How to Make $500 a Month With Ebooks - youramericanmoney
Author: Michelle
Description: One of the best things I ever did was write and self-publish my first book in 2018. And, for those of you who have been on the fence about writing your first book or reviving a previously published book-I’m here to tell you that you should! This post is all about “How to Make $500 […]
Date: 2019-01-04T10:00:32+00:00

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# How to Make $500 a Month With Ebooks

posted on 4 January, 2019

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One of the best things I ever did was write and self-publish my first book in 2018. And, for those of you who have been on the fence about writing your first book or reviving a previously published book-I’m here to tell you that you should! This post is all about “How to Make $500 a Month with Ebooks.” Let’s be clear-there are no guarantees. But, what I can say is this-now is the time to self-publish and below are some of the steps you can tack to get started and start making money.

*In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog. Please read my disclosure here.*

## How to Make $500 a Month with Ebooks-One

Without a book, nothing is going to happen. Many people get stuck on the most important step-getting started. I’m here to say that you have to get started! If you have no book no money will happen. What do you need to get started?

- A Chromebook
- PC
- Laptop

Literally, if you have one of those tools you can get started. If for some reason you don’t own or have access to one of these tools, check to see if your local library allows patrons to check out a Chromebook. Denver Public Library does. But, if at all possible, side-hustle so that you can purchase a Chromebook or PC. You will spend between $100-$500 depending on the option that you choose. Do your research to figure out what the potential downsides would be specifically in regards to uploading your digital book onto whichever platform you would like to publish on.

## Publish Books Often

Authors are getting paid for a body of work vs. just one. Publish often. The vast majority of authors publish a body of work vs. just one book. This is a trend that goes back many, many years. Don’t believe me?

- Louisa May Alcott-Little Women (movies and series)
- Laura Ingalls Wilder-Little House on the Prairie (television series)
- James Baldwin-If Beale Street Could Talk (currently a movie)
- JK Rowlings-Harry Potter (currently a series of movies)
- Angie Thomas-The Hate You Give (currently a movie)
- Paulo Coelho-The Alchemist
- Autumn Stone Romances (that’s me!!)

If you decide to write books as part of how you grow passive income, you will need to publish a number of books vs. just one. But, if you were to build up freelance writing income, you would have to build up your client list and write a ton of content. At this moment I have a large number books outlined and ready to go for the upcoming year.

## Search Engine Optimization

Online book portals function similarly to regular search engines. Part of why my books have consistently sold is the fact that I was able to optimize SEO and keyword searches. Also, as a user of these different online book portals, I knew the descriptions that I used to find new books.

## Market Your BOOK!

Market.your.book. It seems like this would make sense right? You have to actively share and market your books? Well, I think that many people get so excited about completely their book that they slip up when it comes to marketing their books. The actual process of writing and finishing a book can be incredibly intense and I think that people end up in the decompression phase after publishing their books longer than they intended.

## Enjoy Writing

Have fun with it! Writing books has been an incredibly fun endeavor. I’m writing both fiction and non-fiction works and I LOVE IT! Part of why I’m able to continue writing is that it’s so much fun.

## Start Your Email List on Day #1

Build your email list. It’s easier than you would expect and I’ve found my book email list to be one of the easiest email lists I’ve ever grown. The best thing about these lists is that you already know that these subscribers are fans of your work. Each time you have a new release-you have people who are ready to purchase your work. Fans have literally told me to hurry up because they wanted to continue reading the series!

## Who You Know Is Everything

Network with other authors in your genre. There are plenty of readers out there for your content. Collaborate-don’t compete with other authors in your genre. Authentically share their books, shout people out, and don’t be threatened by other author’s successes. Support without expectation. They will also support you. I’ve seen it in my niche and there is more than enough room for all of the authors in that niche.

## Get Book Reviews

Get reviews! Put simple calls to action in your books to encourage readers to review your book. If you put time into your book and edit it well, your book should be fairly well received. You can also have friends read it before it goes live as well. The biggest issue that I’ve had with books include the following:

- Storyline doesn’t make sense. Make sure you plot everything out so that the story flows.

- I can tell when the author is NOT from the country that they say they are. For example, if you’re an Australian writer writing a book in American English I can tell 99% of the time. The mistakes are typically in context. Get an editor from that country to make sure the language makes sense.

