|
Post by Ted on Nov 21, 2013 10:27:17 GMT -8
From Mark's blog: Few authors take full advantage of their end matter. Some authors will simply end their book with the words, "The End" and then leave the reader hanging at the very moment the reader wants more. Give them more! Here are a few examples of the end matter sections you can create, and then link to from your linked ToC: 1. About the author - place a short bio here so readers can learn more about you. 2. Other books by this author - The reader just finished your book and is craving more from you. Tell them about your other books. If you have a book on preorder, let them know the preorder is available at select retailers (Smashwords distributes preorders to Apple, Barnes & Noble and Kobo). 3. Connect with the Author - The reader loved your book, they think you're the bees knees, and they want to connect with you. Add your coordinates for Facebook, Twitter, your blog, your website, your Smashwords Interview, your Smashwords author page, or your mailing list. Once a reader connects with you via social media, they can start to get to know you and appreciate your super-awesomeness on an entirely new level. It's an opportunity for you to start a long term relationship building process that can help casual readers become fans, and help fans grow to become super fans. 4. Sample chapters of other books - Give them a taste of your other books! 5. Reading group guide - Create a special section for reading groups with suggested questions that would spark thought-provoking discussion and debate. This is an opportunity to turn one reader into many, because it'll encourage reading group members to propose your book as the group's next read. Your book might already have one or more of these sections. If you don't have them all, consider upgrading your book with these new end matter sections, and with a linked ToC to tie them altogether. The video, and the recently updated Style Guide, will give you ideas to take your book to the next level. Special thanks to Smashwords bestseller Samantha Towle. Samantha gave me permission to use her new contemporary romance, Trouble, in the creation of this video. I used her book as an example of how to add useful navigation in Microsoft Word. Special instructions for Mac Word users: The Smashwords Style Guide, and the video tutorial above, show how to create navigation using the PC versions of Microsoft Word. If you use a Mac, the same principles of navigation as explained above, and in the Style Guide and video, also apply to Mac Word users. However, the menus within Word for Mac are different. The image below shows the location of the options that allow bookmarking and hyperlinking. UPDATE FOR MAC USERS creating navigation links:You'll click Insert then click Bookmark. As a reminder, you'll always create Bookmarks before you link to them from your ToC. To create a hyperlink in your ToC that links *to* the bookmark location, highlight the item in your ToC you want to link (such as Prologue or Chapter One or About the Author, etc.), click Insert at the top of your Word screen, then click Hyperlink, then in the middle of the page after clicking Insert: Hyperlink, you'll see the options for Web Page | Document | Email Address. Click Document. Next, under the Anchor heading on that same window, click Locate, and then click the down arrow for Bookmarks. There, you'll see your bookmarks.
|
|
veyles
New Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Nov 7, 2013 11:52:02 GMT -8
|
Post by veyles on Nov 21, 2013 11:23:35 GMT -8
One thing I discovered about the word for mac, and that is I had to use the # in front of my bookmarked hyperlinks
Ex: #ref_TOC #ChapterOne
Otherwise they didn't work
|
|
veyles
New Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Nov 7, 2013 11:52:02 GMT -8
|
Post by veyles on Nov 21, 2013 11:53:27 GMT -8
Great Lesson. Even though I knew how, I watched again. But what about adding a picture at the end for "Other Books By?" I've added a thumbnail image of some of my other bookmarks. Is that ok?
|
|
|
Post by Ted on Nov 21, 2013 13:39:21 GMT -8
veyles, adding thumbnails in the end matter is fine. I've done that several times and have had no problems.
