Your eBook Writing Style
Now that you know the basics about using a word processor, you can begin the task of actually writing your e-Book. This chapter will deal with some basic tips on your writing style, grammar, punctuation, editing, and more. Now, before I cover this material I have a confession to make…I am a lousy writer! Yes, I admit it. English was not my favorite subject in school, and I usually averaged a “B” grade on my school papers. You may also be a lousy writer, but I am here to tell you that it doesn’t matter! You can still write an e-Book & successfully sell it and profit from it.
I feel that the most important thing about writing an e-Book is that it communicates important & relevant information to the reader in a way that the reader can understand. With that being said, it does not have to be perfect.
I have read e-Books by authors that have sold thousands and thousands of copies online. I can tell you first-hand that they contained spelling errors, run-on sentences, and about every other error you can imagine. Even most textbooks I used in school had at least one error. So perfection is not necessary, but comprehension & coherency is necessary.
This simply means that your reader should be able to understand the material & read it in a way where it makes sense. If your grammar & sentence structure confuses or frustrates your reader, your e-Book probably needs to be edited by someone with more talent in that area.
Even if you need to get help with the editing of your e-Book, try to maintain your own unique writing style. After all, this is your e-Book, so it should be an expression of you. Let your own phrases, words, and style come through in your writing. I don’t know about you, but I get bored reading the same kind of writing styles over & over again. It is always a relief to find a more creative or humorous style when I read a book. It makes me feel as if I know the author’s personality. Anyway, the point I am trying to make here is simply that I recommend you use your own creative writing style when you write your e-Book.
Using Correct Grammar & Writing Habits for eBooks
As I mentioned before, your e-Book should be readable. This means you need to use proper sentence structure, capitalization, and spelling. If you do not use grammar very well, then there are books you can get from the library free of charge that can give you the basics on proper grammar. Since there are entire books dedicated to this subject, and since I am no expert on this myself, I will not go into too much detail about grammar. However, here are a few basics writing tips that can help you with your writing:
- Capitalize the first word in each sentence, and all proper names, companies, etc.
- Make complete sentences. Avoid using sentences that are incomplete, or sentences that continue to run on & on & on & on without a proper break.
- Use the same tense in the same sentence. For example, don’t use present tense in the first part of the sentence & then switch to past tense towards the end.
- Try not to end your sentence with a preposition (such as of, for, from, etc.). I have no idea why anyone would want to do that for!
- Try to avoid using a double negative. For example: You shouldn’t do that because it isn’t good.
- Separate new ideas into paragraphs. If you change ideas or begin a new topic, don’t be afraid to make it into a new paragraph.
- Make paragraphs relatively small. This isn’t usually what you are taught in school. But I have found that on web sites & e-Books, it is much easier for the reader if you break text into shorter paragraphs. I think the reason is most people skim & scan when they read. So it really helps them to have several short paragraphs instead of a couple of long paragraphs.
- Transition your paragraphs & sentences. Try to avoid going from one idea into a completely new idea. Instead, make a transition sentence on the last sentence of the paragraph that relates to the new idea you are going to introduce in the next paragraph.
- Avoid any slanderous, racial, offensive, cursing, or violent words or sentences. I never use curse words in any of my writing because I don’t use them in my personal life either. However, even if you do curse, try not to involve that in your writing because it could offend some people.
- Organize your e-Book in a logical way that makes sense. This means start at the beginning & stop at the end. If you write a book about the alphabet, don’t start at a, then go to f, then back to b, etc. Instead, start at the letter “a” and end at the letter “z.” Your e-Book should follow a consistent flow pattern of information.
- Try to keep your sentences to the point. Don’t use too many words to make your e-Book appear longer than it should be. Instead, come out & go directly to the point.
- Stay on topic! Again, if you wonder from point to point without following a good organizational pattern, the book will be confusing. Instead, break down your topics & organize them in a way that makes sense. Then focus only on that topic while you are writing about it.
- Make your writing “dummy” proof. For example, if you are writing a “how-to” guide, try to write it as if the person does not know anything about it. Try to go step-by-step so it can be easily understood by anyone at any level.
- Try to stick with a simple vocabulary. Obviously, if you use large, complex words in every sentence, some people may not have a clue what you are saying. If you make your vocabulary very basic, it will be understood by more of your readers.
- Try to avoid redundancy. Do not repeat things over & over. It is fine to stress something a couple of times, but do not repeat the same sentence or idea it too often.
