Published my first book just after my 19th Birthday!

By Brendando
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Grand Master

Glassed Silver

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Thanks Krome, and thank you very much Neobond. That makes sense as to why you made the change but I'm glad you fixed the link for me.

In regards to your question Krome, Kindle allows you to self-publish- you upload your book, submit if for review, and then they put it live. That's it. Obviously there are a few hoops to jump through in that process, but it's pretty simple and means that you can avoid the tiring process of reaching a publisher, just to submit your book to the dying print market. However, it doesn't mean that you be any less attentive to the quality of your work if you want to do well. Hope that helps.

Dying?

I sure as hell will continue buying paper books for the rest of my life and I bet many more feel like I do.

Maybe not on this forum, but out there in the real world where a lot of people don't actually care about ebook benefits or such.

A real book has still has some advantages, the magic being a key one and probably the one that ebooks will never be able to catch up to.

The experience I get from a paper book is unprecedented by ebooks.

It's more spiritual, calm and somehow more magical.

That being said, I can imagine that once you published your book on Kindle and then go to a publisher and try to strike a deal with them I guess it's simpler as they see it has done well on the market (if it has of cause)? :)

Glassed Silver:mac

Mentor

Amarok

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Congratulations. =)

Dying?

I sure as hell will continue buying paper books for the rest of my life and I bet many more feel like I do.

Maybe not on this forum, but out there in the real world where a lot of people don't actually care about ebook benefits or such.

A real book has still has some advantages, the magic being a key one and probably the one that ebooks will never be able to catch up to.

The experience I get from a paper book is unprecedented by ebooks.

It's more spiritual, calm and somehow more magical.

That being said, I can imagine that once you published your book on Kindle and then go to a publisher and try to strike a deal with them I guess it's simpler as they see it has done well on the market (if it has of cause)? :)

I actually used to feel the same way. Now 70% of my book purchases are ebooks and 30% are audiobooks. Well, sort of. I still buy one series in print. I've been thinking I'll even get the next book in that series in ebook.

Grand Master

firey

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Just got the free copy off amazon, will likely take a look at it tonight, seems very promising.

@Celestial

I wish I were a human intersect, and I had a handler that was as hot as Sarah Walker :(

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Brendando

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Thanks to all that have downloaded. Amazon has been a little glitchy over the passed few days in terms of the correct draft being available- don't ask me why, it's crazy. If you find that the copy you have doesnt seem to have the correct paragraphing, please redownload, as Amazon have assured me the correct draft is now available; if you do this during the promotional period it will of course not cost you a dime. :)!

If you enjoy it please do review and like it, as well as recommend it to friends; it does make a huge difference for me. Just overwhelmed by all the great feedback I'm getting :D!

In relation to print being a dying breed- in no way am I saying I dislike printed books, far from it. Further down the line it's something I'll consider, but a glassed silver mentioned correctly, it is much easier to publish a successful ebook as a printed book, then a completely unknown one. The ebook gives you more leverage.

Enjoy all :)!

  • Glassed Silver
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Grand Master

Mathachew Veteran

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I'll give it a look and will give you an honest review when I'm done (reading two other books and have a few others lined up, but will be relatively soon). I do have to agree with the two lower rated comments though about the paragraph formatting. I'm so OCD it's a deterrent to reading. Also, since you're self publishing, this blog post might interest you. Finally, when I read a Kindle book on my PC, I usually split it into two columns, but I can't do that with your book. Any idea why?

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Brendando

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I'll give it a look and will give you an honest review when I'm done (reading two other books and have a few others lined up, but will be relatively soon). I do have to agree with the two lower rated comments though about the paragraph formatting. I'm so OCD it's a deterrent to reading. Also, since you're self publishing, this blog post might interest you. Finally, when I read a Kindle book on my PC, I usually split it into two columns, but I can't do that with your book. Any idea why?

Hi Mathachew, thank you for bringing the indentation thing to my attention. Please do not review this current copy, as this will be fixed within 12 hours from this post, as a corrected draft is being re-published. Please redownload it then, as this will have fixed all those issues. It will of course still be free, as the promotion is running through until Sunday. As for the splitting into two columns, I'm at a complete loss as to why that would be :/!

Grand Master

Glassed Silver

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Hi Mathachew, thank you for bringing the indentation thing to my attention. Please do not review this current copy, as this will be fixed within 12 hours from this post, as a corrected draft is being re-published. Please redownload it then, as this will have fixed all those issues. It will of course still be free, as the promotion is running through until Sunday. As for the splitting into two columns, I'm at a complete loss as to why that would be :/!

