The Advantages of Going Digital in the Modern Age

It can be hard to keep up with the rapid changes—and opportunities—that technology brings into our lives. Less than twenty years ago, families faced the challenging decision as to whether they ought to swap out their digital typewriters for computers running on “Pentium Processors.”

That was a cutting-edge debate in 1996! Fast forward ten years, and it was no longer a question of whether or not to get a computer, but rather which computer—and did you want a desktop or a more portable laptop? Boomboxes became iPods. iPods became smartphones with streaming music and augmented reality games like Pokemon GO. And for a moment in time, corporate giants like Microsoft, Dell, and HP dominated the technological landscape, and the second you turned around, Apple or Sony or Samsung was making the front page of TIME magazine.

One thing has not changed in all of the years since Johannes Gutenberg banged out the first book on his printing press over five hundred years ago: authors need to be—and have usually been—well ahead of the technology curve. And today, the new frontier is not necessarily some innovative piece of hardware that will change the way we read forever but rather a whole host of hardware and software developments that an infinitely diverse readership adapts to its infinitely diverse wants and needs.

Finding a way to keep ahead of that curve in the modern age—an age where readers want to access their books not just on their physical bookshelves but also on their home computers, their dedicated e-readers or tablets, their smartphones, and their car stereos—means that authors must create digital editions of their books that can translate across devices and platforms.

Every major online retailer of these Books, from Amazon to Barnes & Noble to the Apple iBooks store, has its own customized app to make book buying a snap. To muddy the waters still further, libraries are beginning to get into the game by developing additional apps, and PDF versions can often be read through the multipurpose Adobe Reader app. Because these apps are proprietary, authors may have to convert their books to a number of different file formats in order to sell them through all these retailers.

You can imagine that this is a lot of work, work that relies on a certain specialized set of computer skills. Some authors may be adept at file conversion, but for many authors this is simply beyond the pale. Fortunately, you don’t have to go it alone: we here at Outskirts Press want to put the full power of digital editions into your hands—because simply put, you deserve the best possible exposure! And there’s no better way to reach new readers than to meet them where they live (metaphorically speaking) by providing an eBook in the correct file formats for their preferred reading experiences.

We want to make the whole transition to digital as painless as possible for you, which is why most of our one-click packages include an eBook option. Even if you have already published your book and didn’t choose a one-click package, Outskirts Press offers several ways to add an eBook edition of your book, for the Kindle, the Nook, or the iPad/iPhone.

Or save $198 when you go “Elite” and get all three with the click of a button.  Yes, this button right here!

Top 10 Bestselling Kindle Books from Outskirts Press

Our most recent list of top 10 bestselling Kindle books from Outskirts Press authors is a rousing testament to the diversity of not only our authors, but the diverse tastes of the readers who ravenously consume their works.

This month’s sizzling bestsellers run the gamut from a non-fiction accounting of a legendary force in music to a historical fiction set in WWII to a practical guide to cleaning practically anything. So heat up your summer reading with a selection of popular independently published gems:

Do you have a dream of seeing your own masterpiece published and rocketing to the top of the bestseller list? Let Outskirts Press help!

GET PUBLISHED AND RECEIVE OUR AMAZON EXTREME FREE!

The Amazon Extreme marketing package from Outskirts Press offers self-publishing authors a head start on book marketing by taking triple advantage of the immense audience of Amazon, the largest online retailer in the United States. This package includes: An Amazon Kindle edition of your book, Amazon’s Search Inside the Book feature and the Amazon Cover Enhancement. These valuable, popular options are free for authors who start publishing in November. Start today with the promotion code below when you choose to publish with our industry-leading Diamond publishing service or our full-color Pearl publishing service to receive the FREE Amazon Extreme Marketing Package.

Enter the promotion code FreeAEJUNE15when checking out of your shopping cart while purchasing the popular Diamond package or the full color Pearl publishing package by June 30, 2015.

In addition to receiving a FREE Amazon Extreme for your book, you’ll also receive the following with your Diamond package:

  • Standard Press Release. $99 value included free when you order your Diamond publishing service today.
  • Audio Excerpt. $99 value included free with your Diamond order today and a great way to share your voice with your readers, literally!
  • E-Book Edition (pdf). $99 value included free with your Diamond publishing service.
  • Cover Image. $99 value included free and a great way to enhance your cover.
  • Spring Arbor additional distribution. $99 value to complement the Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Ingram availability already included with your Diamond publishing service.

