For the past few months my mantra has been: Eat. Edit. Nap. Repeat. At last, the time came to e-pub.

I created a new “author” account on Amazon (i.e. separate from my personal ones) and at once was smacked by the enormity of it all. Not only was I clueless as to “how to” but also being forced to go beyond the comfort zone of my inner circle to offer my story to the world – hello – left me quite intimidated. What’s an introverted hermit-type to do?

Tip #1: Start small with “divide and conquer” approach.

There was too much to learn in just a day or two. Sure I could dash through it, but because I plan to continue to e-pub, I knew I needed to take alittle time to actually learn how it works. I set my goal to create a quality product, and quality comes from putting in time and allowing myself the luxury to think things through.

Amazon makes the process pretty easy via guidelines set up for each part of the process. Starting small, I only read the guidelines that referred to the step I was on. This kept me from feeling overwhelmed.

I should note that I felt compelled to start with blank number 1 and fill in the required info in the order presented, but in reality, the blanks can be filled in any order, even leaving some unfilled. For example, it’s possible to upload a book and tackle the formatting even before entering the proper title. (To save, you will need at least some sort of title but you can save it as “test” or whatever you wish to call it. Note: When you click the “Save and Continue” button, you will be prompted for all the bare necessities required to save.) The beauty of digital is that anything you wish to defer can be added/fixed later. Nothing is written in stone as it is for paper.

So, make your account then decide where you want to start, go into learning mode, and tackle each part in steps. Use the guidelines and only read what is related to the task at hand. Delay the other stuff, and address each part in turn.

Relax. Breathe. You can do this. I did.

Tip #1: Start small.

I will be passing on more tips, so follow me to be sure not to miss my next post.