Publishing E-Books For Dummies

Using Paint.NET to Create the Cover

To create the cover of your e-book, use a graphics program that lets you easily manipulate images and text. I recommend Paint.NET, which is free and relatively simple to use (and available only in Windows).

Downloading and installing Paint.NET

To download Paint.NET, follow these steps:

1. Go to www.getpaint.net/download.html .

2. Scroll down the page and click the Download Now button, shown in Figure 5-1.

The site has a number of other download buttons for different software, so be sure to get the right one.

3. On the page that opens, click the link under the text Free Download Now in the upper-right corner.

The Save As dialog box appears.

4. Navigate to the folder where you want to save the file and then click Save.

Figure 5-1: Click the Download Now button to download Paint.NET.

5. Open or unzip the file.

You should see the application (.exe) file.

6. Double-click the application to install it.

You may need to select Run or Yes.

7. Leave the default Quick Installation option selected, and click Next.

8. Select the I Agree radio button to agree to the license agreement, and click Next.

9. Wait for Paint.NET to install, leave the box Start Paint.NET checked, and then click Finish.

Paint.NET should load automatically, as shown in Figure 5-2.

Figure 5-2: The default Paint.NET interface.

Creating the canvas at the correct ...