Published and Available in Kindle Format!

Yes, as you can see, you can now purchase the Kindle version of Just Like Magic!

And if you don't have a Kindle, well, Amazon doesn't want to leave you out. They have free apps that will allow you to read Kindle books on lots of devices including Windows and Mac computers and many smaller devices, too. (Probably not a NOOK. ;) )

In the end, I didn't use Sigil or Calibre. I just kept testing my uploaded MS Word file on the Kindle Previewer, and, eventually, on the Kindle app I downloaded for my iMac. Then when I found formatting errors, I'd tweak it and reload. The main problems were in the formatting of the front and back materials as well as the chapter headings - things not being centered, mainly. I also learned that I needed to remove the table from the table of contents. And I found that putting the bookmarks for the chapters one row ABOVE the chapter numbers made the chapters look better when using the table of contents. I also had to switch all the italics in the book from a specific italic font to using the "italics" button. (Oh, and I changed the font to Times New Roman.) The main thing I learned, though, is that the file needs to be super clean.

Eventually, everything looked good!

And you can now read it for yourself and see. If you do find any formatting oddities that I missed, let me know in the comments here and I'll see what I can do.

I have signed up for KDP select, which means that for 90 days the book is available only through Amazon, and also that I can pick 5 days during that period of time for free promotionals, so stay tuned!

Progress

News on the book front:

1) At last, I have a new computer (an iMac). It should be able to do whatever I want - although I couldn't load my old version of MS Word on it, so I downloaded Open Office instead. We'll see how OO works.

2) I tried using the procedure listed on the Kindle website to easily transform my book manuscript into a Kindle format manuscript. All went smoothly, but when I previewed the resulting file, there were a lot of odd things going on. Random alignment issues and other weirdness. Conclusion - I'll have to do a more thorough editing on my own.

3) I'm going to start that more thorough editing today!

Stay tuned.

eBook delay

Hmmm. I said I'd post about a month ago. Obviously, I didn't. There wasn't much to say.

1) I don't have a new computer yet. But -- I plan to buy one next month.

2) I've lost a lot of steam for the project. There's no pressure to get anything done.

3) I've got some new projects going that have nothing to do with the book.

On the other hand, I did do a little bit of work on the Kindle version. I hoped that I could simply follow the directions given on the Kindle Direct Publishing site to change my book file into a Kindle file. So I worked on the file and then had my daughter download the Kindle previewer on her computer. Unfortunately, when I uploaded my file, some parts worked great (the table of contents) but others needed a lot of fixing. (The stars on the title page all turned into "é." Odd things were happening with chapter numbers and my small caps at the beginning of chapters. And other stuff.) I will really need to do more in-depth editing than Kindle thinks.

 So don't expect more news for a while. A month, maybe? In the meantime, if you're interested in an eBook version of Just Like Magic, leave a comment and let me know which format you would like it in (Kindle? EPUB? PDF?). That will help me make decisions later.

Have a good month!

Happy New Year!

I am pleased to say that I did finish the e-book publishing course. Which means that I took and passed the final exam. I have in no way absorbed all the material or started applying it.

And with a major vacation coming up in two-and-a-half weeks, it's not going to happen soon. I hate to say it, but don't expect any more updates until mid-February. At that point I may have:

1. More time.
2. A new computer? That one depends partly on my tax refund this year.
3. A new head of steam for the project.

We'll see.

If you have read Just Like Magic, I hope you enjoyed it. For those of you nearby, the library has purchased two copies but is apparently still cataloguing them; they aren't available yet. But you can still put them on hold!

Best wishes for 2013!

My plans for the rest of the year

"Now comes the hour to put the game* away,

And greet the joyous season of the year.

The time of Tree and Star is drawing near;

Forget the search* and revel in the day!"

Elizabeth Enright, Spiderweb for Two

* Substitute "blog" for "game" or "search."

Here are my plans for December:

1) Keep up with and finish my online e-book publishing class.

2) Put this blog aside until January 6.

3) Enjoy the holiday season!

I'm getting some good information from my class, but I won't be applying it until the new year. So Happy Holidays, everyone! If you've read Just Like Magic, I hope you enjoyed it. 

My writing plans for next year are, in this order: publish the e-book versions of Just Like Magic, market it, and continue to work on the sequel.

P.S. I got my first royalty payment on Friday!

Still learning...

Learning about e-book publishing, that is.  There are four more weeks in the class and I expect that absorbing and applying it all will not be done until next year sometime, what with the holidays and all...

Frankly, it's been nice to have a break from a heavy writing/editing schedule. I've woven a basket, sorted a drawer, read some books. I'll get back to the publishing and promoting, I promise, but at an easier pace.

Odds and ends

1) I have started my online "Publish and Sell Your E-Books" class, and from what I read in the syllabus, the class should help me get my book out in several formats, not just Kindle. And getting Just Like Magic published as an e-book should help me with marketing, too. Cheaper prices = more people willing to take a chance on it. Right?

2) Just this morning, I had a couple of couple of good ideas for the sequels.

3) I'll be getting a royalty check at the end of the month.

4) It's not a big royalty check.

5) Someone bought a copy of my book without me knowing who it is!

It doesn't take much to make me happy, does it?