Electronic Publishing Fundamentals for Society Leaders

Jordan JonesFGS 2014 – San Antonio, TX

W-120

What is Electronic Publishing?

• Creation, production, distribution, and consumption of textual material via electronic means.

• Usually, the distribution is over the Internet, not on physical media.

• The consumption is highly variable, and may be on anything from desktop computers with wide-screen monitors to smart phones.

Benefits

• Speedy distribution

• Lack of inventory

• Saves on production

• Saves on storage / shipping

• Protection via DRM

• Often provides a portable copy of a paper book a reader purchased

Risks• No “cuddle factor”

• Lack of permanence

• Reliant on technology

• Content typically “licensed,” not sold; may turn off readers

• DRM imperfect • Can lock readers out of content they

paid for• Can be hacked

E-Book Sources (BISG)

Market Share

• 67% — Amazon

• 11.8% — Barnes & Noble Nook

• 8.2% — Apple iBooks

• 12.8% — All Others (Google Play, Kobo, Sony, direct from publishers)

E-Books by Genre (BISG)

E-Books by Genre• Genre fiction tops out the list with 50%

or more preferring e-books and only about 10% paper

• 50% of readers of History / Politics / Social Science prefer e-books; 25% prefer paper

• 25% of readers of How-To prefer e-books; 42% prefer paper

Some E-Book Sales Statistics

• 29% of US book revenues

• ~60% in short genre fiction (thriller; romance)

• ~20% in non-fiction

• ~10% in children’s books and comic books

FormatsWhat Can

You Choose From?

Source: Flickr Commons

Fixed LayoutDefinition: The page design (layout) is always the same, no matter what device or software is used.

• PDF (1993, Adobe; 2008, ISO-32000) is still the dominant format for fixed layouts. Open standard of ISO.

• Kindle Format 8 (2011, Amazon) — with KF8, Amazon supports fixed layouts

• ePub (2012, IDPF) — Open standard of the International Digital Publishing Forum

• iBooks (2012, Apple) — Proprietary standard for interactivity

PDF (Adobe, 1993)This format which became an open standard (ISO-32000) in 2008 remains the dominant format for fixed layouts.

• +: Widely used for print; easy to go from the files used for print to files used for electronic distribution. Works well on desktop machines.

• -: Usually not well adapted to mobile.

• Recommendation: PDF can be an important part part of an electronic publishing strategy, especially for reprints of historical titles.

Kindle Format 8 (Amazon, 2011)

Starting with KF8, Amazon Kindle Fire supports fixed layouts.

• Previous Kindle formats (and those of Mobipocket, the Kindle precursor) were designed for flowing text.

• +: Has the widest customer base using dedicated hardware. Based on HTML 5 and CSS 3, it can easily be converted to other formats.

• -: New and somewhat limited to what can be simply done with HTML 5 and CSS 3. Only works on Kindle Fire and later Amazon devices or software.

• Recommendation: KF8 fixed-width is great for comic books, but it’s not quite ready for genealogy titles.

ePub 3.0 (IDPF, 2012)• With v3, this open standard of the

International Digital Publishing Forum supports fixed layout books.

• This is the base format for Apple’s iBooks Reader on Mac OS and iOS, as well as for the Barnes & Noble Nook.

• +: It’s the most widely-used non-Kindle format.

• -: Still figuring out fixed layouts

• Recommendation: ePub itself is critical to the industry. PDF is still better for fixed layout genealogy titles, however.

iBooks Author .Books(Apple 2012)

iBooks Author software creates proprietary .books format e-books.

• +: Easy content creation platform for Macintosh users in iBooks. Amazing multi-touch and video interactivity.

• -: Apple only allows .books files to be sold through the Apple iBookstore eco-system. Exports only to PDF and text. No ePub export. Requires an ISBN purchased elsewhere (bowker.com). Books only readable on iPad and Macintosh computers.

• Recommendation: Don’t bother!

Fixed Width or Not?

• If you are doing a reproduction, or selling a book that is otherwise format-intensive, consider using PDF as your method.

