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I just published my first book, and it's available on both Amazon and iBooks. I also want to sell it on my website, but I'm still a little confused about the format options.

The original epub version will work fine in iBooks. You can get special iBooks formatting, but, as I understand it, that can only be done by Apple, and it can only be sold on iBooks.

I assume I need to save a version in the Kindle format for Kindle fans. I just downloaded an extension that lets you convert epubs to Kindle with Sigil.

So that's two formats - EPUB and KINDLE. Are there any other popular formats that people commonly sell on their websites?

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As far i know most popular are epub and Azw3(kindle format). I think that you can add one more format "Mobi". This also works in kindle. I think these are enough

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Obviously the other format is pdf.

Two other questions you should decide: do you want to have the files encrypted? And do you want to invest in a shopping cart/digital sales solution. It sounds like a simple task, but it has a cost in terms of fees and time. Also, less savvy consumers are reluctant to buy from indie vendors.

My experience as an indie publisher is that consumers aren't particularly interested in buying directly from authors or publishers.

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  • I just signed up with E-Junkie, which is pleasantly easy to use. I'm sure it will be hard to sell books independently, but if my website is getting traffic anyway, why not try and sell a few books on the side? It's also a matter of security; if something ever goes wrong and Amazon dumps me for some reason, I can still function as an indie publisher. Also, I'm working on two separate book series, which is a good way to encourage people to revisit your website now and then. – WordBear Jun 8 '17 at 22:58
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There are a lot of people out there who sell .pdf. Well, Kindle takes it.

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  • Wow, I never even thought about PDF. When I check out a book on Amazon and check all the versions, I usually see hardcover, paperback and maybe Kindle. I don't think I've ever seen PDF. Would PDF be a realistic option for a 500-page reference book? – WordBear Jun 8 '17 at 22:56

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