1/7/2024 0 Comments For windows download VellumThis merger will eventually make all Smashwords users, Draft2Digital (D2D) users, so if you are debating which of the two is best for you, I would recommend going ahead and signing up with D2D. Per their press release, the combined company will allow users to either take advantage of Draft2Digital’s existing, more user-friendly, but less customizable formatting tool for ebook conversion, or allow braver and infinitely more-patient authors the option of creating more unique ebook’s using Smashwords’ tool. Therefore, if you see a typo or a weird chapter heading, you have to go back to your original document, correct the error on the word doc and upload again.Īs mentioned above, Draft2Digital and Smashwords are combining forces. Con: Draft2Digital does not allow you to edit your file once it has been uploaded.Pro: It is fast, simple, and lets you download mobi, epub, and sample length versions of your ebook for free – even if you don’t distribute with them.Upload your word doc, select a template, and then add in things like your social media links, mailing list link, or author page, and Draft2Digital spits out a book file you can either take and distribute through other channels yourself or distribute through them for a portion of future book sales. However, it is much, much simpler to use. This leads me to the next option: Draft2Digitalĭraft2Digital (affiliate link) is like Smashwords in that it is a distributor that also offers ebook conversion. It is worth however noting that Smashwords announced in February of 2022, that it has been acquired by competitor, Draft2Digital in March and that moving forward the company would operate under that brand name. This means there is a risk your book could be published with typos or with a missing chapter as long as stylistically it fit within the Smashwords Style Guides. Also, once your book passes inspection, it is put up for sale without going through a secondary preview approval step. There is a reason you can find people to hire on Fiverr to get your file ready for you. Con: I am serious when I say this service is NOT recommended for people who don’t know how to use Word styles or are unwilling to read through an entire book of “style guides” prior to attempting to convert their file. It also offers a tool for self-certifying your content does not contain certain taboo subjects, which increases the chance those who publish more risqué material can distribute their books to a larger audience. Pro: Converts to all major ebook formats including mobi, epub, and pdf for free.Fail their checks during the process they call “the Meatgrinder” and your book goes nowhere. Therefore, Smashwords is VERY particular about how your manuscript is formatted prior to releasing it to partner sites and works best with Word files. This is because Smashwords distributes your book to channels like Apple books, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble for you, and those channels may have slightly different requirements for an ebook’s file’s layout. It is also one of the most difficult ebook conversion tools I’ve ever used. Smashwords is an ebook conversion service and distribution channel. Con: Costly at $199.99, it’s not available for non-Mac users (unless you go through a third-party service like MacinCloud), and your book looks like dozens of others making it more difficult for your author brand to stand out from the crowd.I’ve just seen enough of the same decorative flourishes to recognize a Vellum ebook as soon as a chapter opens. Don’t get me wrong – it creates highly readable ebooks. I can tell it must be awesome to use though based on the number of books I’ve read featuring one of its telltale templates. However, lacking a Mac or a bottomless checkbook, I’ve only been able to appreciate its service as a reader. Vellum offers formatting for print as well as ebook conversion. This leads me to the next step in the book publishing process – ebook conversion. There are also other distributors besides Amazon that require a specific format for ebooks called epub. I write my books using Word, however, just because you can import your manuscript’s formatted-for-print-ready Word document into Kindle Direct Publishing (Amazon), doesn’t mean you necessarily should.įor example, you may want to include a table of contents in your ebook for easy navigation, but don’t want one in the print version, or you may want to include links in your ebook pointing readers directly to your other books, making purchasing faster. While downloading ebooks to your reader is simple, getting them up on the cloud in the first place requires some work.
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