Mark Coker - Smashwords Style Guide

The Smashwords Style Guide

By Mark Coker

rev 9.11.10

Copyright Mark Coker 2008-2010

Smashwords Edition License Notes:

This free ebook may be copied, distributed, reposted, reprinted and shared, provided it appears in its entirety without alteration, and the reader is not charged to access it.

Cover design by PJ Lyon

Also by Mark Coker , Published at Smashwords:

Smashwords Book Marketing Guide

Boob Tube

Smashwords Style Guide Table of Contents

About this guide

Before you begin

What Smashwords publishes, what we dont publish Five common formatting mistakes to avoid How Smashwords publishes books How Smashwords distributes books How ebook formatting is different from print formatting How we convert your book into multiple ebook formats The three secrets to ebook formatting How to avoid (and fix) AutoVetter errors Frequently Asked Questions Introduction to Meatgrinder conversion system Your required source file Understanding the different ebook formats

Formatting your work (the fun stuff!!!)

Making Word behave Normalize the text (Change everything to Normal paragraph style) Purging old or corrupted formatting + The Nuclear Option Managing and modifying paragraph styles First line indent, or block paragraphs? (choose one only) Why you should never use tabs or the space bar for indents Working with images Add the Heading style to your Chapter headers

Front Matter

Blurbs Adding Smashwords License Statement

The end of your book

Preparing your cover image

Premium Distribution requirements

After the formatting is complete, Publish!

How to upload your book How AutoVetter works After you publish: Check Your Work

How to market your book

Send feedback

Helpful resources

INTRODUCTION

About this Guide:

This guide helps Smashwords authors and publishers format their ebooks for Smashwords. Dont upload your books to Smashwords until you have carefully read and implemented the recommendations in this Guide.

The Style Guide is written for non-techies. It presents simple, step by step tips to help you format your ebook for the best possible presentation across all ebook formats and devices. Its required reading if you want your ebook accepted into the Smashwords Premium Catalog for distribution to major online ebook retailers such as Apple, Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo, Diesel and Amazon.

If you dont have the patience, time or skills to properly format your masterpiece per these requirements, consider hiring someone. Several Smashwords authors have volunteered to provide low-cost Smashwords Style Guide formatting services for around $25/hr and up. If you would like a reference (we dont earn a referral fee), contact me, Mark Coker for my private list. Please note: if you utilize one of these formatting providers, remember youre hiring them, not Smashwords. By using them you will not receive any preferential customer support or fast-tracking for the Premium Catalog.

Below are two examples of well-formatted Smashwords books. You can download the free RTF which you can open and view in your word processor.

1. Jigglers by Gerald Weinberg - http://www.smashwords.com/books/download/22171/3/386145/jigglers-aremac-a-century-later.rtf 2. The Unsuspecting Mage: The Morcyth Saga Book One by Brian S. Pratt - https://www.smashwords.com/books/download/1444/3/null/0/0/the-unsuspecting-mage-the-morcyth-saga-book-one.rtf

This Smashwords Style Guide is a living document. As you learn formatting tips not presented in this guide, please forward them to Mark Coker at first initial second initial at smashwords dot com.

What Smashwords Publishes, What We Dont Publish

Smashwords publishes only original and legal works, direct from the author or the exclusive digital publisher. We do not publish public domain books unless you are the original author. We also dont publish incomplete or partial books, or books that appear elsewhere on the Internet under other authors names, as is common with Private Label Rights scams . If you write erotica, all your characters should be adults. And finally, we strongly discourage any book that advocates get-rich-quick systems for making money on the Internet. Smashwords is a serious publishing service for serious writers only.

Five Common Formatting Mistakes to Avoid:

. Improper Indents - Dont use tabs or space bar spaces for paragraph indents (instead, code your paragraph style to define a special first line paragraph indent, or, use the ruler bar indent: see step # 9 below)

. Repeating paragraph returns - Never use more than four consecutive paragraph returns to arrange text on the page (this creates blank ebook pages on small-screened e-reading devices)

. Improper paragraph separation - Paragraphs require either first line paragraph indents or the block paragraph method. Otherwise your paragraphs run together and become unreadable. Use one or the other (indents are best for fiction and much non-fiction, blocks are usually only for non-fiction), but dont use both. If youre aiming for the block style, do not add paragraph returns between paragraphs on empty lines (to create the blank line). Instead, modify your paragraph style to add 6 pt trailing space at the end of the paragraph.

. Font and style mistakes - Dont use fancy non-standard fonts, colored fonts (colors often disappear on some e-reading devices), kerning, large font sizes over 16pt, and dont go overboard with multiple paragraph styles (makes your ebook look ugly, and compounds odds of unexpected problems)

. Copyright page mistakes - Dont forget to include the required front matter (required for acceptance into the Premium Catalog), described in tip 21b below.

How Smashwords Publishes Books:

After you carefully implement the formatting instructions in this Guide, your book is ready to upload and publish to Smashwords. Simply click Publish from any Smashwords web page and follow the instructions to upload your book.

Smashwords takes your original Microsoft Word source file, usually in .doc format, and converts it into multiple ebook formats such as .EPUB, PDF..RTF, .PDB, .MOBI, LRF and TXT, as well as into online HTML and Javascript formats. By publishing in multiple formats, your book will be readable on any e-reading device, including the Amazon Kindle, Apple iPads, personal computers, the iPhone (via the popular Stanza e-reader app), Sony Reader, Kobo Reader, Android smart phones, etc.

From the Publish screen, you can designate a percentage of your book that you want to make available as a free sample. Most authors choose between 15-30%. If you dont make a free sample available, your book will not be distributed to some important outlets.

How Smashwords Distributes Books:

Smashwords distributes your book via two primary mechanisms:

1. Standard Catalog : This catalog contains all the books for sale at Smashwords.com. Sample distributors include Stanza on the iPhone, which is used by over 4 million people to discover and purchase ebooks; and Aldiko, an e-reading app for Google Android devices; and Word-Player, another e-reading app for Android devices. To qualify for distribution on Smashwords.com and in the Standard feed, an author or publisher is simply required to abide by the Smashwords Terms of Service and follow the instructions in this Guide.

2. Premium Catalog: This catalog is distributed to major online retailers and other distribution outlets. Theres no cost for inclusion, but your book must satisfy higher mechanical standards required by the retailers such as having a quality book cover image, good formatting, a proper copyright page, and other requirements clearly outlined in this Style Guide and on our Distribution page at http://www.smashwords.com/distribution . If you're a serious author or publisher, you want your books included in Smashwords Premium Catalog because it offers your book unprecedented exposure at no cost.

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