- Way too many editing mistakes.

- Crazy plot that “goes LEFT.” There was a part two in a series that I was excited about and the author just WENT LEFT. I couldn’t finish the book and I ALWAYS finish books that I am excited to read. This time I had to let it go. And, I wasn’t the only person. They received a ton of comments about this.

Those issues are pretty straightforward to avoid. Put some time into crafting your book in order to avoid these issues.

## Understand Terms of Service

Don’t violate terms of service for whatever platform you’re published on. I’m very, very, very careful about not violating the terms of the platform(s) that I’m publishing on. Review the terms of service and join author groups specific to the platform that you’re on. Many of these companies are huge and it may be very difficult to resolve an issue quickly.

## Understand Your Numbers

Know your numbers-Breakdown how many books and pages you would need to sell in order to make some money! November and December were terrible months for my book sales. I discovered that this is actually not an unusual occurrence as many people are purchasing hardcover books for holiday gifts. However, there are other times of year that you can really optimize. I’m crunching my numbers to figure out the number of books and pages I need to have read in order to hit my earnings goals.

This is why marketing your work is so important.

## Focus On Your Goals

Stay focused. Not every book will be well-received. And, you may have moments when you wonder “why am I doing this to myself?” Keep working at it and the process will become easier. Do your research, continue to learn, and refine your writing craft.

## “Why NOW is the Time to Write Your First Book” Challenge

Are you ready to get started on your book…but, still a little nervous? Sign up to watch the free webinar and start the 5 Day Challenge today.

## Related Posts

- How to Create Passive Income with Ebooks

- Why Now is the Time to Publish Your First Ebook (Podcast)

- Scared to Write Your First Ebook? 7 Reasons to Get Started Now

## Thinking About Starting a Blog?

I love blogging! It has been an incredible experience, transformed my life, and connected me with a ton of amazing people. Blogging is a pretty cheap activity and I recommend hosting your blog with Siteground. Many bloggers have begun leaving HostGator and BlueHost and moving to Siteground. Myself included! Read why I’m leaving HostGator and BlueHost (I have 2 blogs one on each hosting platform) and moving to Siteground. If you’re a new blogger Siteground will cost around $3.95 a month (depending on the size of your audience). They have great customer service and tutorials on how to host your new WordPress blog on Siteground

## Online Business Resources

If you’re thinking about starting an online business, the resources below are a great way to get started.

- The Ultimate List of FinCon Community Products
  - Courses
  - Books
  - Swag

- Make Money with Ebooks–There is more than one way to make money with your writing skills. I’ve created this course to help inspire, educate, and support writers who are sitting on a book idea…and are afraid to write it. This is YOUR year. Make Money with Ebooks is offered at three different tiers to meet different student needs.
  - Self-Study
  - Group Program-Includes access to the closed Facebook Group and twice a month live office hours.
  - VIP Program-Includes access to the closed Facebook Group, twice a month live office hours, and 2 meetings with Michelle to work on book related strategies, goals, etc.

- Making Sense of Affiliate Income-If you’re looking to make affiliate income with your blog, Michelle Schroeder-Gardner’s course is the course that I recommend. She makes well over a $1 Million a year blogging and the biggest chunk of her income comes from affiliate marketing.

- $10KVA–Are you curious about becoming a Virtual Assistant as a side-hustle or a potential full-time gig? My friend Kayla Sloan is killing it as a Virtual Assistant and schooling other entrepreneurs in how to become a VA that earns on average $10KVA. This course is what I recommend as the first part of creating a virtual assistant business.

- IMark Interactive–Grayson Bell helps me with all of my website related tech issues and he is THE go to guy for WordPress related tech in the several different blogging niches (all the Personal Finance peeps work with him).

- Elite Blog Academy-Many bloggers have gone through this course and I consider this course the “Granddaddy” of all blogging courses. It’s not cheap, but in additional to getting all of the resources that are key to building an incredible blog, you’re also become a part of an insanely supportive (and huge) community of bloggers. Many of whom are making crazy money.

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#### Michelle

I am an obsessive foodie, but not self-righteous with it, love travel, meeting new people, helping you look good, and am freaked out by people who don't enjoying reading...something! Grab a Perrier, read my blog, feel free to drop me a line! Hope to hear from you soon.

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