All in all, you’re looking at over $800 of free stuff in June!

Click to order the Diamond Package
Click to order the Pearl Package
TOP 5 PUBLISHING HEADLINES
AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT & SUCCESS STORY

“My first experience in the publishing process was a very pleasant one. Getting my first novel into book form turned out to be much easier than I ever imagined. I realize I am very much an inexperienced author but thanks to my publishing crew I have confidence I am indeed on the right path to becoming a successful author.”

J. R. Pitts grew up around the mangrove islands of Southeast Tampa Bay. His family were commercial fisherman plying their trade around the hundreds of mangrove keys in the area known as Cockroach Bay. His early life was centered in the area that became his place of refuge, his secret spot of meditation and relaxation.

There are two men that are very different and very alike at the same time. They exist side by side in two great universes that are also very different and very alike. The universes are parallel and lives are also that way. What is going on in one is mirrored in another. Twenty two years ago an event occurred the night of their birth-a gate opened between the two universes. A baby boy who should have been born an Edenite was suddenly an Earthling. A baby boy who should have been an Earthling was suddenly an Edenite. The future belongs to whoever can find his true self-the future of two worlds may depend on the outcome.

– J.R. Pitts, author of Isaac Rooks Trailwalker

Reach Out, Get Read: Increase Your Visibility with Amazon Kindle EBook Submission

Increase your book’s visibility — and your sales potential — by making your book available on Amazon’s Kindle ebook reading devices. More formats on Amazon means more exposure on Amazon, and the Kindle is heavily promoted by Amazon.

The revolutionary Amazon Kindle has been allowing millions of proud readers to instantly download books and newspapers in recent years. It’s changed the publishing landscape in many interesting ways, and embracing its strengths has helped many self-publishing authors realize their dreams of success in the industry.

Only books that have been submitted to the Amazon Kindle via the required process and in the required format are available for Kindle readers to purchase and enjoy. Kindle editions of books appear on Amazon and in Amazon search listings just like any other format (such as a hardback edition). Outskirts Press has helped thousands of authors just like you to navigate this relatively new territory.

Why make your paperback/hardback available on Amazon Kindle? There are several important advantages:

1. The Amazon Kindle edition will appear in search engine results listings, along with any other formats of your book (such as your paperback and/or hardback editions). This means additional exposure for your book cover, which increases the chances of readers clicking on your cover image and making that vital next step toward buying your book.

2. You keep ALL the profits from your sales. Just as with our paperback and hardback books, we pay 100% author profits. Your profit will be directly deposited into your checking account by Amazon, without any involvement by (or fee to) Outskirts Press.

3. Kindle ebooks increase your odds of selling your paperback or hardback. A Kindle sale is an inexpensive way to offer your book to readers; if they like it, they are more likely to purchase the paperback or hardback edition, too.

Order the Amazon Kindle edition by simply adding it to your Outskirts Press shopping cart. Our Marketing Department will contact you via email to obtain the information necessary to submit your book to Amazon — then we take care of the rest.

 Find out how to quickly and easily get your paperback or hardback book published onto Amazon Kindle!

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NaNoWriMo Afterglow: 4 Steps to Self-Publishing Your Month’s Work

NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is in the home stretch now, with thousands of authors nationwide in their final sprint to finish by the November 30 deadline.It makes one wonder what will happen with all those finished and unfinished manuscripts that result from this exciting competition. For many, self-publishing their work is the next logical step.

So, how do we make that happen? Here are 4 steps you can take to get your NaNoWriMo project published (and start selling) before the summer book-buying season heats up.

  1. Reserve Your Publishing Package: Outskirts Press offers all-inclusive Diamond and Pearl self-publishing packages so you can customize your masterpiece the way YOU want it! Talk about perfect timing … Now that your marathon month of writing is finally over, you can let someone else do the hard work for a change!Self publishing iPad
  2. Get Writing Help: If you’ve churned out the 50,000 words necessary to win NaNoWriMo but your story isn’t quite tied up yet, you can still take a breather — talk to a ghostwriter about helping you finish what you started so your month of grueling writing will not have been in vain.
  3. Go Digital: If a full-blown paperback and ebook publishing plan isn’t want you had in mind, dip your toe into the self-publishing pool with one or more ebook editions first — iPad/iPhone, Barnes & Noble NOOK and/or Amazon Kindle. You can always print later.
  4. Talk to a PMA: Your PMA, or Personal Marketing Assistant, will help you map out a marketing strategy that you can implement when your book is finished — and you’ve rested up from that amazing NaNoWriMo feat you’ve just accomplished.

