Books not only take time to write, they're also a challenge. Indeed, many prospective authors give up and never write a book, because they lose their inspiration. Short projects, on the other hand, require much less commitment and experience than a full-length book.
Publishing's digital revolution means that a "book" can be any length. A "page" is meaningless in eBook terms.
Many authors have realized that readers love short ebooks. So has Amazon.
Let's look at some of the benefits of writing short ebooks.
You Can Write A Book and Sell It Faster
Speed is everything. With more books available in a shorter time, you'll be making more money. If it takes you six months to write a book, you can write a short eBook in a couple of weeks. If you're a fast writer, you can write a short eBook in a week.
Amazon Has Created "Serials", Which Are Just Short Ebooks
Amazon's well aware that readers like short material. If you've downloaded a book, Amazon knows how long it took you to read it. Amazon also knows that you never finish many of the books you download.
Few readers can read an entire book in one sitting. Amazon knows that many readers read a portion of a book, and never go back to it. In its new Amazon Serials offering, Amazon is telling writers what the research is telling Amazon -- write short ebooks.
If You're Writing Fiction You Can Write Short Stories to Promote Your Novels
Writing a novel is a huge undertaking. If you're a new writer, and don't already have a platform, it's almost impossible to sell a debut novel and make decent money. Yes, you can offer your material for "free", but other authors offer their ebooks for free too.
Offering your book for free does not mean that you'll make sales.
Why not try something different? While you're writing your novel, write some short stories and sell them for minimal amounts. This introduces you to readers. Once you have a readership, even if it's tiny, you're much more likely to be able to sell your novels when they're available.
Your short stories give readers a chance to get to know your work and love it -- they build your platform.
If You're Writing Non-Fiction, You Can Write a Series on a Topic
A nonfiction book contains a lot of material. Chances are that each reader will be interested primarily in a small part of your nonfiction book.
For example, if you're writing a nonfiction book on dieting and weight loss, some of your readers will be more interested in your chapter on exercise than in other portions of your book.
Chances are, they'll buy someone else's book on exercise, rather than buying your diet-focused book just to get the chapter on exercise.
Why not write a short series of ebooks, on the topics you're covering in your more comprehensive book? Readers get a chance to get to know you. You can also start selling your material much sooner than you otherwise would.
In addition, because readers can buy just the sections which appeal to them, you're likely to increase sales.
Short Ebooks Mean Lower Prices, Which Readers Love
Once you're an established writer, who has a platform, you can charge whatever you like for your ebooks.
If you're new writer however, you need to become established. During this period, it's easier to sell ebooks at lower prices. So, write shorter ebooks.
Short ebooks are not only profitable for writers, they're also attractive to readers. Try writing and selling them.
How an eBook Makes You an Expert in Your Field
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