GIVING A PRESENTATION
By Josephine Shaw
Preparation is essential even if the
presentation will take only two minutes.
Think
through these questions until you have satisfactory answers.
·
What is my objective?
·
What sort of people are the group? What will be their objective/s? How shall I get their interest and
co-operation in achieving my objective and theirs?
·
What facts do they need in order to meet their
objective/s and, if desirable, to discuss the topic constructively?
·
What detail, if any, is needed to elucidate the facts?
·
In what order shall I give the facts?
·
How shall I begin? What facts provide the ’meat’ of the
topic? How will I end?
·
What techniques shall I use – eg explanation,
demonstration?
You may find it helpful
to have cue cards to hold. They
can be on a ring or file tag so that they can be turned over easily. Write the first sentence of your talk
in full. Write key facts in capital letters with key details under each heading
in small letters. Write the last
sentence in full. Write large
enough to read comfortably. Number
the pages. If you prefer to write
your presentation in full to get you going, reduce it to key word notes. Never read from a script.
When you
have completed your notes check the following points.
·
Is the objective clear and is the content relevant?
·
Is the content clear, adequate, complete and
sufficiently detailed?
·
Is there any unnecessary information or detail?
·
Is the content structured?
i Does
the introduction ‘set the scene’ for the listeners?
ii Does
the middle present the facts in a logical sequence?
iii Does
the conclusion summarise the content and indicate what is expected of the
members eg questions, discussion?
iv Include
a joke if it s relevant and really humorous.
There is a
golden rule which is helpful.
i Tell
them what you are going to tell them
ii Tell
them
iii Tell
them what you have told them.
Gaining confidence
Rehearse
your presentation in front of a mirror.
If possible ask one or more friends to be an audience and then give you
feedback. This enables you to
check the timing. You may have to
add to or reduce the content and perhaps restructure it a little. Ensure that there is no
duplication. Review your choice of
words and hone the phrases. Practise
deep breathing.
Delivery
Wear comfortable clothes in which you feel good
and comfortable shoes.
Breathing - take a deep breath before you begin and
then breathe from the diaphragm.
Posture - standing is better than sitting so that you
can have eye contact with the listeners.
Stand up straight with feet slightly apart. Find the most comfortable stance for
you.
You may wish to ask that mobile phones be turned off
or put on silent operation.
Say that if members wish to ask questions you will be
happy to hear them and answer them after your presentation. This avoids interruptions that can
throw you off track.
Avoid mannerisms such as waving arms and hands,
‘fiddling with hair’.
Speak distinctly. Vary your speed but do not speak so quickly that you slur
your words, modulate your voice (breathing from the diaphragm helps), talk to
the people at the back of the room.
Pause before making points that you wish to emphasise
and after important points. This
gives listeners time to ‘digest’ them.
Establish and maintain eye contact by looking around
the faces. This helps to make each
listener feel that you are talking to them as an individual - difficult to
achieve but great if you can.
Speak with conviction and enthusiasm.
Be natural and sincere. Smile when appropriate to do so.
© Josephine Shaw (February 2014)
WRITING for MAGAZINES
By Jacqueline Pye
Like so much else in publishing,
writing and selling articles is an evolving process. However, while some will
say that the market is dead, a quick look at the mag section in the newsagent’s
shows that there are publications on almost any subject you could think of, and
someone has to write the content.
Agreed, most of the content is written in-house and by a very small
staff, but they can’t know everything. An approach from a freelance offering a
new idea, or particular expertise, can persuade the editor to
take up that pitch.
Decide and Research
1
Choose an area of which you have special knowledge, or one in which
you’re interested and are keen to research. It might be your hobby,
knowledge from your field of work, a looming anniversary, or a
biography.
2
Browse magazines on the subject, and buy any that seem promising.
Note their general tone, the length of the articles and of paragraphs
and
sentences, and whether photos are used. Consult the Writers’ and
Artists’
Yearbook for a comprehensive list - some libraries make this available.
3
When you’ve chosen a market, check the website for info on submitting
and the name and (if possible) email address of the editor.
Pitch Your Idea
Write a fairly brief email/letter
giving the proposed title, the thrust and aim of the content, the likely
length, and why you’re the right person to write it. Mention the magazine early
in your pitch. Then lastly, thank the editor for his/her time! While you await a
response, make a plan of the piece and dive into the research.
Write It
1
If the editor asks to see the piece, you should be ready to write it.
Match the
layout to the house style, start with a concise and irresistible ‘hook’,
and end
with a round-up of the content (maybe bullet points), and any useful
links.
2 Judge whether humour is used and
write accordingly. Vary sentence lengths,
and avoid repetition of words/phrases as far as possible.
3
Edit vigorously. Check the word count and don’t be afraid to slash
sentences
or paragraphs if they don’t add much. It hurts you, but not your
chances.
4 Finally, proofread from beginning to end, and end to beginning. Then submit.
Outcomes
1
No reply. It’s OK to email a polite query after 3-4 weeks, but only
once.
2
‘Sorry, not for us.’ Approach a different magazine but be prepared to
study it
carefully and tailor the piece to fit.
3
‘We like the idea. May we see it?’ Send it a.s.a.p. by the means
specified.
4
When you’ve sent the piece, ‘Yes, we’ll take it.’ If not already
mentioned, ask
now what the rate would be,
whether you need to invoice them, and whether
they could let you know when the piece appears in the magazine.
Congrats!