What are you waiting for? Let us help you finish that book you started with NaNoWriMo!

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Self-publishing Takes a Bigger Bite of eBook Market

Self-publishing authors take heart: Self-published books continue to gobble up more and more of the publishing market.

A recent survey by Bowker Market Research, a firm that provides information and research on the book Ebook Package Largeindustry, discovered in a survey of 2012 book buying patterns in the United Kingdom that self-published ebooks now account for 12 percent of book purchases. Bowker typically surveys more than 3,000 book buyers each month to determine trends. While this recent survey focused on UK book buyers, similar trends are often found in the United States and beyond, so American publishers, take note.

Overall, self-published books still account for just 2 percent of all books purchased in the UK 2012; however, thanks to favorable pricing — and we can probably attribute some of this market share grab to the accessibility on ebook platforms that tends to equalize books regardless of their source — self-published authors are making headway online.

The news gets better when you break down books by category. Self-published adult fiction and non-fiction now accounts for 14 percent of the book buying market. That share soars to a whopping 20 percent for romance, humor, crime and science fiction categories combined. Self-published children’s ebooks, the survey found, still account for just 3 percent of the market.

It’s interesting to note, too, that the Bowker survey identified women as leading the way in self-published book buying, and heavy readers — those who read daily — were more likely than light readers to purchase self-published ebooks. The later is especially encouraging, as it may indicate that discerning readers are increasingly satisfied with the quality and selection they find in self-published book.

Have you considered self-publishing your new book? Outskirts Press can help you get it to booksellers’ shelves or online in weeks!

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Self-Publishing Authors Can Now Go Green and Save Green with New Elite E-book Publishing Package

A new Elite E-Book Publishing Package from Outskirts Press gives self-publishing authors increased distribution that promises less impact on the environment and publishing dollars.

Outskirts Press, the leading self-publishing and book marketing service provider, announced today the launch of its Elite E-book Publishing Package, which bundles three valuable e-book distribution services into one discounted publishing package. The package represents more than 25 percent savings when compared to purchasing each electronic edition separately.

The Elite E-book Publishing Package is priced hundreds of dollars below what an author would pay for a-la-carte electronic publishing services. Plus, the increased ebook exposure means greater distribution and higher sales without the need for additional paperback and hardback printing.

While self-publishing authors can still choose one or two electronic formats, combining the three allows them to reach a wider audience of readers, many of which are loyal to one electronic reading device over another. Outskirts Press simplifies the process by offering one convenient and cost-effective package that includes three popular electronic book editions:

    • Amazon Kindle Edition: Only books that have been submitted to Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) in the required format are available for Kindle readers to purchase and enjoy.
    • Apple iPad/iPhone Premium Edition: This service allows authors convenient, full distribution of iPad/iPhone electronic editions of their own books through Apple’s popular iBookstore.
    • Barnes & Noble NOOK Edition: Inclusion in this virtual bookstore allows self-published authors to tap into an important, and growing, market of readers.

For more complete information about each service included in this bundle, visit the product description page at www.outskirtspress.com/ebookpackage.

Go Green & Save Green With New Electronic Edition Self-Publishing Package

A new Elite E-book Package from Outskirts Press gives self-publishing authors increased distribution that promises less impact on the environment and publishing dollars.

Outskirts Press, the leading self-publishing and book marketing service provider, announced today the launch of its Elite E-Book Package, which bundles three valuable e-book conversion and distribution services into one discounted package. This pricing for this new package represents a savings of 25 percent when compared with purchasing each electronic edition separately.

With the Elite E-Book Package, increased e-book exposure means greater distribution and higher sales potential without the need for additional paperback and hardback printing.

While self-publishing authors can still choose one or two electronic formats, combining all three at the same time allows them to reach a wider audience of readers, many of which are loyal to one electronic reading device over another. Only books that have been submitted via the required process and format for each edition are available for electronic book readers to purchase and enjoy. Outskirts Press simplifies the process by offering one convenient and cost-effective package that includes three popular electronic book editions:

Amazon Kindle Edition: The Kindle edition of a book appears on Amazon and in Amazon search listings just like any other format (such as a hardback edition).

Apple iPad/iPhone Premium Edition: This service provides authors with convenient, full distribution of an iPad/iPhone electronic edition of their book through Apple’s popular iBookstore.