Actually, one is smart to keep both copies.

Why? Simply because it's kind of awesome to be the early bird who got the "misprint". :p

Kind of how misprints of early editions of comic books. haha

Of cause as it's digital it's worth nothing more, but the sentimental value definitely is there. (Y)

(And if it gets popular enough you can claim nice bragging rights! tehehe)

Glassed Silver:mac

Grand Master

Mathachew Veteran

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Hi Mathachew, thank you for bringing the indentation thing to my attention. Please do not review this current copy, as this will be fixed within 12 hours from this post, as a corrected draft is being re-published. Please redownload it then, as this will have fixed all those issues. It will of course still be free, as the promotion is running through until Sunday. As for the splitting into two columns, I'm at a complete loss as to why that would be :/!

I'm in no rush as I've got several other books on my list before this one, but I'll post back here when I start it.

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Brendando

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I'm in no rush as I've got several other books on my list before this one, but I'll post back here when I start it.

Everyone: please re-download the corrected edition.

To do this simply go to your account and then the "Manage Your Kindle" section under the heading "Settings". Go to the "Actions" button next to Andor Awakening, click it and choose "delete from library". Confirm, then go back to here:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Andor-Awakening-Shae-Series-ebook/dp/B007KZ0CQU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332575165&sr=8-1

And download the book again for free while this weekend lasts. Apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused, and please don't base your reviews off the previous versions formatting.

I could not pass up a free book! I downloaded Kindle for the PC, and will read when I get a free chance!

Thank you! Hope you enjoy it :)!

Grand Master

Mathachew Veteran

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Any chance you could add a table of contents and have each chapter marked like a typical Kindle book? Not sure what you're using to create the file, but there are ways in calibre to create the chapter points.

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Brendando

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The amount of support that Neowin has given me has been overwhelming(ly positive), and I just wanted to take a moment to once more thank you all. You've been incredible. The community here is phenomenal.

Congratulations. :)

Thank you very much :)!

Any chance you could add a table of contents and have each chapter marked like a typical Kindle book? Not sure what you're using to create the file, but there are ways in calibre to create the chapter points.

I will have a look at that today as soon as I have some free time. Appreciate your critique and suggestions, means a lot to me- I'm obviously still a little wet behind the ears at this, but more than willing to adapt/learn! :)

Congrats Brendando!

Same here. (Y)

Thank you, really appreciate your support :)!

To any and all: if you are enjoying the book, it would mean a great deal to me if you could simply click the like button, or even, if your feeling particularly awesome, write a positive review explaining your experience. It makes a huge difference to me and to how many people will be seeing my book, and I would really appreciate it. Spread the word!

Thanks again guys :)!

Grand Master

Glassed Silver

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[...]

To any and all: if you are enjoying the book, it would mean a great deal to me if you could simply click the like button, or even, if your feeling particularly awesome, write a positive review explaining your experience. It makes a huge difference to me and to how many people will be seeing my book, and I would really appreciate it. Spread the word! Thanks again guys :)!

That's true.

Even just the amount of reviews has an immense effect on sales.

It makes a huge difference whether a product has one or two 5 star ratings or a bunch of them, even if the average rating is the same.

People are willing to trust a crowd more than just a few.

Glassed Silver:mac

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Brendando

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Nice work man, you deserve the feeling of accomplishment you have - Good Job. ;)

Thank you so much. It's incredible everytime I get any form of praise about the books or the process of creating them, and I'm really appreciative of it :)!

Wow that's amazing writing :). I might definitely buy the book when I get a ipad for a upcoming road trip. enjoyed the preview :)

Thank you very much, I really appreciate your kind words. Glad you enjoyed the preview, really hope you love the book!

I don't know whether or not you are aware of this, but the book is legible not only on tablets, but on smartphones (Android/iOS/Windows Phone 7) and computers (PC/Mac). Amazon list their applications here, if it helps:

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/kindle/kcp

Additionally, to anyone that wants to keep up to date on info about the Shae series, and the books sequel, Andor Wolfblood, as well as the lore of the books in general, feel free to follow me on twitter @brendanlukeok, or read the blog over at:

http://shaeseries.blogspot.co.uk

All the best to everyone, and once again many thanks. Keep telling me what you think :), I really value your opinions.

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Brendando

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wow well done man, serious congrats :)

I like the hand illustration too

Thank you as well! The hand illustration was done by my good friend, and talented artist, David Cheng, after several different drafts. I was really definite about what I wanted!

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