_______________________________________________________________________
FORMATTING PDFs
FOR PRINT-ON-DEMAND BOOKS
Lisa Scullard for
Writing Buddies, February 2013
If you have
formatted a document for e-book already, it is a good starting-point for your
print version (n.b. This does not work successfully the other way around,
due to format restrictions in e-books). Otherwise, your original document may
be in Word, Works, Rich Text Format or Open Office text (ODT).
Firstly, you
will need to decide on your physical book's dimensions. The most popular, and
easiest to set up free distribution for, are 'Digest' (5.5”x8.5”), or 6”x9”.
Start by
downloading a free template file from Createspace or Lulu for your chosen
interior size. The template works in Word or OpenOffice. This sets up your page
dimensions, mirror page styles including 'gutter' (the deeper margin that
appears in the book's spine to account for page bend), and trim area. Do not
alter the formatted page layout, unless prompted to do so by your online
previewer later upon uploading (for example, if prompted to increase the gutter
margin for books of over 410 pages – you will be told by how much the gutter
needs to increase).
Using Ctrl+A,
select and copy your document from either your e-book document you created
earlier, or your original document if you have not created an e-book yet. Open
the downloaded pre-sized interior template with either Word or OpenOffice, and
paste your document into it.
If you have
previously created an e-book and used it as your source, all of your title
page, copyright page, table of contents, page breaks and formatting will be
preserved. If you have not created an e-book from your original document
before, you will need to do some basic cleaning-up at this stage:
ñ Left
indent: 0cm
ñ Right
indent: 0cm
ñ First
line (special): 0.5cm
ñ Above
paragraph: 0cm
ñ Below
paragraph: 0cm
ñ Line
spacing: 1 line/1.5 lines (according to personal taste)
It is up to you
how you set out your justifications throughout. Either left or parallel margin
justification looks good in print. Centralising chapter headings, and right justification
for other information, is also used for effect.
You will need a
title page for the very first/front page – just the title, in the font/size of
your choosing, and your name underneath.
The next page
is your copyright page. The legal minimum, to protect your rights, is to say
'Book title © (your name)(year)' and on the next line 'The moral right of the
author has been asserted'. You do not need to write anything more. If you have
given yourself a publisher name, also include it on this page, e.g. First
published by XXX Press in (year). You can also list other titles you have
previously published on this page.
Then your
Contents page/pages should appear, followed by an Introduction page and/or
About the Author, a dedication if any, and then your chapters.
Always insert a
page break at the end of a chapter or information page. The page break should
be immediately after the last full stop of the chapter. This will be preserved
if there are any later edits – do not use line returns to move new Chapters onto
the next page – this will corrupt at every minor edit anywhere in the book –
always use 'Insert/page break' or 'Ctrl+Enter' at the end of the last line of a
chapter or information page.
Insert any
headers, and page numbers. Your pagination will traditionally start with odd
numbers (from 1) on a right-hand page, and even numbers on the left. (N.b,
these pages appear back-to-front on-screen while editing – what you will
see side-by side on the screen is the right-hand/odd-numbered page on the left,
and its reverse to be printed on the right, i.e. the following left-hand page
as you turn it in the printed book).
To displace
page numbers at the beginning of a book, for example to start with Chapter One
on Page 1, click in the footer before the page number on any page, and go to
'Edit/Fields'. In the 'offset page numbers' box, type the number of pages you
wish to skip before page numbering visibly starts. So if your copyright page,
Contents, Introduction and About the Author take up four pages before Chapter One
starts, type '-4' numerically (minus four) in the box. You will need to do this
for both the left and right-handed page.
Traditionally, Chapter
One starts on the right-handed page (viz, offset as page 1). If you have
not enough pages beforehand to offset with an even number, it is perfectly
acceptable to have a blank page facing page 1, or an image, or a dedication. It
is entirely up to you, and often more visually pleasing to have this 'space' on
the left-hand page, rather than a continuation of previous information such as
contents or introduction facing the start of the first chapter.
Your headers
are also a matter of aesthetics. You may have your author name as one header,
and the book title on the facing page – or if the book is part of a series, you
may have the series title on the left and book title on the right, or book's
main title on the left and sub-heading on the right. Or simply the book title
on both pages. Once a header is filled in on an even page, it must then be
filled in on an odd page to appear throughout, as the page style in the
template is 'mirrored' but information in these fields is denoted as 'right
page' and 'left page' entries, so like the page numbering field settings,
headers must be done twice, but do not have to match on left and right pages.
Page headers
are also a space to be creative. You can use Wingding swirlies either side of
your title or name, exotic fonts, experiment with font-size and capitals, or
just use traditional text. Remember that what you are seeing on the template
viewed at 100% will print in the finished book as actual size, so opt for
clarity, whatever you use. The same goes for your title page and chapter
headings – have fun with designing them.
Footnotes and
endnote positioning from your original document will be preserved. You do not
need to worry about these. Endnote pages will usually have a separate header
field to the rest of your book, so in your header area there you can have
something different if you wish, such as 'References' or 'Articles' – whatever
is relevant to your notes, or you can just fill in your book title/author name
as before.
Any internet
hyperlinks behind text residual from your e-book version will need to be
changed to actual internet addresses – remember that there is nowhere to click
in a paperback book yet!
Some things you
can of course do differently in paperbacks, compared to e-books. You can use
line returns for spacing and positioning on the page – every page will be
printed as you see it on the template document, so you have more freedom. You
can use as many different fonts and sizes as you like, special characters,
smiley faces, foreign text – whatever takes your fancy.
