In this clear and entertaining ten-step guide, a prolific American author tells how he formats his books for sale online, as e-books and as paperbacks. "Most beginners write their books in Word or Open Office," he explains, "and then they up to upload the same document for conversion. Sometimes it works; more often it doesn't, because these programs litter the file with hidden formatting. The result can be a disaster." For an e-book, the word-processing document should be converted to clean HTML, the markup language used to create a web page. (All e-books are web pages at heart, and the Kindle and other e-book readers are just special-purpose web browsers.) The conversion from document to HTML file takes seconds. It can then be plugged into a simple template that the author includes in this Guide and also makes available on his blog for anyone to use. He also supplies a style sheet to format the book for best appearance on the Kindle, Fire tablet, the various Kindle apps, as well as on competing tablets and e-book readers. And if all else fails, there's always Plan B: a stripped-down template for novels and for non-fiction that consists mostly of text. The print edition poses obstacles of its own, which Notjohn handles in a concluding chapter. He also explains how best to present your book online, with hints on encryption, copyrighting, and pricing for the greatest return.