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With the Credit Crunch becoming a reality for many hard working individuals around the world money is now becoming an issue for almost everyone. Let's face it, we'd all like to have the added security of making an extra buck here or there. Thankfully there are a few ways to make some extra cash. One of them includes taking your passion or hobby, no matter what it is, and turning it around into some extra income via selling online ebooks.
In the past it was, well how do I say, a pain to get a book published. An author had to go through a publishing house, which of course isn't easy and can eat into the bottom line. The only other alternative at the time was self-publishing, a very difficult thing to do correctly, as one would need to pay printing costs, set up distribution networks, get bookstores to accept and promote the book, etc. Now the Internet has added a new and easy way to self publish.
Online services now as Lulu allow average internet users to upload an ebook, which is just an electronic version of a book. The service includes help in formatting, cover creation, etc. After a book's style and look is finished the creator can sell the book online and create a tangible book that is also for sale. Lulu will print the book to the author's specifications one at a time. This means the book will only be printed when a copy has sold, thus eliminating an costly overhead that traditional self-publishers had to endure.
Now you're probably thinking, well, will my book sell? A few years back a writer by the name of Chris Anderson came up with the term “long tail”. Basically the long tail theory purports that a market exists via the internet for almost any product, no matter how obscure. So even if your hobby of choice is very obscure there is probably a market for it. This makes sense after-all. You found your hobby, so its safe to say that others have as well.
What do we have so far? The cost of production is zero initially, as you will only pay when physical copies are sold. Electronic copies are also created at no cost. On the sale of the both you will have to pay a commission and production cost, which is be expected. There is also the issue to shelf life. Depending on the topic of choice, your Ebook may have a long life that will span many years and many possible sales. And let's face it, who hasn't wished to tell people at a party “I'm a published writer”.
Frankly, you probably won't get rich off of selling a self-published Ebook. But look at it this way, if you already spend a great deal of time with your hobby you might as well turn it in to something. The worst case scenario is that your next resume can include “published author.” In today's credit crunch environment a little extra money and a new, bankable resume skill can lead to increased income now and in the future.