How to write an ebook, from first idea to listing

How to write an ebook in nine steps

1. Pick one reader and one promise. Write a single sentence: who the book is for and what they can do at the end. "A new runner finishes a first 5K in ten weeks" gives every chapter a job. "Running tips" does not.
2. Check the idea against real questions. Look at what people in your subject ask in forums, comments and search suggestions. If the same question keeps coming up, your book can answer it.
3. Outline the chapters. List the steps the reader needs, in order, and give each one a chapter. Our ebook template gives you a structure to copy.
4. Choose a rough length. Short guides can be a few thousand words; a full book is much longer. See how long should an ebook be for typical ranges.
5. Write a fast first draft. One chapter at a time, without stopping to polish. A small daily target, such as 500 words, gets a short ebook drafted in a few weeks.
6. Edit in two passes. First fix the structure: anything missing, repeated or in the wrong order. Then fix the sentences: read them aloud and cut whatever you would not say to a friend.
7. Design the pages. Use one or two fonts, clear headings, plenty of space and only images you made or have a licence for.
8. Export and test the file. Save it as a PDF or EPUB (which ebook format to use) and open it on a phone and a laptop before anyone pays for it.
9. Make a cover and list it. Follow the ebook cover design rules, write a product page with sample pages, and publish.

How to create an ebook: the tools you need

You can write a whole ebook in the word processor you already use. Most can save a PDF, and some can export EPUB directly; if yours cannot, a free converter such as Calibre will turn a finished document into an EPUB. For a designed PDF with full-page layouts, a design tool such as Canva works well. Keep your draft in one file with heading styles, so the contents page and chapter breaks look after themselves.

How to make an ebook when writing is the slow part

If you know the subject but the drafting stalls, write the ebook with AI and edit it in your own voice. The AI ebook generator built into Bookstorez plans the chapters with you, writes each one, designs the pages and makes the cover. Free includes 1 generated book a month.

Checklist before you list it

• The first page says who the book is for and what it will help them do.
• Every chapter earns its place and keeps that promise.
• Facts, numbers, links and names have been checked.
• Someone other than you has read it, ideally a person like your reader.
• The file opens cleanly on a phone and a laptop, with working links and a contents page.
• The cover reads at thumbnail size.
• Every word and image is your own work or properly licensed.

List your ebook for sale

When the checklist is done, put it where readers browse. On Bookstorez every live product gets its own page and a place in the catalogue from the day it is published, and you get a storefront link to share as well. Bookstorez is the seller of record, so it charges and pays the tax due on each sale and gives you a report. See how selling on Bookstorez works, then read how to sell ebooks online for the product page and pricing.

What selling on Bookstorez costs

Bookstorez is a global marketplace where creators sell ebooks, printables, planners, workbooks and templates, and buyers browse every seller's work in one catalogue. The Free plan has no monthly charge: 3 live products and 10 drafts, at 12% + 30¢ per sale with card fees and tax handling included. The fee is the same whether a buyer arrives through your own link or finds you in the catalogue.

Creator and Pro add featured weeks, which put your products in featured placements across the site, and more books a month from the built-in AI ebook generator. See every plan side by side.

Keep planning

Read digital products to sell, how to sell digital products, how to sell ebooks online or where to sell digital products for free.