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eBooks are no different from any other type of book except in their medium of publication, so the most important first step to writing one is to decide on, and develop, an idea for one. The basic way to do this is to sit down and write a brief phrase or sentence that encapsulates the information you'd like to put in your book. Once you have that, you can build on it to create a finished product.  Writers who plan to create a book of fiction will have to spend considerably more time coming up with ideas and plot points. Read this article on how to write a novel for more relevant advice. The eBook format has the advantage of being not only open to self-publishers, but essentially free for them, which means that “books” too short to really be worth printing on paper can make perfectly valid eBooks. Therefore, feel free to use a simple idea. Start with the basic idea you wrote down, and think about different aspects of it. It may be helpful for you to draw a web of concepts to do this. For example, let's say you wanted to write a book about how to sell real estate for beginners. You could write down things like “licenses and fees,” “selling techniques,” and “cost vs. expected returns.” Connect specifics that are related to each of them, and so on, until you have enough detail to see the structure of the words in your head. Different books call for different approaches. Memoirs and self-help books might do better with a vertical outline; a book of fixes for common household problems will probably come together faster using a web of ideas. After unpacking and expanding your core idea, you should have a lot of information about your basic topic written down. Rearrange and organize it in a vertical outline until it makes sense to you and matches the way you'd like your book to flow. Think in terms of what your audience will need to know first, and put basics at the beginning. Once those have been covered, more advanced concepts can follow without losing the reader. Each step along your line will end up being a chapter in your book. If you can break the chapters into groups as well (for instance, if your book on home repairs has chapters that can be divided by room or type of problem), feel free to turn those into larger sections that contain a few related chapters each. Don't worry about a title, table of contents, or any of the other stylistic elements of the book yet. Just sit down and start writing it. You may find it's easier to “start in the middle” by writing a chapter of your choice first; you may prefer to start at the very beginning and write straight through. Just remember that you don't have to pick one method and stick with it. Use whatever techniques you need to complete the book. Writing a book – even a short book – takes time. The important thing is to persevere. Set aside time each day to write, or write until you hit a certain word count. Don't stand up from your desk until you meet your goal. Even if you feel stuck, the act of writing something down will help loosen up your mind, and before you know it your words will be flowing again. Keep at it for as long as it takes. Once your book is finished, let it sit for a week or so, and then come back to it with a critical eye. Look at the order of the chapters and sections first. Do they make sense to you? Often, you'll find that some pieces seem to make more sense in a different spot than where you'd originally placed them. After you're satisfied with the order of the book, read each chapter in order and edit and revise it.  Like writing, editing takes time – not as much time, but still a significant amount. Pace yourself by editing a certain number of words or chapters each day. You will often find that words, like chapters, simply need to be rearranged. Do your best to keep related ideas together, and don't forget to alter connecting sentences so that the new order still fits the text. It has often been said that “deletion is the soul of editing.” If you find that a chapter is going down the proverbial rabbit-hole on a particular point, bring it back in line with the overall flow of that chapter by deleting the extra detail. If such information is absolutely vital, consider setting it aside in a sidebar instead, or try to more smoothly incorporate it into the text so that it continues to flow smoothly when you read it. Once the body of your book looks solid, it's time to add a title, and any front or end material (such as an introduction or a bibliography) you'd like to add. Titles usually reveal themselves during the writing of the book; when in doubt, a plainspoken title (such as “How to Sell Real Estate”) is usually a safe choice.  If you pick a very simple title, have a couple of alternates on hand in case it's already been used. Adding adjectives or even your own name (as in “wikiHow's Guide to Selling Real Estate”) are simple ways to do this. If you used information from elsewhere, always be sure to properly cite it in a bibliography. If your sources were friends, at least add in a page of acknowledgments so you can thank them by name. Like physical books, a major marketing tool for any eBook is its cover. Even though it's only a virtual cover, it's what potential buyers notice first. Consider springing for a professionally-designed cover, or go it alone if you think you can make something that looks good and will attract sales. Just be sure to get permission before you use any copyrighted images. Even sections and pieces of copyrighted images are off-limits. When in doubt, get explicit permission from the copyright holder first. Once you've written an awesome ebook, you should share some copies with friends, relatives, and neighbors. Make sure to ask:  How was the book? What did you like the most? What did you not like? How can I improve it? Factor in all of the responses and try to address each of the issues that surfaced. Don't be afraid to stir everything into the mix and redo the entire ebook from top to bottom. The likely result will be a marked improvement on what you created alone. If not, you can always retool and back up to the previous draft.
Come up with an idea. Expand your idea. Organize your details. Write the book. Review and rewrite. Add the details. Add a cover. Give ebooks to friends . Record the feedback and improve the ebook before you publish.