Any images
should be added last, using 'Insert/Picture/from File', and in order
from the front, as they will shunt all text and corrupt the layout of pages
following, which will then need any formatting issues corrected. Pictures will
only print grey-scale if you opt for black-and-white interior printing (pencil
drawings and pen-and-ink look wonderful). Short books can be printed with
colour interiors, although the pages will all be 'shiny' as in a cookery book,
even those with no images and only text on them. The only decision to make
there is cost, as they are very expensive to produce, so you may find it cost-prohibitive
to produce a colour-interior book of more than 50 pages, which may be around
£20 per copy to order.
Format your
pictures using right-click/Picture to resize or crop. Do not drag the corners
of the image to re-size – they will distort, and no longer maintain aspect
ratio or picture quality. Use the 'percentage of original' re-size control in
the Format Picture 'Crop' window. Vertical and horizontal should match – ensure
that if you insert 30% in the vertical, you also put 30% in the horizontal
instructions to maintain proportions.
Once you have
finished adding to your interior, proofreading it and dealing with any
problems, such as hanging sentences at the end of a chapter (where a single
line appears in a lonely fashion at the top of the last page in a chapter
before a page break – the best way to deal with this is to either give it some
company by breaking up a few longer paragraphs in that chapter to move it all
down a few lines, or to bring it back a page with some editing – some of my best
edits/additions have occurred while dealing with end-of-chapter hanging
sentences!), you can page-number your Contents list, which is very pleasing to
see in a printed book. If your contents list is still hyperlinked from your
ebook file, you can find your page numbers easily by navigating your way
through the list and noting down each page that every chapter starts on. Keep a
note at this stage of the total number of pages in your document. If you edit
at any point after page-numbering your contents list, and it gains or loses you
pages, you will have to re-page-number the contents list of every chapter after
the loss or gain.
The neatest way
to create a numbered contents list in a print book is to use an invisible
table. Just insert a table two columns across and with as many lines as you
need. Drag the centre line across to the right to make room for longer chapter
headings. Cut and paste your chapter headings from the original list into their
positions in the table. Then insert your page numbers. Left-justify the chapter
headings in the left column, and right-justify the page numbers in the right
column by selecting the column, and clicking the appropriate justification
button on the toolbar. While the table formatting box is visible, select the
entire table, and change the line-style to 'none'. You will see in your print
preview that the lines are invisible. You can also adjust the spacing above and
below text in the boxes using Format/Paragraph – this one below is set to
0.05cm, both above line and below line:
CONTENTS:
Introduction
|
|
About the Author
|
|
Chapter One
|
1
|
Chapter Two
|
7
|
Chapter Three
|
16
|
Chapter Four
|
24
|
If your chapter
headings, or any headings/text elsewhere in the book still contains navigable
hyperlinks, it is now a good idea to right-click on each and remove the
hyperlinks, as they may otherwise appear blue, underlined, or in different
fonts after saving and exporting to PDF.
Remember to
save your work ('Save as/Book title', so you still have a copy of your blank
template) in whatever file type you are using.
To export as
PDF: In OpenOffice, a text-only book will save perfectly using 'File/Export as
PDF', and following the prompts. Open the new PDF of your book after saving,
and check it to ensure you are pleased with its appearance (and for typos!)
For illustrated
print books, or to export from Word, you will need to download a free
unlimited-use third-party program called 'doPDF' and install it on your PC or
laptop. This is required to address problems in illustrated documents
corrupting during export, such as images shunting to overlap text and blank
pages appearing, and also works beautifully when exporting PDFs from Word,
Paint, and other programs with no automated PDF creator. It is a small file
size and has had no issues in the last two years I have used it. It works by
setting itself up from the 'File/Print' menu. Once installed, go to 'File' on
the toolbar, then select 'Print...' and in the control window, select the
printer 'doPDF' from the drop-down printer choice menu. Click on 'okay' to
proceed. It will say as usual 'printing' but is not actually printing, but
converting the file. Once finished, it will open your new PDF automatically for
you to check using your own previously installed Adobe Acrobat. Make sure your
Acrobat viewer zoom setting is re-set to 100% to see your new PDF at actual
size. You may find yourself having to search for its saved location in your
documents afterwards, but it's worth it!
You now have a
complete interior to upload onto either Createspace or Lulu, or both. Lulu
makes lovely dust-jacket hardcovers, so if you have made a 6”x9” interior, you
can use it for both hardcover and paperback versions.
Cover image:
You have two
choices – you can use the high-quality online cover creators on Createspace or
Lulu, using their templates, and add your own high-resolution images, or free
non-copyright images (e.g. from www.morguefile.com).
These cover creators will calculate the spine width for you automatically and
give you a range of font styles, backgrounds and layouts to use. Or you can
create your own complete wraparound cover file from scratch. You will need to
know the spine width and dimensions required by typing in your page count,
trim/book size, and paper quality choice into the Createspace calculator or
Lulu, and downloading a cover template to follow, which will have the trim area
marked out as well. The cover you create for one site will not be the right
spine width for the other, as the paper used by each is of different gauges.
The best tool I've found to create these single covers is OpenOffice Draw,
which exports files as PDF, although you could also use MS Paint or Photoshop,
using 'doPDF' as your exporter via the Print menu as before. You may find
creating a single wraparound cover can be hit-and-miss – I have done so for
four of my books and thoroughly enjoyed it, although it was very
time-consuming, as covers have to be precisely actual size. I also use the
cover creators for other titles and Lulu, as I can use a single image created
myself for the front cover, and the rest is just selecting background and font
colours on the back and spine to match, and adding a small author image for the
reverse.
