eBook Design and Formatting
What will my eBook look like?
This will depend upon what the reader is using to view your eBook and their own personal preferences. Most eBook reading devices, such as the iPad and Kindle, allow the user to choose which font-faces and font-sizes they want displayed. So if you are set on meticulously replicating the layout of the printed version of your book, you may need to change your expectations.
Your eBook will be formatted to perform across a variety of different reading devices and software, but you need to take into account that the way your eBook looks on one device may be quite different to how it looks on another.
Will my eBook be in colour?
If your work includes a colour front cover, images, diagrams or headings then they will be included in the eBook in colour. However, not all eReader devices display colour, so if your eBook is being viewed through a Kindle for example (not a Kindle Fire) then the coloured elements will be displayed in grayscale.
Many newer eReader devices and tablets, such as the iPad, Nook Color, Kobo Vox and Kindle Fire, display radiant colour and are especially suited to text books, picture books and children’s titles.
Can you show me an example of the finished article? ie the formatted ebook the customer will buy.
Yes we can. If you email helpdesk@ebookpartnership.com outlining the type of book that you wish publish we can send you a sample of a relevant title.
What is the standard font size for an e-book?
Most eReader devices and software allow the user to automatically resize the text, so font size is not an important choice when you are writing your eBook. If you use a 12pt or 14pt font you should find that it displays nice and clearly in most formats.
Our Services
Will my e-book be formatted to show number of chapters, dedication, and author’s bio?
Yes, your eBook can have all the elements of a traditional printed book. Generally the software/eReader used to read the eBook will generate a Table of Contents that list the chapter numbers and titles. The Author bio can be a good tool for helping to encourage sales of the eBook and can be included in the eBook as well as the listings on retailer websites.
How much do you charge?
For a full list of our conversion and submission prices please visit our Prices page. Conversion only charges start from just $210/£149. Conversion and distribution packages start from only $315/£225.
How much commission do you charge?
If you set-up your own accounts with the relevant retailers then we will not be involved in your financial arrangement with the retailer, royalties will be paid direct to you.
You can also sell through our seller accounts with the retailers, so in essence we will be acting as your distributor. We provide a set -up service for distribution, and a small annual fee, and you receive 100% royalty payments received from the retailer. Full details in our eBook distribution pages:
Authors : http://www.ebookpartnership.com/ebook-distribution/ebook-distribution-for-authors/
Publishers : http://www.ebookpartnership.com/ebook-distribution/ebook-distribution-for-publishers/
Will I get a copy of my eBook?
Yes, of course. We will send you a copy of each file format that you have requested.
Which format can I send you my book in?
Ideally, it will be a Word file (doc or docx) or PDF or RTF. If you have your book in a different digital format please email it to helpdesk@ebookpartnership.com so that we can take a look.
Can you convert a printed book to eBook?
Yes, we offer an excellent service for printed book to eBook. We can scan a physical book, lift the text from the scan and then convert that to an eBook (this process is called Digitization). The process takes a few days and will increase the cost of your eBook project. Our scan/OCR service is very popular, we manually check the document and often have to take over the project from an automated service provider. Ideally, you will provide us with two copies of your book as we need to separate the pages from one, and use the other for checking the conversion. For more details visit our Printed and Out-Of-Print books page.
Can you publish full color illustrated books, graphic novels?
Yes we can. Graphic novels look best on colour eReaders such as B&N’s Nook and Apple’s iPad, and Amazon’s Kindle Fire device. Some Kindle devices, standard Nooks and Sony Readers do not have colour displays, although Kindle books and Nook books can be read in full colour via apps for iPad and Android devices.
My book has lots of photos and is too big for uploading to Smashwords.It needs to be under 5MG for Smashwords. Can you do this?
Yes we can. We are experts in image compression and publishing via Smashwords. For a quote please visit our Request a Quote page.
eBook Retailers
Where will people be able to buy my eBook?
We can submit your eBook to more than 60 retailers including:
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- Amazon.com & .co.uk, .es, .de, .it, .it
- Apple
- Barnes & Noble
- Kobo – which has a rapidly expanding list of retailers including FNAC (France), Whitcoulls (NZ), Angus & Robertson (AUS), Chapters/Indigo (Canada).