- Save your work!!! This is EXTREMELY important. Save your work often. I usually hit the save button every few minutes to make sure it has been saved as I write.
- Back up your work!!! This is also very important. You should make at least 1 or 2 additional backups of your e-Book on a jump drive, CD disk, or on another separate computer. You an also email the file to yourself so that you have a copy online in your email account.
Correcting Spelling Errors in Your eBook
Almost any word processor that you use will have a built-in spell checker. This is great because it can be easy to misspell a word while you are typing. Thus, you should not have any problems with spelling errors.
Usually, when your word processor has a spell checker, it will automatically underline misspelled or unfamiliar terms in red. This indicates that the word is either misspelled or unknown to the word processor’s vocabulary. You can then simply correct the error by retyping the word. If you are unsure how to spell the word properly, you can usually right click your mouse over the red underlined word. It will then usually pop up & give a suggestion for the correct spelling.
If your word processor does not automatically underline words, then you can still run a spell check by going to the top menu & selecting: Tools–> Spell Checker. When you go into this menu, it will usually scan each word in your document to check for the correct spelling.
When the program finds an incorrect or unknown spelling, it will have a prompt box that suggests an alternative spelling. You can usually click replace (which means replace the incorrect word with the correct word, or you can click ignore. You usually only click ignore if the word is actually spelled correctly & the word processor just doesn’t recognize the word.
Just beware that there are a few things that a spell checker will miss. For example, words that have a similar pronunciation, but different spelling will be missed by a spell checker if it is spelled correctly. Here is an example: I went buy the barn today to get some hey. In this sentence, “buy” should have been spelled “by” and “hey” should have been spelled “hay.” Spell checkers will not pick up on these words that are spelled correctly, but used incorrectly.
Copyrighting & Plagiarism Concerns
The last thing you want to do is use someone’s copyrighted work as your own. If you do this, you are setting yourself up for a big disaster. Why? Because copyright laws are one of the most protected legal rights. They are very serious, and they can carry a hefty fine for anyone who abuses them. That is why I would recommend you only use your own ideas, and avoid even quoting something else unless it is absolutely necessary.
This means that you cannot take someone else’s work & simply rearrange it & call it your own. This is still copyright infringement. Also, excessive quoting, paraphrasing, and even detailed reviews could be considered copyright infringement. The laws on copyright infringement may vary depending on your location/country, however, work is protected on an international agreement basis.
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is one very prominent (and recent) law regarding copyrights. It protects mostly digital media (e-Books, web pages, software, etc.) from copyright infringement. There are also many other copyright laws in effect that provide protection to an author’s original work. In addition, there are also instances where it may be acceptable to use certain things without the author’s permission.
For example, if the copyright has expired, the work is usually considered to be in the public domain. If you want to read more about the DMCA or other copyright laws, you look at these articles on Wikipedia.org: DMCA, Fair Use, Copyrights, and Public Domain. Wikipedia.org is a great reference site, but just remember that anyone can edit a web page. So the information may not always be 100% accurate, and you shouldn’t substitute this information for legal advice. However, the above articles contain some good information on the subjects mentioned.
It is also important to keep in mind that words are not the only thing that can be copyrighted. If you plan on using any images or screenshots in your e-Book, you may want to make sure that it is permissible for you to use them because images can also be protected under copyright. For example, let’s say you want to take a screenshot of your Google account.
On Google’s website, they clearly say that you are allowed to take screenshots as long as they are not altered. Therefore, you would be able to include these screenshots in your e-Book. However, some sites may not want you to take a screenshot. They may say this in their terms & conditions. Other sites may not mention anything about screenshots.
Also, you must consider whether or not a screenshot or image would fall under one of the “Fair Use” policy for copyrights. Would it be an acceptable fair use to use the screenshot without requiring permission? These are all things you want to consider before inserting images in your e-Book. If you are ever unclear about whether or not you can use a screenshot, you can always contact the owner of the website, or seek the advice of a legal professional.
The bottom line is, remember to avoid copyright infringement. It is not worth the risk to try & use someone else’s work as your own (whether you do it intentionally or unintentionally). Again, if you are ever in doubt about whether or not you can use certain material or images, you can always contact the owner or seek legal advice.
Some copyright holders may permit you to use their work if you pay them royalties or flat fee. In some instances you may not necessarily need permission to use it at all (as in the case with an expired copyright or if your use falls under the “fair use” doctrine).