Uploading:
Createspace is
owned by Amazon, so you only need your Amazon details to set it up, and like
KDP for Kindle, it is free to publish, with ISBNs, and to distribute to
Amazon.com, Amazon UK, and Amazon Europe. You can also pay a one-off $25 fee to
list your books elsewhere such as libraries and academic institutions and for
direct shop ordering, but it will require you to raise your cover price
slightly. You will need to add bank details for any royalty payments.
Use the
step-by-step method to publish and follow the prompts. It will issue you a free
ISBN, listing Createspace as the publisher. If you buy and supply your own
ISBNs, then you are the publisher.
Use the online
previewer to review your book after uploading the interior file – reviewing
your book by ordering a print copy, before approving it for distribution, can
take up to two months just to arrive from the U.S.A. - so it is worth it to go
through the online previewer pages as well as quite fun to watch the virtual
pages turn and load.
If the online
previewer detects problems with your file, address the ones such as
'insufficient gutter' or 'insufficient trim area'. Ensure that if you increase
your gutter area, that you decrease your outer margin area by the same amount –
or you will narrow the middle text area and increase your page count, forcing you
to re-format and re-page number again. A bit of adjustment either side usually
does the trick, but a gutter deficiency of a couple of millimetres won't spoil
the readability of the book.
Problems such
as low image resolution (as low as 72dpi) do not affect book printing or
distribution, and there are perfectly good image reproductions at low-res in
print books. Low resolution is generally fine for small graphics and scanned
artwork. Photographs print better at a more optimum resolution, 300dpi, which
is the recommended resolution for all images in a print book.
Once you have
approved your file, ignored any minor issues and moved on, created or uploaded
your cover (a great fun part to do online, as you see it appearing before
you!), you will see a summary and a button to 'submit files for review'. You
now wait up to 48 hours, biting your nails, for the human reviewers to quickly
check the files as well. Reasons for rejection can be things like the author
name and title of the book on the title page differing from how they appear on
the cover, or another ISBN appearing on the copyright page – I had my other
books listed here with their ISBNs, and was told those ISBNs were 'not correct
for this title' and to update them. I ended up removing them from my book-list
altogether, as it was quicker than pointing out their oversight in not
realising they were the associated ISBNs for a list of my other books. But
usually they just highlight minor issues such as image resolution, which can be
ignored. You then approve your file by going back onto the site and confirming
it for distribution, selecting your sales outlets, adding a description and
author blurb, and it will appear on Amazon within a few days. Order a print
copy to review as well – it is very cheap, will take a while to arrive, but you
will have a copy to proof-read and mark-up for any changes.
Createspace
will offer to forward your paperback file to the KDP site to publish as an
e-book for you. Say no, especially if you have already published it as an
e-book on KDP. This is because you have no idea how your book, optimised for
print, will appear on an e-reader. There may be blank e-reader screens, and
there will definitely be no linked table of contents or nice hyperlinks
elsewhere. Use the e-book formatting guide to optimise an e-book version and
publish on Kindle separately.
You can upload
new versions at any time, and go through the review process again. Always
select 'Interior' and 'Change/upload new version' from your product's dashboard
on Createspace to upload your new edits. Don't delete the book and start from
scratch, or upload it again from the start, or you will have multiple versions
available with different ISBNs. Always make changes to the existing
book. This will ensure that the old version is updated with the same ISBN, and
the same product page on Amazon.
On Lulu:
A similar step-by-step process is used, somewhat clearer, to publish books and
make available to the public on Lulu. I find it easiest at present to have my
Amazon version published by Createspace with their free ISBN, and to make
special editions, hardcovers, and easy-ordering copies for author events
printed by Lulu, as paperbacks from Lulu only take two days to arrive. Once you
complete the process, there is no reviewer stage, and your book is available
instantly. Look for coupon codes on their homepage, which are a regular feature
– you can get up to 30% off coupons, or free postage, all of which adds up to
considerable author savings when ordering copies for your own events. You will
have a Lulu product page to share with the public and on your website or blog,
and your book will be visible via search and browse, unless you make it private
and available only to you.
You can have
ISBN versions distributed from Lulu as an alternative to Createspace, but the
last time I checked into this, the process requires you to have your PDF
created by an 'approved' agent – so unless you want to pay for this, stick with
Createspace for distribution and ISBNs. You can use Lulu as well as Createspace,
for identical books for your own purposes – you are the self-published author
and maintain control where your publishing platforms are – but you cannot add
your Createspace ISBN as your own on Lulu, as it is not transferable.
An alternative
print-on-demand company is Lightning Source, which have a very good
reputation, distribution reach, and have the option of matte covers for
paperbacks if you like the slightly rubbery tactile effect rather than the
traditional print-on-demand gloss – but they are expensive and slow to set up,
and you have to have a business bank account in your 'publisher name'. It can
cost over £475 to publish one book through them, and spotting a single typo
could cost (at last report) £88 to upload a revised version. Remember that it's
100% free to use Createspace and Lulu for the same, and there are no limits on
the number of revisions you upload to either of those.
A note on
uploading illustrated print books: Files of over 15MB will take a long time
to upload, and may time out or crash if the site is very busy. Keep persisting,
try uploading at different times of day, and close all other work and windows.
If there is an apparently insurmountable problem, which so far I only
encountered once on Lulu with a file refusing to upload, I looked on their
advice page and downloaded an FTP client program which allowed me to transfer
the file directly onto their server. It took far longer, three hours via FTP,
but when it finished and I signed back into that author's account, the
illustrated PDF was available to select from their 'My Files on Lulu' at the
interior stage of publishing, so it can be done. I have not had the same
problems with Createspace – you just need a little patience while the bigger
files upload.
