

How to create and write an ebook

Tools for Creating eBooks

Join Uteach and publish your first ebook!

If you were wondering how to write your first ebook or why you even need one, then you are in the right place. First, let’s start with why. Not only can you provide more information with ebooks than in an email or blog post, but you can turn your eBook into a powerful lead magnet to get new clients. 

In this guide, we will explore the ins and outs of creating a quality eBook that will sell on its own or drive you more clients. Also, to give you more actionable insights we conducted an interview with Angelica Norton an expert author and creator to gain first-hand advice for you.   
Why eBooks are beneficial

Before diving into the practical section of this guide, first, let’s understand the main benefits of eBooks. 

• Accessibility and convenience. Ebooks are very accessible formats of books that can be easily downloaded and added to any convenient device. 
• Cost-effective. Many customers prefer eBooks over paper-cover books due to lower prices and high value. So, by offering your customers eBooks you can be sure that it will sell. 
• Environmentally friendly. Looking at the bigger picture it is worth mentioning that eBooks do not require research efforts which contributes to their environmental friendliness compared to paper-cover books. 
• Interactive content. With eBooks you can easily include multimedia elements such as videos, audio clips, and hyperlinks, making the content more engaging and informative for your target audience. Additionally, encouraging readers to leave reviews can enhance your eBook's credibility and reach. EssayPro explains how to write a good book review, providing valuable tips on garnering effective feedback.
• Global availability. Ebooks will not limit your audience size to a specific location or create additional headaches regarding international distribution as they are digital and can be purchased by anyone all over the world. 
• Lower publishing costs for the authors. Publishing an eBook is generally more affordable than traditional print publishing. Authors can avoid the costs associated with printing, binding, and distribution, making it easier to publish their work independently.

How to create and write an ebook

Finally, it is time to dive into the practical section of this guide. Let's review the main steps on how to create and write an eBook. 

Choose the Topic of the eBook

To start creating an eBook, you need to choose a topic. To select a good topic, first identify your area of expertise. Make sure to focus on subjects you are most passionate about and in which you have expertise well enough to provide value. 

Make sure to validate your idea before moving further on. To validate the idea for an eBook, you can conduct surveys and research trends to understand the approximate market demand. 

Identify Your Niche and Audience 

If you want to make sales, you need to identify your niche and audience. Thus, you should conduct thorough market research looking into existing eBooks and their buyers. This will help you to assess the content, reviews, and popularity of the existing eBooks, understanding what is lacking and what you can add to yours to make it stand out. Also, identifying your competitors will allow you to analyze their strategies and learn from their mistakes. 

When researching the market, clearly define who your target audience is, taking into account age, gender, profession, and interests. Then, based on these factors, you can develop buyer personas further (for eBooks, let’s refer to them as reader personas). Each reader persona will be a detailed description of your ideal reader representing a specific segment of your target market. 

Finally, at this stage do not forget to define the needs of your audience. In order for anything to sell, it must provide a solution to a need or a problem. For instance, a person who is not thirsty will not purchase a bottle of water on the go. But a person who is thirsty will do it. 

This simple example works for every niche. Similar to a water bottle example, a person will not buy an eBook on “How to make a sale” if they are not in sales or do not plan to develop a career in sales, sell a product, or grow a business. So, make sure to identify the needs and problems of each reader persona you have developed. 

Audience research’s importance is emphasized by many course and eBook creators including Angelica Norton. However, Angelica advises focusing not only on specifying the audience and identifying needs but also on building long-term relationships with the audience by engaging them via social media and other channels. 

"The strategy is to start talking about the book the moment you decide to write the book. The goal is to build an author platform... you want to keep [your audience] informed on everything that's happening with the book, because that builds anticipation. And then it also starts to build your audience and then build the interest... Readers want to feel included in your process; they want to feel like there's a part of them in the story."

 - Angelica Norton 

Author

Plan Your Content 

The next stage in this process is to plan your content. Start by creating an outline for the eBook. 

Angelica Norton once again emphasizes the importance of outline as the starting point of the writing process. The outline should contain the key points you plan to include in the book, breaking them down into reasonable sections and chapters. 

Here is what she advised regarding outline creation step-by-step: 

• Identify key lessons and themes of the eBook. For instance, if your book is going to be about a divorce or a loss one of the key lessons can be “How to accept a loss.”
• List the lessons as potential chapters of the book and start the labeling process. This is the initial framework serving as a rough draft of your eBook’s further structure. 
• Refine and organize by listing all the chapters and identifying overlaps. This will help you to refine an outline by eliminating or merging certain chapters as needed for a better flow of the book. 
• Start writing key points of each chapter under their headings. 

After developing an outline, set learning objectives for each chapter of the book. 