• PDFs, however, cannot be sold on the Amazon or Apple bookstores.

Fixed Layout Quality Considerations

Allows for Interactivity

Looks “just like the book”

PDF Limited Y

KF8 Limited N

ePub 3.0

Limited N

.iBooksIncredible, but viewable

only on iPad and Mac OS

N

Fixed Layout Distribution Options

Amazon Kindle

Apple iBookstor

e

Google Play

Books

Your Own Website

PDF N N Y Y

KF8 Y N N Y

ePub 3.0 N Y Y Y

.iBooks N Y N N

Embedded Publications• Several apps and websites will embed

PDFs in a web page, allowing authorized readers to read the book in their browser or in the app

• NextMedia

• Scribd

• Most of the benefits of presentation for PDFs are available in these platforms.

Flowing Text

• The sweet spot for e-books is flowing text.

• To best deal with the variety of devices, software, and eyes people might use to read a book, most formats focus on ensuring that text can flow and be re-sized as needed.

ePub vs. MOBI

Open Standa

rd

Editable at the Code

Level in Sigil

Easily Converts

to the Other in Calibre

Designed for

Apple, B&N, and Google

Designed for

Amazon

ePub Y Y Y Y N

MOBI N N Y N YBoth formats are essentially Zip-compressed files of HTML, with some special files for metadata and book objects (cover, table of contents).

Creating ePub and MOBI Files• Adobe InDesign (MOBI requires a free

plug-in)

• Scrivener (MOBI requires a free plug-in)

• iBooks Only: Apple iBook Author

• By contract, you can only sell these at Apple

• They are not industry-standard ePub, but iBooks

• ePub Only: Sigil (highly technical; code level)

Print-on-Demand

Those who still want a paper book, or who want both a paper book and an e-book, should consider Print-on-Demand or POD.

True PoD

• In true PoD, no book is printed until one is ordered.

• The publisher (your society) carries no inventory.

• Can be challenging when going to conferences.

Short-Run Printing

• A modified form of PoD is available: short-run printing, where 1-200 copies are printed, but inventory is kept as low as possible.

• Allows for exhibiting at conferences, but limits up-front investment and shipping and storage costs.

You Can Combine Printing with E-books

• Using authoring tools designed to create printed copy, you can start from one source file and export PDFs for printed books (whether PoD, short-run, or regular printing) and for e-books

• Adobe InDesign is the best tool for this, but … the e-books tend not to be clean, especially if there is complex formatting

What’s the Deal with

DRM?How can it protect your content? What are the

pitfalls?

Source: “Padlock,” userid: Zebble, Flickr Commons

Digital Rights Management

• Designed to prevent unauthorized access of content.

• There is not a DRM scheme that cannot be cracked.

E-Books are Licensed, Not Owned

• Apple, Google, and Amazon do not sell e-books

• They sell limited-use licenses that do not allow you to rent, sell, or give away the books

• The limitations scare away some readers

• Some publishers are now selling books without DRM and with a lifetime-ownership model

DRM Protects the Copyright Owner

• Putting DRM on your publications protects you as a publisher, and the copyright owner, whether it is you or someone else who has licensed you to publish.

• While DRM is not foolproof, having content under DRM along with a “no unauthorized copies” request in writing in the book, can protect you from violations of copyright.

Any DRM Scheme Can Be Hacked

• DRM is designed to slow down, but cannot definitively stop those who want to remove the DRM

• Simple plugins exist to do this with Kindle, with the stated goal of personal flexibility with licensed content. This is a gray area because the content is licensed, not sold.

Electronic Rights

Do you have the right to publish that file?

Source: D. Keith Robinson, Flickr Commons

The Conundrum of Electronic Rights

• The shift from paper to electronic publishing left a major gap in contract law.

• Many publishers assumed they had electronic rights, but they did not.

• If it’s not in writing at this point, you probably do not have electronic distribution rights.

How to Get Started

The Carpenter’s Motto

Measure twice; cut once

• Decide on goals

• Print + Electronic?

• Electronic only?

