Free Tools For Authors From Ebook Friendly

Some of you already know that I founded Ebook Friendly – a special kind of e-bookstore addressed to those readers who are aware of distractions the web brings and want to avoid them at the stage of browsing for books. Because reading is all about being focused, opposite to Internet – which is all about being distracted.

Reader friendly interface is one part of the proposition.

As a self-publisher I also want to make this site a place where great books from self-published authors can be easily discovered. There is no better way to do it than help the reader focus on what the author wants to say about his book.

On the average Kindle Store page there are some 150 links, which can easily distract user’s attention. That’s why I removed or hid all other information, which usually accompanies – or dominates – the book’s blurb. This is killing, when it comes to search engine optimization, and that’s why I very much count on the traffic brought by authors themselves.

Technically, Ebook Friendly is using Amazon Astore module (associate tag ebookfriendly-20) – and this is actually the biggest benefit. Authors don’t have to register and upload a book to a new site. Ebook Friendly is a selective directory leading to authors’ books in Kindle Store. The essential advantage is that you can drive traffic to a place where your book is more prominent.

Ebook Friendly can be used by authors in two major ways: online book previews and book directory.

Online book previews

Book previews are nothing else but Amazon’s Kindle for the Web technology, thanks to which users can read first chapters of books for free, but also embed previews on their sites and share them with friends.

You can find previews under Read Online tab or check one of the books right now.

I fully optimized the interface to ideally display Kindle for the Web embeds on our site. The goal was to achieve the look and feel of an e-reading application. All this to make two decisions happen at the same time: “I feel like reading a book” and “I want to read this book“.

Why would you want it? There are four reasons.

1. When you use a blog platform (f.e. WordPress.com) which doesn’t allow to embed html scripts.
2. If your blog theme has a narrow post area and it’ll be difficult to display a book preview in an encouraging way.
3. Your book preview will be placed where readers come to browse and read free chapters online.
4. I can link to your book’s Amazon page with your Amazon associate tag (if you have it), so that you can earn more money if the user buys it.

If you’re interested in adding your book to Read Online directory, please send an e-mail to info [at] ebookfriend [dot] ly with:

– the link to your print book (it’s where Kindle for the Web previews are available); important: the book has to be published at Amazon US,
– your Twitter account, so that I can refer to you as soon as the preview is published as well as include you in a Twitter list of ebook friendly authors,
– your Amazon associate tag, if you have one (otherwise I’ll use ebookfriendly-20).

Book directory

Ebook Friendly is not intended to be a review site. The major goal is to be a friendly and useful directory of valuable books from Kindle Store – with a special focus on self-published ones.

There are three levels of extra exposure Ebook Friendly can give to your book.

1. Our catalog – which is different from Amazon’s Kindle Store. The catalog is much smaller, therefore your book will be easier to find.
2. A list of Staff Picks – where we add books especially worth recommending.
3. Front page bookshelf – absolute top of the tops from Ebook Friendly – and a good promotional tool for you to use.

Briefly, Ebook Friendly is a top layer of Kindle Store which could help readers focus on your book. There are many great books from talented self-publishers which deserve to be much better exposed than being a part of Kindle Store’s long tail.

If you have any questions or suggestions please send an e-mail to the address mentioned above. Ebook Friendly is growing, any feedback is welcomed!