_____________________________________________________________________
FORMATTING E-BOOKS
FOR KINDLE:
Lisa Scullard for
Writing Buddies, February 2013
Your original
document may be in Word, Works, Rich Text Format or Open Office text (ODT). The
best and most reliable format to save it as and upload into Kindle for sale on
Amazon is as a webpage file (HTML).
Firstly ensure
that there are no manual reasons for corruption in the end product. Different
fonts are not supported, so your e-book should be set in either Times
New Roman or Arial, and no larger than 12-point font size (the e-reader devices
support zooming-in of font size for easy reading, so having larger fonts in
your original document is unnecessary).
*****
For
clarity, set your paragraph formatting like this:
ñ Left
indent: 0cm
ñ Right
indent: 0cm
ñ First
line (special): 0.5cm
ñ Above
paragraph: 0cm
ñ Below
paragraph: 0cm
ñ Line
spacing: 1.5 lines
It is up to you
how you set out your justification. Both left and parallel margin justification
is supported, so it is your choice depending on your preferred aesthetics.
Centralising chapter headings, and right justification for other information,
also works.
Always insert a
page break at the end of a chapter or information page. The page break should
be immediately after the last full stop of the chapter.
Remove all
headers, footers, and page numbers. These will not convert.
You can use bold
and italics in e-books. These convert well into e-reader format.
Most readers of
Kindle prefer a hyperlinked/reverse hyperlinked table of contents, and for
other converters including Smashwords and Lulu for Nook and Apple, it is
compulsory for distribution. If you do not know how this is done, we will cover
it as well.
Automated
footnotes[1]
and endnotes[i]
always convert to appear at the end of a document in e-books. The links will
not convert unless you manually hyperlink them – they will be numbered, but not
navigable otherwise. Remember to link the endnote back to the start of the text
where it originated as well. Use the same method to hyperlink them as you do
for the contents list and chapters.
You can use internet hyperlinks in e-books,
as most e-readers are browser-enabled. This is useful to direct readers to your
website or blog, to online references in non-fiction, or to research articles.
Put your personal links in your author page at the beginning of the
e-book. Distributors like Nook and Apple will reject books where outgoing links
appear at the end of the book.
Straight
apostrophes (') and speechmarks (") look better in e-reader screen format than
predictive curly ones (“”) and you will also have no problem with them
appearing back-to-front as typos. Use 'Find/Replace All' to change them –
remember to search for both (mirror) versions of each.
*****
Some
important DO NOTs:
ñ Do
not use multiple returns for line spacing. E-readers convert multiple returns
at the end of paragraphs, or at the top of pages, into completely blank
e-reader pages. For a text pause, use one return and then '*****' as a break
(see above), which is the accepted format. You may use a single line return
only before a chapter heading following a page break, for aesthetics.
ñ Do
not use space bar hits for indents, spacing or positioning. Again, these will
convert into blank pages or empty lines, depending on the size of screen your
book is viewed on. Phrases positioned using space bar strikes will not preserve
their position when converted into e-books, but will simply 'shunt' phrases
unevenly. Always use paragraph formatting settings (as described above) to
create indents. A paragraph indent should never be more than 0.5cm – larger
indents, such as 1.5cm, will push the first line of your new paragraph too far
across the screen on smaller e-readers, such as the iPhone. You can use
'Find/Replace all' to remove multiple space bar hits – simply search for two
spaces and replace with one space, and repeat until no more double spaces are
found. This ensures that only one space at most appears between words, or in
error. You can also use 'Show Non-printing characters' to scroll through and
find spaces inserted in error at the start of a new paragraph.
ñ Do
not insert an additional blank line/return at the end of a chapter – this will
convert into an empty e-reader page between the chapters.
ñ Do
not include hyperlinks leading to other e-book retailers – for example, e-books
containing links to Amazon, including your Amazon author page, will be rejected
by Apple, Kobo and Nook etc. Link instead to the 'books' page of your blog or
website, to direct readers to find your other work, on your 'About the Author'
page at the start of your e-book.
ñ Do
not include pages and pages of reviews and comments at the start of your book,
unless they are by celebrities! (This is a Kindle audience preference). A few
comments are fine, should you wish, or a single page 'Introduction'.
ñ Do
not use Wingdings, smiley faces or other non-typographical characters, even if
they appear predictively through key-strikes. These do not convert into
e-reader format. On my first attempt, I found these converted into empty square
boxes on Kindle, and Chinese lettering on Smashwords! If you want to insert a
character which is not on your keyboard, use 'Insert/Special character' from
your chosen font only (for example, when writing the word pâté) and if
you want to insert a smiley face or swirly shape as an artistic form, use
'Insert/Picture/From File' – there will be more on inserting pictures later, as
the saved file format and layout is more complicated.
ñ Do
not leave a hanging space bar strike at the end of a paragraph. This will insert
a blank line under the paragraph.
*****
Once you have
cleaned up and formatted your file as above, there are a few inclusions to add.
You will need a title page – just the title, in Bold, and your name
underneath. This is usually centralised, and should have no more than one line
return above the heading for aesthetics. Do not try to position it halfway down
the page using line returns, or the first few pages of your e-book will be
blank on smaller e-reader screens. A page break should follow immediately after
your name.
The next page
is your copyright page. Some authors write long-winded copyright pages. The
legal minimum, to protect your rights, is to say 'Book title © (your
name)(year)' and on the next line 'The moral right of the author has been asserted'.
You do not need to write anything more below that. If you have given yourself a
publisher name, also include it on this page, e.g. First published by XXX
Press in (year). Do not say 'published by Kindle' – they are not your
publisher, just your distribution platform.
