Summary

The author shares their experience of writing and selling e-books as a newbie writer, offering tips and advice for others looking to do the same.

Abstract

The author, who has written three e-books so far, shares their journey and lessons learned from writing and selling their e-books. They started by compiling their online posts into a PDF, then moved on to writing from scratch and selling their third e-book online using Payhip. The author initially struggled to sell their e-book but found success after using a different approach. They suggest that newbie writers can also write and sell e-books by repurposing their old content or writing about a topic they are comfortable with and have good knowledge of. The author also provides tips on writing, editing, designing the cover, and selling the e-book on platforms like Payhip.

Opinions

Writing an e-book can be intimidating, but it can be done easily if one has been writing online.
The author suggests using the technique of compiling old articles into a document to write an e-book, as it does not require thinking hard about the topic.
The author suggests using a simple word processor like MS Word or Google Docs to write the e-book and Canva to design the cover.
The author suggests using the "Pay what you want" approach for pricing the e-book, as it allows buyers to pay any amount they want.
The author suggests sharing the e-book everywhere, writing articles about it, emailing subscribers, sending out newsletters, and DMing it to friends to sell it.
The author emphasizes that writing and selling e-books is not just about the idea or value of the book, but also about using smart marketing strategies.
The author suggests making sure the e-book provides value to people and impacts their lives.

How You Can Write And Sell Your E-Book As A Newbie Writer

Use this to write multiple e-books and make passive income online.

Do you want to write an e-book and earn passive income?

You can do it easily if you have been writing online.

I have written three e-books so far. I’ll be sharing my experience and lessons from writing and selling my e-books.

My first e-book was a compilation of thirty LinkedIn posts that I had written in the #30dayswritingchallenge. I sold it for free.

My second e-book was a compilation of my articles on personal finance and the stock market. That one was also free.

However, my third e-book was different. I wrote it from scratch and sold it online using an effective method that I’ll be discussing in this story.

How I wrote and sold my e-books

Writing an e-book seems like a huge deal. Deciding the topic, writing the book, editing it, and selling it can be intimidating.

When I decided to write my first e-book, I had many doubts and fears:

What if nobody buys (or downloads) my book?
How am I going to sell it?
What if people don’t like it?

These thoughts kept me from writing anything at all.

So, instead of writing from scratch, I wrote inspirational posts on social media and then compiled them into a PDF. That is how I had my first e-book ready.

The purpose of my first e-book was to collect emails, and it did reasonably well.

I used the same technique for my second e-book. I had written around 5–6 articles on the stock market and personal finance on my blog. So, I used those articles to prepare my second e-book.

I still wasn’t confident that anyone would buy it. Therefore, I kept that one free too. But, it received more than 500 downloads. My email list grew extensively because of that.

At the end of 2021, I wanted to do something big. So, I decided to write my third e-book. But this time, I was going to write it from scratch and sell it for a price.

I finished my third e-book in a month. But selling it was the hard part. After experimenting on multiple platforms, I found Payhip (aff) to be the most suitable for me.

But, I had zero sales after two weeks of publishing my third e-book. I thought it was a waste. My fears came true. Nobody bought my e-book. But then, I used a different approach to selling it. Using that method, I have sold 41 copies so far.

I Sold My FREE E-Book for $5. You Can Do It Too. Here’s How.

If you are struggling to sell your digital product, try this method.

medium.com

How to write and sell an e-book as a newbie?

If you are a newbie writer, you can write and sell e-books just like I did.

But, understand that the process will be difficult if you haven’t written anything before. You must have writing experience before you decide to write an e-book.

I had written more than 50 articles online before I wrote my first e-book.

The idea

What will you be writing about? Making this decision can be infuriating, especially if you are writing your first e-book.

That is why I suggest you use my technique of compiling old articles into a document.

The benefit of doing so is that you don’t have to think hard about the topic. You have already written about it in the past. You can simply repurpose your old content and create a readable e-book.

If you don’t want to do that then think of different topics that you feel comfortable writing about. You must also have good knowledge or experience on the topic.

The writing process

How to write the e-book?
What tools to use?
How to edit it?
How to design the cover?

Doing all of these is really simple.

Write the book using a simple word processor like MS Word or Google Docs. I use Google Docs because works online and I can access it from any of my devices. Also, it has an autosave feature, so I don’t have to save my work manually.

Divide your book into chapters. Even if you are simply compiling your articles, structure your content well.

Design the cover of the e-book using Canva. It is easy and takes only a few minutes if you use the preset templates.

You don’t need fancy designs for your e-book. Keep it simple.

Edit! Edit! Edit!

Edit multiple times and make sure everything is in place. Check for grammatical errors and typos (use Grammarly for that); edit your texts, paragraphs, headings, fonts, etc.; use a table of contents for easy navigation.

Your e-book should be ready after multiple edits.

Selling the e-book

You can sell your e-book on multiple platforms. However, I suggest you choose a single platform first.

Most writers on Medium suggest selling on Gumroad. But, I find Payhip easier.

Sign up (aff) on Payhip and upload your e-book. You will receive a unique link for your e-book after that. Then, all you have to do is share it everywhere.

What about the pricing?

I suggest you use the “Pay what you want” approach if you are unsure about pricing. Many of the buyers will download it for free. But many will also pay a good amount for it. Some will pay $1 and some might even pay $10. That is the beauty of this approach.

But if you want to set a fixed price, make sure to add the “+” sign. For example, if you want to sell it for $5, write “5+” on the price box. It means that buyers can pay any amount from five dollars to more.

Finally

Share your e-book everywhere. Don’t just post it on social media and expect people to buy it.

Instead, write articles about it, email your subscribers, send out newsletters, and DM it to your friends.

I have sold many copies of my third e-book How to build side hustles & make money online for $1, $2, and even $5 using the “Pay what you want” method.

Writing and selling e-books is not just about the idea or value of the book. It is also about using smart marketing strategies.

But that does not mean you can write useless content and try to sell it online. Make sure your e-book provides value to people and impacts their lives.

Thanks for reading.

If you like my work, please buy me a Ko-fi as I am currently unable to earn from Medium.

Check out my eBook How to Build Side Hustles & Make Money Online if you haven’t already done it.

Sign up for Payhip with my referral link here.