|
|
|
Post by jaydax on Nov 21, 2013 18:25:33 GMT -8
Good advice. One thing though - the best time to get a reader's attention and encourage them to rate or review a book is just after they finish the book. You really need to do four things though: 1. Get the reader to rate/review the book 2. Point the reader at your other books 3. Tell the reader about yourself to make you seem more 'human'. 4. Get the reader to sign up for your mailing list. Whatever you ask for first is likely to be all you achieve because once they are directed away from your book they are unlikely to come back. That means these four items can be mutually exclusive. Part of the solution may be to include a target frame which will open the link in a new browser page while leaving the original page open. This doesn't always work on all e-readers though. To set a target right click the hyperlink you made and select 'Edit Hyperlink'. In the window which appears click the 'Target Frame...' button. In the 'Set Target Frame' window select from the dropdown '_blank'. I strongly suggest you use a link shortener in case your reader chooses to retype the link. If you are selling on Amazon also you will need an Amazon version of the 'From the Author'. These would contain links pointing to Amazon sites. To avoid having to include multiple links for each book - .com/.co.uk/.ca/.com.au - I use Smarturl.it for Amazon links. This allows you to give one tracked short url which goes to the appropriate Amazon site for the reader's country. There are other sites which offer to do this but as far as I know only smarturl.it allows you to include affiliate links so that you get the extra 9% on your book sales. (You did know about that didn't you?). Do NOT include affiliate links on free ebooks or you can wipe out your affiliate earnings though. If you want a second example of a 'From the Author' section feel free to look at my free book at Smashwords 'A vested Interest - Immortality Gene' at bit.ly/UHLRqZ or for the same free book at Amazon smarturl.it/avi. To see a Smarturl.it link leading to an Amazon affiliat code for a non-free book try smarturl.it/dse
|
|
|
Post by Ted on Nov 21, 2013 18:40:36 GMT -8
Thanks for the tip on smarturl.it
|
|
|
Post by garyweston on Nov 21, 2013 21:37:51 GMT -8
Good tutorial
|
|
alphabeta
New Member
Posts: 20
Joined: Sept 10, 2014 7:43:54 GMT -8
|
Post by alphabeta on Sept 10, 2014 8:02:29 GMT -8
Hello, I'm trying to publish a book written in another language than english. When making the ToC, should I write the Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2 etc in my body (immediately after the copyright page and before the 1st Chapter) in english? But then my readers are obliged to know english which is not required in order to read my book. If i write that in my book's language will it be understood by Word when inserting the Bookmarks? Thanks
|
|
|
Post by galatea on Sept 10, 2014 8:43:59 GMT -8
I know the problem. It doesn't look professional if you use English words in a non-English book.
Just use your own language and run the Word-document through the Meatgrinder. The Meatgrinder might build the TOC correctly, or as it did in my case, screw it up half-way.
Don't panic if it makes a faulty TOC.
After the Meatgrinder generates you the epub, pdf, rtf etc... you take the epub and open it in a program like Sigil. Sigil has a function to generate a new TOC. If all goes well Sigil will build a correct TOC. If not you can manually edit it there. The page after the copyright page can be deleted if you let Sigil build the TOC.
After having edited the epub, upload it again to Smashwords (dashboard > upload new version)
|
|
alphabeta
New Member
Posts: 20
Joined: Sept 10, 2014 7:43:54 GMT -8
|
Post by alphabeta on Sept 10, 2014 9:02:38 GMT -8
Ξ€here is another thing, I think that My Word does not have the button Bookmark in the ribbon. It's Word Starter and it only has there a Hyperlink button. This problem comes rather first before the previous one, I believe. What do I do with that one? Tks
P.S. I realize now that creating bookmarks is not supported in Word Starter. I'd have either to purchase a full edition (provided that my Windows starter suppport it), or use an open word processor and risk to upload it in Meatgrinder, or finally pay someone to format my book in word. Or else, risk the not desirable option of the two-part NCX automatically created. I just pray to finally manage this auto-publish adventure, it's the only way to succeed.
|
|
mickthompson
Junior Member
Posts: 44
Joined: Mar 15, 2014 19:19:45 GMT -8
|
Post by mickthompson on Jan 9, 2015 16:32:55 GMT -8
I don't like the way Mark smacks his lips in his videos.
|
|