However, when
publishing on Smashwords for Apple and Nook etc, and accepting a free
Smashwords ISBN for distribution, they are your publisher. In this
instance, you must have 'Smashwords Edition' on the first (title) page, under
your name, to be accepted for distribution. If you have paid for and supplied
your own ISBN, then you are the publisher.
The ASIN e-book
identifier that appears on your Kindle copy is not an ISBN, and not
transferable – likewise, you cannot list your Smashwords-supplied ISBN on your
Kindle version.
Lulu do
not require to be referenced in your e-book as the publisher, when issuing
their exclusive free ISBN for distribution.
*****
Following the
copyright page is the Table of Contents. This should be hyperlinked. Your chapters
can be named or numbered, standard numeric or Roman Numeral, or simply headed
by title, e.g. all of these are acceptable:
ñ Chapter
One
ñ Chapter
1
ñ One
ñ Chapter
I
ñ Ch.
1: A Mysterious Event
ñ I –
A Mysterious Event
ñ Chapter
One ~ A Mysterious Event
ñ A
Mysterious Event...
Or any
combination of the above. A chapter heading should be long enough to understand
and to navigate via hyperlink on a touch-screen, but not too long that it takes
up several lines on a smaller e-reader. For example, the longest chapter heading
I have in the Zombie Adventures series so far is 'Chapter
Thirty-Nine: The Leg of Extraneous Genito-Urinary Medicine' – in the
contents list, I only used the titles, not the chapter numbers, and it still
took up two lines!
The
way to hyperlink your chapters for Kindle and Smashwords is to insert bookmarks
above each chapter heading, thus:
^Top
of Contents page following page break^
CONTENTS:
Introduction
About the Author
(^Hyperlink to bookmark 'Ch1'^)
Chapter Two: Another Event...
etc.
^Top of new chapter page following page break at end of
previous chapter^
(^Hyperlink to bookmark 'Contents'^)
A MYSTERIOUS EVENT
Where the
bookmark is positioned determines the top of the e-reader page when the link is
navigated. You can have the bookmark on the word 'Contents' but having it in a
blank line above is aesthetically pleasing, and less overcrowded at the top of
the screen.
Then hyperlink
your chapter headings in the Contents list to the start of the corresponding
chapters, by selecting the text to link and then using, from the toolbar, or by
right-clicking: 'Insert/Hyperlink/Target in document/Bookmarks(show
list)+/(select appropriate chapter bookmark)' and reverse-hyperlink the
chapters themselves as shown above by selecting the chapter heading at the
start of each chapter, and using 'Insert/Hyperlink/Target in
document/Bookmarks(show list)+/Contents'. Click 'Apply' before 'close' on the
hyperlinks window, and your links should appear as above. Remember this style
of contents list formatting is compulsory for Smashwords, for distribution to
Apple, Nook, Kobo, Diesel, Sony and other outlets. They do not currently serve
Amazon.
If you are
using Lulu for your Nook and Apple distribution, the chapter list is
linked differently. Simply ensure that the rest of your document contains no
'Heading' styles, and format the title page heading (your 'book title'),
the 'Contents' heading (but not the chapter list) and each chapter
title (at the start of each chapter only) all as the style 'Heading
1'. Then save as a Word 97/2000/XP doc. This is much simpler and quicker to
do, but they do not distribute to Amazon – only to Apple and Nook. But they pay
regularly at a minimum of only £3 revenue gain, which is nice!
Once your
linked Table of Contents is complete, and you are sure there are no other
potential conversion corruptions in the file, you are ready to save and upload.
All of the below options are 100% free:
To save a file
for upload to Kindle (kdp.amazon.com
– you will need your Amazon account details to sign in and set up, and a bank
account to receive royalties). Click on 'Save As...' and save it as Webpage
(complete) – .HTML.
To save a file
for upload onto Smashwords (www.smashwords.com
– you will need a Paypal account to receive royalties) save it as 'Word
97/2000/XP' - .DOC.
To save it for
upload onto Lulu as an e-book (www.lulu.com
– you will need a Paypal account to receive royalties), save it as Word
97/2000/XP as above - .DOC.
If uploading to
Smashwords, you will not need to use Lulu, and vice versa. Neither distribute
to Amazon, so you will have to use KDP for that.
COVER FILE:
In all three
cases, you will need a separate JPEG cover file, high resolution, aspect ratio
'portrait' minimum 1400x2000 pixels to ensure reduced image quality. Do not
insert these images into your e-book file – the online converter will do this
for you, and you will be asked to add it via a separate instruction. The cover
file and image is entirely your taste and choice, but for Lulu and Smashwords
ISBN distribution, they must contain the title and your author name, as they
appear on the book's title page (i.e. no alternative spellings or extensions).
It is recommended that they appear eye-catching in both thumbnail and
full-screen, but there is no tried-and-tested style guarantee.
Thousands of
free photographic images without copyrights attached or credits required, are
available on www.morguefile.com, which
you can customise and adapt any way you like, and appear in a range of
resolutions and sizes. Search their site by keyword, e.g, trees,
rainbow, cocktails, church, clouds, military etc.
*****
ILLUSTRATED
E-BOOKS:
So far I have
only had success creating illustrated e-books on Kindle format, because the
accepted file type (HTML.zip) supports inclusion of an image file. After
creating your e-book document as above for Kindle, add your images where you
want them to appear in the text, right-click each image, and in 'Format
Picture' ensure that 'page wrap' is set to 'none' and the image is centred. You
can also crop at this stage.
Images should
be no more than A4 in original size before inserting, and should be saved once inserted,
using image menu 'Format/Picture/Compress' as '96dpi/Apply to all images in
document'. This reduces the file memory size to a manageable one for uploading.