- Waterstones
- WH Smith
- Gardner’s (includes Tesco, Book Depository, Hive, Kalahari and over 60 other eBook stores)
Please take a look at our eBook distribution pages for pricing options.
For Authors : http://www.ebookpartnership.com/ebook-distribution/ebook-distribution-for-authors/
For Publishers : http://www.ebookpartnership.com/ebook-distribution/ebook-distribution-for-publishers/
We are always on the look-out for new retailers to distribute our titles through. If there are any retailers you would like your eBook submitted to which aren’t included in the list above, please let us know: helpdesk@ebookpartnership.com
How long will it take for my book to be available through the retailers websites?
This depends upon the retailer. Generally, Amazon submissions take a maximum of three days before they are approved/rejected. Apple and Kobo submissions can take longer.
Do you publish my eBook on Yudu.com?
No. Yudu relies on a constant internet connection and has high per page production fees (from £15 per page), and for this reason, we do not, at present, offer this service.
How much royalties due to Amazon and other retailers pay?
Please note that the royalty rates below are subject to change and may also be subject to tax deductions.
- Amazon - pay 70% if the book is priced between $2.99/£1.49 and $9.99/£6.99, and 35% if it is priced above or below these figures.
- Apple - pay 70%.
- Waterstones - pay 60%.
- B&N – pay 65% if the book is priced between $2.99 and $9.99, and 40% if it is priced above or below these figures.
- Kobo – pay 70%.
- Gardner’s – pay 50%.
Can authors/publishers from outside the US sell eBooks on Amazon and through the iBookstore?
Yes. Whilst it is certainly easier for US authors and publishers to add their eBooks onto Amazon.com and the iBookstore, it is possible to sell eBooks on these websites if you are from outside the US. One of the more complicated areas for non-US eBook sellers is receiving payment and (legally) avoiding paying US income tax on your royalty payments.
If you are setting up your own retailer accounts you will need an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) if you want to avoid paying US income tax on sales from US retailers.
You will also need an ITIN to set-up a seller account with Apple.
The procedure for obtaining an ITIN number can be time-consuming and arduous, however we recommend that you contact www.usataxrebate.com who specialise in helping non-US residents obtain ITIN numbers.
eBook Rights
Who owns the digital rights to my books if they have previously been published in the UK?
This is a grey area and will depend upon the original contract between the author and publisher. Consensus appears to be that if the rights have not been explicitly referred to in the contract then they remain the property of the author. Older contracts will most likely not make any reference to eBooks and digital versions of books, and most authors would tend to believe that this means they still own these rights as . However, publishers would generally assume that they own the rights to “all” formats of the book. So far there is no legal precedent, but the most significant court ruling involved a case between the publisher Random House and Rosetta Books, an eBook publisher. Random House argued that they owned the rights to titles that Rosetta were publishing digitally, but Random House’s claims were twice thrown out of the US Court of Appeal. We know of some published authors who have recently been asked by their print publisher to sign amended contracts that include the digital rights to their work, which would also seem to suggest that the digital rights belong to the author unless they have been explicitly referred to in a contract.
ISBN Numbers
Do I need an ISBN?
If you want to sell via Apple’s iBookstore or KObo or B&N or Waterstones, yes. Although you can publish an eBook on Amazon.com without an ISBN, most retailers will only accept eBooks that have a unique ISBN. If you do not have an ISBN for your eBook do not worry as all our conversion and distribution packages now include a FREE ISBN number.
Our ISBN numbers have enhanced listing with Nielsen’s PubWeb service.
Can I use the same ISBN that I used for the printed version of my book?
No. If you use an ISBN for your eBook it must be unique.
Do you automatically register the finished eBook with Neilsen’s Book Data Service?
If you receive an ISBN number from us as part of your conversion project, we will register all the relevant details with Neilsen (UK ISBN Agency). The ISBN will have an enhanced listing – which means we can include a description, table of contents and an author biography within the entry – and will appear with the imprint ‘ebookpartnership.com’. We charge £10/$15 to allocate an ISBN to your eBook, and an ISBN is free with our conversion and distribution packages.
If your eBook does not need an ISBN or you have sourced an ISBN from another source you will be responsible for making sure that the relevant details have been submitted to an ISBN agency.