For instance, Chapter 1 will contribute to a fundamental understanding of X, Y, Z, and so on. Also, at this stage, you can research and include useful links for case studies to share with the readers.

Write the Content 

When it comes to the writing process itself, the outline will greatly help you and speed it up. Here, you can take a general approach and start each chapter with a textbook example. But, to make things more interesting, let’s find out what Angelica advised during the interview. 

Essentially, she advises you to start writing under each chapter, beginning with specific, vivid moments that convey your experiences. Taking this approach will help you create a narrative that resonates with the readers. For example, if the chapter is about “how to make a sale” you can start by groundbreaking personal case of making huge amounts of $ in a short period of time by utilizing the strategy you plan to talk about in the chapter. 

Other advice and tips from experienced creators during this stage include: 

• Set a writing timeline. To avoid procrastination, you need to stick to a specific writing schedule. For instance, you can set a deadline by which you will finish writing the book and attainable goals for every day, e.g., writing 500 words each day before the deadline. 
• Focus on the reader. When writing the eBook, keep your target audience in mind. Everything from writing style to case studies matters and should be tailored to your target readers. For instance, if your audience and target market are beginners make sure not to use complicated jargon as often as you would do if your target market were professionals in the X area. 
• Storytelling. Use storytelling techniques incorporating anecdotes, personal examples, and other stories to emphasize your point and make the content more engaging. 
• Leverage writing tools. Not to face a huge pile of work, but by the time you are done with the draft, you can leverage writing tools such as grammar checkers. 

Edit and Revise 

When the content of the eBook is ready, it is still far from being ready for publishing. The next major step in the eBook creation process is to dedicate time and effort to proofreading, editing, and revision. These will help you to ensure the quality and coherence of the final product. 

Here are a few useful tips for reading, editing, and revisions: 

• Work with an editor. If you have the resources, then collaborate with an editor. Editors focus on overall structure and flow, giving actionable improvements to your eBook. 
• Avoid skipping the editing phase. Skipping the editing phase may result in your book not meeting your audience’s expectations. Editing does not refer only to grammar checks; it is a complex process that requires your full attention to every aspect of the written content. 
• Aim for quality and do not rush the process. A well-written book will help you make sales and build authority and trust in the market. So, do not rush the editing process, making sure everything is done with quality. 

Design and Format 

You are almost ready. Congratulations. 

But let’s not forget about the vitality of visuals. Most people are visual learners. In fact, 65% of the global population are visual learners, so design and formatting are essential. 

Imagine an eBook that is crafted so well that it transforms the reader’s experience completely. 

For instance, let’s say Julia is our first author who completed all the steps as she should but did not pay much attention to design and formatting. On the other hand, there is Monica who did a job just as well as Julia but also invested additional time in design and format. 

In fact, Monica went all in hiring a professional cover designer to create an awesome first impression and hook the readers upfront. With an eye for visual storytelling, the designer rafted a cover that not only captured the essence of Monica’s book but also made it stand out among countless others. It was an investment that paid off.

Well, when sales start imagine whose book is going to sell more? The right answer is Monica’s. Once again, most of us are visual learners and we love visual stimuli, and Monica made sure to take care of it. 

In this example, we talked only about the cover, but formatting and design go far beyond just the cover. They also include formatting the pages so that your eBook allows readers to focus on its content. Make sure the eBook is easily readable. P.S. Remember that simplicity does not mean you cannot use bright colors. 

It also involves selecting the right colors. Select colors and fonts that resonate with the contents of your eBook. Everything about the design and format of your eBook must enhance the reader’s experience. 

Finally, do not forget to pay attention to detail. When it comes to formatting, make sure to pay attention to details such as page numbers, footers, and well-formatted quotes to ensure high readability. 

At the end of the day keep in mind that formatting and design are not just for “decoration”. These two components are essential and powerful elements bringing the contents of your book together and creating a cohesive professional look. A well-formatted book with good visuals and valuable content will definitely sell. 

However, you do not have to hire professionals to design the whole eBook, as there are multiple useful tools that will help you do the formatting and design on your own. More on this a bit later. 

Publish the eBook 

"Here's the thing with eBook. An e-book does not require an ISBN. You can publish it on Kindle, you can publish it, and you don't need an ISBN. But I would say if you want to protect it, I would purchase the ISBN and assign it to even your digital work because, again, it's your intellectual property. It's your work, and you want to protect it the best way possible."

 - Angelica Norton 

Author

Finally, when you complete all the steps of creating an eBook, it is time to publish it. First, make sure to choose the right platform. To save time on research, we recommend Uteach. 

Uteach is an excellent tool for coaches, trainers, and course creators. It comes in handy with all the necessary features for creating, publishing, and selling eBooks, courses, and other educational materials. 