Images can be landscape, portrait or square (in fact anything), but remember
they tend to appear at the top of a new e-reader page due to shape and size, so
the previous e-reader page may cut off early, as it shunts the image to the
next page. For this reason, do not place images in the middle of a sentence or
paragraph, where a large gap in the previous page would make no sense. They
work best at the beginning and/or end of chapters.
The e-reader
conversion means that larger images will automatically be sized to fit the
screen being viewed on, while tiny images will stay tiny. This does not always
appear to be the case in Amazon's 'Look Inside' preview, which is quite scarily
random as the page boundaries are not set, but on the e-readers you can trust
that your images will fit the screens.
Once complete,
save as 'webpage' (HTML) as before. Then right-click on the icon for your HTML
document, and select 'Send to... Compressed/zip file or folder'.
A folder with a
zip logo on it will appear under the same name, e.g. 'Mysterious Events.zip'.
Also a new separate folder will appear with the same the name as your book,
e.g. 'Mysterious Events files' in the same location. This contains the tagged
image duplicates required for your Kindle book. Click on the new 'files' folder
containing these duplicated images, and drag it over into the HTML '.zip' folder
so that it is inside the zipped folder as well. You now have a complete zipped
HTML file with tagged images to upload as an illustrated e-book. When you sign
in to KDP, select the '.zip' folder as your file to upload.
The previewer
for 'Kindle Fire' and 'iPad' on KDP will show your illustrations in colour, but
remember the basic Kindle has a grey-scale screen only, so the previewer will
only show what your images will look like in black-and-white. This does not
affect your original file.
Always check
your conversion previews. On KDP there is a good online previewer, while the
best way to preview and check your Smashwords or Lulu version is to download
your converted .EPUB file for Nook from your finished product page, and view it
using Adobe Digital Editions (free to download and install from Adobe). The
online-reading viewing file for Smashwords strips out all your links and
paragraph formatting for simplicity, so it is not true to your final version –
it is only meant as a sample, so don't take it as your final conversion. The
.EPUB file on Adobe Digital Editions will show you the final version,
fully-converted and functional.
*****
KDP Select:
Your e-book
must be exclusive to Amazon Kindle to use this. If the same e-book is available
elsewhere, your book is not eligible for the scheme. But you can publish the
book in print, have samples available online on your blog, continue to submit
to agents, or have your book serialised in print magazines and journals. You
can also publish 'special editions' elsewhere as e-books – with bonus material,
or omnibus editions, without risking your KDP Select status. So long as the
content of the book and its title enrolled in KDP Select is not identical to
other e-books available on Nook, Apple etc, you will have no problems with it.
For example, you could have 'Mysterious Events' on Amazon Kindle and enrolled
in KDP Select, and also 'Mysterious Events: Omnibus Edition' available on both
Smashwords and Amazon Kindle, but not enrolled in KDP Select.
If you enrol
your book in KDP Select, it allows Amazon Prime readers to 'borrow' your e-book
rather than purchase, should they wish, and also gives you five days you can
list your book as free every three months in any order you choose using 'Manage
promotions'. Wet bank holidays are good uses of this, and will gain you a
number of downloaders looking for freebies.
However, this
is no indication of actual reads, these free promotions tend to attract no
reviews, and then often negative ones, or 'one-star review' protection
racket-style scams, whereby you are then spammed by pay-per-review promotion
schemes. You may attract one or two follow-on sales, and I mean literally one
or two!
But you may be
lucky, and find readers keen on your subject who continue to share and promote
it on your behalf.
Smashwords
promotions:
Smashwords
allows you to set up free promotion codes any time of your choosing, by
generating a 100% off cover price coupon for you to share privately or publicly
with friends, family, customers, blog followers, or in contest giveaways –
simply select your published title and set up a coupon for your chosen time
period, which will email you a code. There are no limitations of usage for this
facility on Smashwords, and your book does not have to be 'exclusive'.
Pricing:
Amazon is the
only site so far I am aware of which sets up competitive pricing. If your
e-book is cheaper on Smashwords, and it is reported to Amazon by a customer as
'cheaper elsewhere', Amazon will also cut the price and thereby your royalty.
So it is best to have your prices congruent. Having a coupon code available on
Smashwords will not affect this, as the 'for sale cover price' visible on your
product page online will remain the same, and the coupon details remain private
to you and those you share it with.
PREPARING AND
SUBMITTING A MANUSCRIPT
by Josephine Shaw
Before you start writing your short story, novel, non-fiction,
article, poetry contact the publisher to ascertain how your manuscript (MS)
should be presented. Many
publishers provide detailed guidance on their websites so use this source
first. Compare with the list
of points below. Not all of them may apply depending on the
type of literature you intend to write.
When reviewing your MS for the last time check that you have followed
the guidelines of your publisher.
Format
Margins – Top and
bottom margins minimum 2.5 cm (1 inch).
Left-hand margin minimum 25 cm.
Right-hand margin, same as left-hand margin if justified, ie all lines
ending at the same point, or if non-justified it might be slightly smaller.
Font style – Most publishers are happy with Times
New Roman but check whether they use any other font.. Highlighting a
word/ phrase may be achieved either by emboldening, italics or underlining.
Print size 11 or
12 is usually acceptable with bigger type being used for headings. Larger type would be chosen for
childrens’ books.
Page numbering –
Pages may be numbered centrally at the top or bottom of the page or in the top
right hand corner. If the latter,
alternate pages have to be numbered on left and right-hand corners, assuming
two-sided printing as for self-publishing. Cross referencing of page numbers should be shown as 00
until page numbering is finalised at proof stage. It is useful to embolden the 00 so that it is easy to pick
up when you are able to put the page number in.
