E-books have been gaining the grounds for quite some time now. One of the finest features of an e-book is that it gives access to a wider audience base. There are so many reasons which can trigger an individual to write an e-book. For example, you want to get more views for your brand, earn money, fame and so on.
Talking about the past, writing an e-book was not a walk in the park. You either had to be tech-savvy or needed professional assistance to craft an irresistible e-book. However, it is not the case anymore. All you need is a good idea, and the technology will take care of everything else.
So in case you were considering to drop a great concept just because you are unaware of technical aspects associated with an e-book, the following tools will make life much easier for you:
1. Scrivener
Scrivener received tremendous feedback from writers very early in the time of its release. Due to its multiple features, it has gained a place amongst the top writing software used by professional writers. The following are some of the standout attributes of Scrinever:
- Makes research easier: Gone are the days when the research was given little to no importance by e-book writers. Due to the information overload, readers have become smart and can dump your book if it’s supported by shabby or false research. Scrivener provides you a specific part where you can conveniently gather all the research material. You don’t have to leave your writing software and wander for information in files and folder.
- Distraction-free: If you are habitual of writing in Microsoft Word, shifting to Scrinever will prove to be worthwhile for you. Unlike Microsoft Word, Scrinever offers full-screen, which makes concentration easy.
- Flexibility: Ideas do not have to come to you in a sequence. For example, when you are working on a fiction novel, the end of the story might strike in your mind earlier than the middle phase. Since Scrinever allows you to import files from MS Word, you don’t necessarily have to write in a particular order. Just go with the flow of your thoughts and rearrange them later at your convenience.
2. Evernote
Evernote has been around for a decade now. Initially, the software was created for brainstorming ideas in the early stage of a writing project. However, the software kept enhancing its capacity, and now writers are using this online e-book tool for publishing their e-books.
- Supports multiple devices: Evernote can integrate with almost all types of devices. Be it desktop, tablet, smartphone, etc.. It is equally supportive of all. There is more to it. You can also send notes to your Evernote account using Gmail from any nook and croony of the world. This vast accessibility has been one of the major selling points of Evernote.
- Keeps it organized: Big writing projects would require you to save data overwhelmingly in both images and written form. At times it could be tough to locate the information. However, Evernote’s robust search engine will make the job easier for you. Quite literally, you will be just a click away from the stored data.
- Optical character reorganization: Evernote can scan the text from an image.
- Cloud management: Evernote is backed up by the cloud management system. This is something that makes this software distinguishable from a lot of its counterparts. Cloud management effectively means, once you save something in Evernote, it is safe and secure. No writer deserves to lose their sleep over the fear of losing valuable data.
3. Canva
There is no denying the fact that quality content is very important. At the same time, you have to work on its presentation. Regardless of the superiority of your content, there is no way you can turn a blind eye to the designing part. Well written content with poor designing will not be as effective and might not even appeal to some people in the first place.
Are you pondering over hiring a designer? Well, you don’t have to spend any extra money because a sublime tool like Canva is there to help you in giving your e-book a stunning appearance. The benefits and uses of Canva are as follows:
- Diversity: Initially, Canva was used to generate images primarily for Facebook and Twitter. Then users started to exploit the software for other social media platforms like Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram, and so on. Gradually, it earned popularity in the circle of e-book writers. The reason being, be it an alluring blog graphic, kindle cover, or Infographic, Canva does it all for free.
- Availability of various backgrounds: Whether you want a plain or elaborate background, Canva gives you access to the variety of backdrop settings. To top it off, you can also share with designers through email and seek their opinion or tell them the amount of editing you want in a certain background.
- Upload your image: In case Canva does not have an image that goes best with your project, you can upload your own. There are multiple layouts available that will aid you to perfect your image.
- Simple interface: We tend to think about design as a complex and technical task. However, Canva makes it look like a cake-walk. Knowing that writers are not typically well-versed about technical aspects, the software makes it super easy to add or arrange images.
- Hemingway App
Once you have written and designed the format, it’s time to review your e-book thoroughly. The review can help you to avoid blunders, which might have been overlooked in the overwhelming writing process. When it comes to editing, it is very easy for a writer to be ignorant of their own mistakes. That’s where the Hemingway app swings into action. Needless to say, the app is named after the famous American writer Ernest Hemingway.
Fundamentally, the app gives you an idea about the readability of your text. According to a well-documented figure, an average US citizen’s reading aptitude is up to 10th-grade level. Hemingway editor polishes your text and makes it readable to even 5th-grade readers. The application is driven by the purpose of “less is more.”
As you insert your text into it, the app marks it with different colors. Every color highlights different insights about your content as you can see in the following section:
- Green: Refers to the passive voice sentences. Using active voice increases readability.
- Yellow: if your text is marked with yellow, it means you have unnecessarily prolonged your text. Again, it can hamper the readability. You should try to make yellowish sentences a little more precise and to the point.
- Blue: Highlights weaker phrases along with adverbs. You can also get significant hints by hovering the mouse over the marked words.
- Red: Red draws your attention to complicated sentences. Either rephrase or eliminate unwanted words from these sentences.
You might have your unique writing style, but it all goes down the drain if you fail to deliver the message. Hemingway is all about conveying the message. The online version of Hemingway is free of cost, and the desktop version costs 19.99 dollars. To sum up, as Hemingway puts it, “write drunk, edit sober.”
Bonus tools
There are other useful tools as well that can be utilized while creating an e-book. They are listed below:
- Grammarly: If you write in the Word, make sure you have Grammarly installed beforehand. It is extremely handy at detecting grammatical errors. With its premium version, you can improve the structure of your text too.
- Pro writing aid: it is one of the most comprehensive editing tools available. It goes well-beyond grammar. Among the other aspects, the software looks into your sentence length, overused words, alliteration, acronym, eloquence, plagiarism, and much more. The free version allows you to check 500 words at a time while the paid version will give you access to unlimited word count check.
- Google Docs: Writing tools have been hitting the scene at a regular frequency, but somehow Google Docs has still kept its relevancy intact. The tool stands out for its collaborative qualities. You can share the document with anyone, and they can make changes in it. Besides, it saves any changes automatically, which keeps writers at ease.
- iA Writer: it has tons of uses. But perhaps iA writer is most likable because it helps you to focus. By switching to its focus mode, you will only be able to see the current sentence because the rest of the text will be dimmed. The temptation of editing the other sentences is so strong that a writer can easily get distracted from the present sentence. iA will aid you to keep this issue at bay.
Final thoughts
Many authors owe their fame to these tools. If you have been holding an idea for too long for whatever reasons, it is the right time to convert it into an e-book because the software mentioned above will hold your hand and guide you to success in no time.