• Evaluate Costs & Price the Book

• Create E-Book

• Distribute E-Book

GoalsKnow what you want to

do before you start

Why Publish This Title?

• Make an out-of-print county history available

• Publish the history of a prominent local family

• Distribute back issues of your journal

CostsHow to calculate what

this will run you

Cost EstimationThe potential revenue needs to be set against the costs, which will be highly variable, but may include:

• Author’s royalties (if any)

• Design and layout (up-front costs)

• Cost of physical books (printing, shipping, storage)

• Review copies

PricingEstimate Costs, but

also the Return

Price / Revenue EstimationList

Wholesale

Member E-Book

Cover Price $30.00 $30.00 $30.00 $9.95

Wholesale Discount

(40%)-$12.00

Member Discount

(25%)-$7.50

E-Book Discount &

Fees (30%+) -$3.05

Net Revenue Per Unit

$30.00 $18.00 $22.50 $6.90

Creation

Sample E-Book Workflows

• Paper > Scan > PDF > Cleanup > Distribution

• Paper > Scan > ePub > Cleanup > Distribution

• Born Digital > MOBI > Cleanup > Distribution

• Born Digital > PDF > Distribution

E-books are Not TurnkeyE-book output needs to be tuned. For example:

• footnotes

• tables

• indexes

• tables of contents

• images

SoftwareSome of the Software

You Can Use to Create, Edit, and Convert E-

books

Adobe InDesign

Scrivener

iBooks Author

Kindle Previewer

Calibre

Sigil

Distribution

Distribution Options

• DIY Distribution — Create and manage accounts with Apple iBooks, Google Play, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon

• Professional E-Book Distribution — Hire someone else to do it

Smashwords

Note: No Amazon or Google

Smashwords Pricing

Free — Smashwords converts your files from Word; pays 60% of List; 80% on smashwords.com

BookBaby Features

• Features

• Sells to Amazon, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble Nook, Scribd, Oyster, and others

• E-book conversion as well as distribution

BookBaby Pricing• Free — You supply e-book files; pays 85%

of Net

• Standard $99 — BookBaby converts your files from Word, InDesign, etc.; pays 85% of Net

• Premium $249 — BookBaby converts your files from Word, InDesign, etc.; pays 100% of Net

Lulu Features

• Sells to Amazon, Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble Nook, Scribd, Oyster, and others

• E-book conversion as well as distribution

Lulu Pricing• Do-it-Yourself (Free) — You supply e-

book files; pays 90% of Net

• The Assistant ($99) — Lulu converts your files from Word; pays 90% of Net

• The Insider ($139) — Lulu converts your files from Word; pays 90% of Net; provides marketing guidance

• eBook Amplifier ($) — Lulu converts your files from Word to e-book and prints in paperback; pays 90% of Net; provides marketing guidance

Amazon Kindle Direct Features

• You work directly with Amazon, with over 100 million customers.

• Limited e-book conversion as well as distribution (Word, PDF, ePub source)

• Amazon sales reporting

Amazon Kindle Direct Pricing70% Option 35% Option

You Receive

70% (less costs, of usually less than $0.50 per sale, i.e., $0.15 / MB)

35%

Price Restrictions

Kindle Price Must be at least 20% less than any sakes channel for the printed book

N / A

Content Restrictions

Cannot consist primarily of public domain content

N / A

PromotionLet people know

your e-book is available!

Promotion• To cover this would take another

presentation.

• Suffice to say:

• Plan promotion from day one

• Figure promotion into your cost estimates

• Ensure your authors are committed to help promote the book

One E-book Promotion Idea

Use your distribution platform

• Most e-book distribution platforms will allow for pre-sales

• Pre-sales book on the official launch date of the book, boosting its ratings on the site

• Most e-book distribution platforms allow for sales; use them to build buzz

In closing … Keep the following in mind …

E-books Are

• A key way to broaden your demographic reach

• Often an addition to the paper book for readers

• Harder to create than you may think, especially if there are complex tables, images, and other formatting elements

Thank You!

These Slides will Be Posted by Labor Day to

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