When you are clear about the platform, do not forget about another important aspect of the pricing strategy. Go back to your market research stage and take a closer look at the competitor's prices. Based on competitors' prices and your added value, you can decide on the final price of your book. 

Also, before publishing the eBook, make sure to protect your intellectual property rights. First, you can register your copyright. In the U.S., you can do so by submitting an application form that provides details about your work and uploading a digital copy. Other measures to take include watermarking the downloads and monitoring infringements (e.g., by using services such as Google Alerts and other copyright mentoring tools). 

When each step at this stage is taken care of, you can safely and confidently upload your eBook to the platform of your choice. 

Start Promotions 

Published the eBook? Great job! Now, it is time to make sales, and for that, you need to promote your eBook. Here are a few tips from industry experts: 

• Leverage the power of social media to engage the audience and build anticipation. 
• Offer free chapters to create initial interest and hook the reader. 
• Collaborate with other creators to promote your eBook to their audiences. 
• Create a landing page for your eBook and use paid advertising, such as Google Ads, to promote it. 
• Offer limited-time discounts and run promotions to create a sense of urgency. 

Tools for Creating eBooks

As far as we are clear on the steps, let’s jump into the tools that will help you create quality eBooks. 

Apple Pages

Apple Pages is a user-friendly platform suitable for Mac users who want to create fairly simple eBooks. Apple Pages offers a variety of formatting and export options, allowing you to save time and create a neat design. For Mac users Apple Pages is free. 

Kindle Create

If you want to design an eBook while playing around with formatting, then you can use Kindle Create, a free tool by Amazon. Even if it is your first time creating an eBook, this tool will be one of the easiest to use. Also, books created with Kindle Create are Kindle-compatible. Kindle Create is free. 

Draft2Digital

Draft2Digital is an excellent platform for eBook creators to format their eBooks. With this tool, you can format an eBook daily easily and make sure it looks clean. Draft2Digital charges no upfront fees; instead, they take around 10% of the retail price per sale.

Atticus

Another tool that will help you with your eBook’s writing and formatting is Atticus. Atticus is a perfect tool for authors who want to leverage more advanced eBook formatting options. In 2024, Atticus costs a one-time fee of $147.

Scrivener

If you are searching for a potent writing software that offers a range of tools for organizing, writing, and formatting, then Scrivener might be the perfect choice for you. It is especially useful for creators who plan to write longer eBooks. Scrivener costs $59.99 in 2024 for lifetime access. 

Adobe InDesign

Those creators who place lots of attention on visuals and want professional-looking designs should definitely consider Adobe InDesign for eBook formatting. This tool will allow you to leverage complex layouts, advanced typography, and integration of multimedia elements. Adobe InDesign costs $20.99 per month in 2024 as part of Adobe’s Creative Cloud subscription. 

Google Docs 

A free, simple, and easy word processor for eBook creators. Google Docs is easy to use, provides real-time synchronization and collaboration features, and allows the export of eBooks in formats such as PDF and Word. Google Docs is free to use in 2024.

Microsoft Word

Another fairly simple tool for eBook creation is Microsoft Word, which is pretty much the same as Google Docs. It is a common choice for the initial drafting of the eBooks before final formatting and design. Microsoft Word is available through a Microsoft 365 subscription, starting at $6.99 per month.

Marq

Marq is a popular cloud-based design tool that allows users to format eBooks with ease and precision. A notable benefit of this tool is that it offers customizable, pre-made templates, saving users time on formatting and design. Marq’s 2024 pricing starts at $20 per month for the basic plan. 

FlipHTML5

Let’s not forget about FlipHTML5, especially when we are talking about formatting for eBooks. FlipHTML5 is an excellent platform to convert PDFs into interactive flipbooks. So, if you are planning to make it visually stimulating and engaging, consider using FlipHTML5. In 2024, FlipHTML5 pricing starts at $12.50 per month for the Pro plan.

Join Uteach and publish your first ebook!

Let’s say you are already done with creating an eBook, and you have perfect or even a few perfect ones to start sales. Well, another question arises: “Where do I sell my eBooks?” Luckily, we have answers to this question as well, and it is - Uteach. 

Uteach is an all-in-one platform for coaches, educators, and course creators. Anyone dedicated to the eLearning industry can leverage Uteach as a platform to build and monetize an online educational business. Whether you want to sell only eBooks or eBooks alongside your courses and training programs, Uteach can help you. 

The main features of the platform include a drag-and-drop website builder, course builder, Live functionality, marketing & sales features, certification builder, blog functionality, and seamless payment gateway. 

Start your free 14-day trial run period and find out every way in which Uteach can help you grow your online business and profit from eBooks.