Barnes & Noble NOOK Edition: Inclusion in this virtual bookstore allows self-publishing authors to tap into an important, and growing, market of readers.

For more complete information about this new Elite E-Book Package, visit http://outskirtspress.com/p/ebookpackage

About Outskirts Press, Inc.: Outskirts Press offers high-quality, full-service self-publishing and book marketing services for writers and professionals who are seeking a cost-effective, fast, and flexible way to publish and distribute their books worldwide while retaining 100% of their rights, 100% of their profits, and 100% of the creative control. http://www.outskirtspress.com.

Why eBook Self-Publishing Is So Important

While many of us still love nothing better than the woodsy smell and satisfying crackle of a brand-new paperback, there’s no question eBooks also have their place.iPad/iPhone Premium Edition

Whether its an iPad or iPod, Kindle Fire, NOOK or smartphone, an eBook reading device provides incomparable portability. Every book you’ve ever loved or wanted to read can be right there at your fingertips in one compact, electronic toy, along with your daily morning news, monthly magazine subscriptions and even RSS feeds. Some devices even mimic the look — if not the aroma — of the printed page.

Barnes & Noble NOOK EditionAnd, slowly but surely, libraries, schools and other institutions are acknowledging eBooks as an important part of a new era in reading, incorporating eReaders as part of their collections. Because eBooks are inexpensive to produce, virtual libraries give actual libraries the ability to acquire free eBooks, such as works of classic literature and reference books, and beef up their collections in a highly cost-effective manner. The technology also means libraries can “lend” eBooks just as they would a hard copy; at the end of the lending period, the book automatically expires — no need to drive back to return it.

For authors, eBooks represent an opportunity to reach out to a whole segment of book enthusiasts who may be untouchable in the paperback- or hardback-only market. Young readers, college students, parents and others who may be woefully short on personal shelf space are turning to eBooks for practical reasons.

Others are tapping into the unparalleled convenience and immediacy of instantly searchable and downloadableAmazon Kindle Edition entertainment. If you’re selling only hard copies, you’re shutting out millions of potential readers who could stumble upon your book in no time with a simple keyword search.

EBook publishing also increases the odds of sales growth by appealing to the “early adopters” who are embracing a technology that is trending up. Marketing an eBook across several electronic formats further increases your sales potential by exposing your book to readers who may be loyal to specific eReader devices and formats.

Start Self-Publishing Now!

Receive 10% Off Electronic Editions!

Do you have all the necessary e-book versions of your self-publishing book? Now through April 30, save 10% on your choice of an Amazon Kindle e-book edition, a Nook e-book edition, or an iPad e-book edition.


Enjoy greater exposure for your book. The more outlets where your book is available for sale, the greater the chances that your book will be discovered by potential readers. Click here to save 10% on an Amazon Kindle edition of your book with promotion code E10PCT



Enjoy greater control over your retail price. Frustrated with the limitations of hardcopy pricing? Pricing with electronic editions is more flexible (and not dictated by page count or color). Click here to save 10% on a Barnes & Noble NOOK edition of your book with promotion code E10PCT



Enjoy your own Private Label Imprint and Bowker-Approved ISBN. With the iPad edition, you become your own publisher with a unique ISBN and Publishing Imprint for your book. Click here to save 10% on an Apple iBooks iPad/iPhone e-book edition of your book with promotion code E10PCT

Healthy Serial: Amazon Revives the Serial Novel Format

A few of you may remember the “serials,” at the local movie theater: short chapter plays before the feature film that left you with a thrilling cliffhanger you couldn’t wait to see resolved. Before television series gain popularity in the 1950s, movie serials brought patrons to the theater in droves.

A century earlier, Charles Dickens popularized the serial novel with The Pickwick Papers. Several years later, American author Harriet Beecher Stowe’s controversial tome on slavery, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, was released in installments over a 40-week period in 1851-52.

Now, Amazon has announced it is bringing back the once-popular format for Kindle readers with novels released one episode at a time. Kindle Serials launched with the release of eight serial novels to be released in installments, which readers can purchase for $1.99 per subscription.

We at Outskirts Press are waiting with baited breath to see how serial novels go over with modern readers (and writers)! Think releasing an episodic work might be right for you? It certainly can’t hurt to talk to your Personal Marketing Assistant to discuss whether this type of publication will work for your next release, and figure out how to get you to the presses — one chuck at a time, if need be!

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marketing support and services like this?

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