Line-spacing –
Publishers usually require double line-spacing although some may accept 1.5 spaces. In either case paragraphs do not need
to be separated by an extra space as they are usually blocked, ie the first
line starts at the left-hand margin.
Indentations - The paragraphs in stories and chapters
in books begin with an indented first line with all subsequent paragraphs
blocked.
Boxes may be used
to encase objectives or quotations at the beginning of a chapter, for summaries
at the end of a chapter and for specific sections within a chapter.
Content and writing
Punctuation
It is now common practice to allow one space after a full
stop. Use commas sparingly. Check
that apostrophes are on the correct side of the letter s.
Language
Except in dialogue text should be grammatical.
Split infinitives are intrusive, because the flow of ‘to adverb
verb’ is not rhythmic. ‘To fearfully
wait’ instead of ‘to wait fearfully’ is disjointed. A preposition should not be used at the end of a sentence. However there are situations when not
to do so would be awkward to read. An adjective
describes a noun eg ‘a black book’ or ‘corrugated cardboard. Adjectives
and adverbs are frequently confused. eg ‘they will do it quicker’ should be
‘they will do it more quickly’. If you are unsure of your grammar browse the
bookshops and internet to find a book that would help.
Preferred Spelling –
There are some words that can be spelt in two different ways, both
acceptable. Consistent use
of one way must be maintained throughout the text. Examples of such words – recognise/recognize,
fulfil/fulfill. In each example the second version is American
which would be used if the intended readership is in the USA or any other
country using American spelling.
Publishers may have a preference for a particular spelling.
Be aware of confusing spelling eg effect (noun) and affect
(verb), advice (noun) advise (verb).
Abbreviations –
The first time an abbreviation is used in a text it should be followed by the
full version in brackets eg UNDP
(United Nations Development Programme).
Commonly used abbreviations such as eg (for example) and ie (that is)
are now written without full stops in English but are retained in American
text.
Numbers – Figures
are used in textbooks but generally not in fiction and non-fiction.
Acknowledgements –
Include the names of every individual and/or member of an organisation who has
provided photographs, permission to use quotations, excerpts from printed
material and assistance of any kind.
Contents - A contents list should consist of
chapter headings and page numbers.
There may be sections within the chapter in non-fiction books and they should
be listed under the chapter headings with individual page numbers. It is best to leave page numbers until
the you receive the proofs as there may be changes. This would not apply for self-publishing but it would be
sensible to make it the last task.
Illustrations – In
auto/biographies photographs may not be listed. In a textbook or ‘how to’ book it is useful to have a list
of illustrations – photographs and any other type of artwork.
Index – Try to
decide at the start of the project whether an index will be desirable or
needed. Some publishers like to have an index prepared by a copy editor. This may not be satisfactory
as the indexer may not have sufficient knowledge of the
topic to identify what words/phrases should be included.
Editing – Many
authors ‘bash in’ their first draft.
Others write a good text that does not need several edits. In either case there are four checks
that are essential.
1. Structure
– If the text does not ‘flow’ it is not too late to rethink it. If the sequence of chapters does not
seem right, identify the reason and rewrite as necessary.
2. Content
- is it accurate? Are quotations
correct word for word? Is the
source quoted correctly? Are
specific facts clear and exact?
Are dates correct? Are
names spelt correctly and are qualifications and honours correct and in the
right sequence – (Orders of chivalry, civil honours and decorations conferred
by a Head of State, Military decorations, Academic and professional achievements)? Many of these points relate to
non-fiction articles and books but should not be overlooked for any type of
text.
3. Grammar
– see under Language
4. Spelling
– see under Preferred Spelling
It does not matter how you choose to edit but it is
essential to cover all four checks.
Proof reading – Spell
check is a very useful tool but is far from foolproof. Having completed checking structure and
content, the work becomes proof-reading.
It needs concentration. Ideally after you have done your checking, ask someone
who has not been involved with the creation of the text to help.. If this is not possible put the MS away
for at least two weeks and then read again. This time you are reading it as a reader. As writers we
don’t see our own mistakes because we see what we know should be there.
Submitting
If you have not already contacted a publisher about your
work, now is the time to do so. Go
on line to get details of how to contact a commissioning editor. If necessary email or phone to explain
your work briefly and ask for the name of an appropriate editor. Many publishers now include a
submission form on their website. Before completing the form, study it
carefully. Some research additional
to that you did before starting to write may be necessary.
You are now ready to submit your opus. Check how the publisher wishes to receive the work. It can be sent by email or an
agreed digital device. Usually a
hard copy is also required. It
should be printed on 80 gms A4 paper with a cover sheet and pages in the
correct order. A pristine MS says
volumes about the care you have taken to present a perfect piece of work.
The cover sheet
should contain the title of the work, your name or pseudonym. Your full real
name, address, telephone number (landline and/or mobile) and email address
should appear that the bottom of the cover sheet.. It may be useful to show the total number of words.
Write a brief and concise covering letter addressed to the individual. Refer to any previous contact (letter,
email, phone conversation). State
what you are sending
Place a blank sheet of paper behind the last page of the MS before
packing the precious work carefully in strong wrapping so that it cannot be
torn open. Send by recorded
delivery and track its progress.
Having done all the right things and produced a splendid
work, don’t be disappointed if the publisher rejects it. Most authors could paper their walls
with rejection slips. Some
publishers give guidance as to why they rejected your work. If so, read and digest it. DO NOT GIVE UP.
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