How to Self-Publish Your E-Book

Apple’s Pages app for Mac, iOS and iCloud provides all the tools needed to write, design and publish an e-book to its Apple Books store.
Apple’s Pages app for Mac, iOS and iCloud provides all the tools needed to write, design and publish an e-book to its Apple Books store.
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How to Self-Publish Your E-Book

Apple’s Pages app for Mac, iOS and iCloud provides all the tools needed to write, design and publish an e-book to its Apple Books store.
Apple’s Pages app for Mac, iOS and iCloud provides all the tools needed to write, design and publish an e-book to its Apple Books store.

J. D. Biersdorfer

If you have a story you want to share, you can easily publish your work in popular electronic bookstores — and maybe even make a little money.

Apple’s Pages app for Mac, iOS, and iCloud provides all the tools needed to write, design, and publish an e-book to its Apple Books store.

Have you ever dreamed of publishing your own e-book and making it big — like the best-selling authors Colleen Hoover and Andy Weir? Not everyone has such success, but plenty of writers have found an audience online with platforms, like Amazon Kindle Publishing and Barnes & Noble Press, that allow authors to freely upload their books and sell them. While you may not get as much exposure by skipping traditional publishing methods and releasing your book yourself, you do retain more control over your work and royalties, which can be up to 70 percent of the sale price. If you’re inspired, here’s a basic overview of the process.

Prepare Your Manuscript

You don’t need special software to write a book — pretty much any modern word-processing program will do — although some people find apps for organizing plots and characters useful. However, your text should be as mistake-free as possible, so take full advantage of any and all proofing tools you have. Apple’s Pages, Google Docs, Microsoft Word, Zoho Writer and several other programs include spelling and grammar aids in their desktop editions; options may be more limited on mobile devices.

Some programs have add-ons that use artificial intelligence to analyze and suggest improvements to your writing; Zoho’s free Zia assistant and Microsoft’s new $30-a-month Copilot tool for its Office suite are two examples. Third-party A.I.-powered apps like Grammarly and ProWritingAid have free basic editions with the option to level up for additional help for $10 to $12 a month.

Grammarly is among the programs that use artificial intelligence to analyze and make suggestions for improving your writing.

If you’d rather have a human advising you (and you have the budget for it), hiring a professional editor can also help improve your book.

Design Your Book Cover

Even with a snappy title, a book cover with plain text on a plain background will probably get lost in a busy e-bookstore. Get readers to notice your work among the rows of competing books before they can even judge it.

Check your word-processing software to see if it includes book-cover templates. Design sites like Canva or Snappa also offer free or inexpensive options. Browsing design sites or store shelves to see which covers stand out can give you ideas.

If you go the D.I.Y. route, keep a few things in mind. First, do not use someone else’s copyrighted photos, illustrations, or graphics without permission. If you use your own images, remember that e-book covers are tiny in online stores — so make the cover legible. The file size requirements will vary based on the e-book publisher(s) you choose to distribute your book, so keep the design flexible enough that you can adjust it as needed.

As with hiring an editor, hiring a graphic designer to create a cover is an option.

Pick a Publisher

When you have your text and art finished, choose an e-book publishing platform. Unless you agree to an exclusive deal with one publisher, you can upload your book to multiple e-bookstores, but programs like Amazon’s KDP Select require 90 days of Kindle-only distribution in exchange for special promotions.

E-book publisher and bookstore sites include Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing, Apple Books for Authors, Barnes & Noble Press, the Books Partner Center for Google Play Books, and Rakuten’s Kobo Writing Life. (Many also can create printed books — but for a price.)

The New York Times



Saudi Arabia Announces Riyadh Declaration for Inclusive, Innovative and Impactful AI for all

The 19th session of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) - SPA
The 19th session of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) - SPA
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Saudi Arabia Announces Riyadh Declaration for Inclusive, Innovative and Impactful AI for all

The 19th session of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) - SPA
The 19th session of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) - SPA

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announced the "Riyadh Declaration" on Monday, at the beginning of the 19th session of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). The event was hosted in Riyadh and organized by the UN.
The forum aims at promoting digital cooperation between governments, the private sector, the non-profit sector, entrepreneurs and innovators worldwide.
Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah Alswaha said the declaration was made possible with the support of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, SPA reported.
The declaration focuses on AI with its inclusive, innovative and impactful dimension, and emphasizes the need for use of AI technologies to enable digital access and enhance digital knowledge, as well as address global challenges and unleash global economic value.
The declaration also emphasizes the AI role in increasing digital accessibility and digital literacy, promoting sustainable development, protecting environment, improving public health, and boosting economic inclusion.
Alswaha also pointed out that the Kingdom, under the leadership of the Crown Prince, has adopted a proactive approach in the field of AI, and stressed that the Kingdom's Vision 2030 is clear and based on the commitment to lead the global transformation in this field by example.
Alswaha said the Kingdom is committed to addressing key challenges such as unequal access to algorithms, data, and computing resources. It is working to enhance the fairness and reliability of AI algorithms, minimizing errors that could have negative consequences for individuals or societies. The Kingdom also prioritizes inclusivity in the design and use of AI technologies, and emphasizes the importance of responsible and safe data practices, aiming to harness the power of data for the betterment of society.