Publishing E-Books For Dummies

Deciding Whether to Use Only the PDF Format

Some e-books are available only in PDF format, especially in the information marketing world — where e-books tend to carry high price tags and are often optimized to be read on computer screens. Depending on the type of e-book you’ve written and your goals for it, you may want to stick with only the PDF version.

If, like me, you’re averse to doing more work than you need to (some people call it laziness, but I prefer to think of it as efficiency), the PDF file is a quick and simple way to create your e-book. For specialized nonfiction e-books, it may well also be the only option that your audience will expect, though as e-readers become more common, e-book customers are increasingly asking for MOBI and EPUB versions.

If you’re writing a novel, however, a PDF file alone isn’t your best option — in fact, you may want to skip the PDF file type entirely. You’re unlikely to need the formatting features of PDF, and most readers don’t want to print a whole novel or sit at their computers to read the entire thing. They’ll want to read it on the Kindle, iPad, NOOK, Kobo e-reader, or another device.

Consider these key questions when you’re deciding whether to use only the PDF format for your e-book:

Does your e-book include color illustrations?