APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur. How to Publish a Book by Guy Kawasaki
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I like this book. Guy’s writing style is informal and chatty, but concise and to the point. This is the first book of his that I’ve read, though oddly enough I was looking at another when I was sent this copy to review. After completing this, I’ll certainly look for others. Much of this information is also available in Mark Coker’s (Smashwords founder) ‘Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success’, but Guy has presented the information better and strengthened it with examples.
I felt the most useful aspect of this book was his use of links to illustrate a point. The book is riddled with them. Some are witty asides, but the majority are interesting and informative. The one I loved the most was when he demonstrated how professional editors work, by showing a marked up version of a Raymond Carver short. Others point to social media sites, others to useful tools, and however informed you believe are, I suspect that many of these will be new to you.
My only negative comment is that the book was trying to do too much. The first forty or so pages were discussing whether you should write, and explaining the differences between ebooks and paperbacks. If you wanted to be an author, I’m fairly certain those early chapters could be taken as a prerequisite. Similarly, many sections were glanced over when they could’ve easily formed a complete book in their own right.
Still, it’s an informative book, and one I’m certain I’ll be returning to!