Publishing my ebook on FastPencil

Longtime readers may recall that I started my career as a writer, but not a seller, of screenplays. A special frustration of this status is that a screenplay is not a freestanding creative work. It’s not “done” until somebody makes it into a movie.

It used to be the same with the vast majority of book manuscripts which were lovingly and carefully written and then launched into an unappreciative world. If a publisher turned you down you could print it yourself at a vanity press but the distribution list was limited to friends and relations.

The phenomenon of epublishing has changed this scenario in a major way. Now anyone writing a book can indeed expect that it will be published and distributed if you’re willing to pay the modest sum to register it on Kindle, Nook and similar channels. The market may or may not love you, but you can now say to anyone who crosses your path, “I’ve got a book!”

I have now built out and edited much of the content in the “Copywriting 101” category to create an ebook called “Copywriting that Gets Results”.  Initially I planned to use Amazon’s Kindle platform but after reading some reviews I chose to go with FastPencil.com. They made it especially easy for me to import blog posts as a working manuscript and they offer a choice where I can publish on their site for $9.99, or get wide distribution (a number of ebook sites, including Kindle, Nook and others) as well as the setup for a physical book (to be printed on a per-copy basis as required) for an all-inclusive fee of $199.

I chose the latter, and the finished product is now available on FastPencil and will propagate to other epublishing sites over the next few weeks. I was originally going to sell it for $9.99 and then offer a $3 discount to Otisregrets readers, but FastPencil doesn’t allow couponing. So I am publishing the ebook at $6.99 and offering a preview for free; you can also order a hard copy for $14.95 plus shipping.

FastPencil is by no means perfect. Their free publishing format has limited flexibility because they would like you to pay extra for “Silver” or “Gold” level services which come with more design choices and some consultation. And there were some technical glitches along the way which were quickly handled by their support team. But I was determined to make the free tool work in the same way I was determined to make the Copyblogger WordPress style work when I stared my blog. Free is good.

So, I’ve got a book! Now go forth and buy the ebook or printed copy and while you’re at it, sign up for a free FastPencil membership which allows you to do your own publishing. (That’s an affiliate link so by using it you are helping to support this blog. )

12 thoughts on “Publishing my ebook on FastPencil”

  1. Hello, I read your article with great interest as I just recently found out about Fastpencil. I have been print published for many years and just recently self published some of my back list on Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.com. I have not self published as yet in the iStore because I don’t have access to a MAC and I don’t want to involve a third party. I think I will look into Fastpencil further.

  2. Glad you found it useful, Ranetta. Several months down the line, I’d still recommend Fastpencil for the reasons (and with the reservations) stated. In particular, since you publish to both BN and Amazon, you can save a step by doing it through FP.

  3. Hi just read your artical I just signed up with fast pencil about a month ago I’m from Australia and I was curious about what percent you had to pay to get the ebook on all the platforms

  4. Julie, I thought it would be easy enough to find the answer to your question on the Fastpencil website, but I couldn’t. Looks like they have revamped the service considerably since they were acquired by another publisher. I got distribution through Amazon, B&N and Fastpencil as part of the $199 deal (vs just Fastpencil which is free) but don’t know if that is still offered… and it’s not “all” platforms just those. You might also check out smashwords.com which has a broad epublishing network and is free to publish, pay royalties when you sell.

    There have been big steps forward in the self publishing world in the 2 years since this post was written, and I’d advise authors to check a variety of options. For a new book, which is going to require more physical copies than my first one, I’m weighing Lightsource vs Amazon’s Createspace.

  5. ACCORDING TO MY RULE THERE ARE FOLLOWING COURSES
    (A) HIGHER SECONDARY BOOK WRITING COURSE-HERE EACH STUDENT HAS TO WRITE 5 BOOKS IN THE FIRST SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT AND (2+3) NOVELS IN THE SECOND SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT WHERE THE FIRST 2 WILL BE ON THEIR CHOSEN FIRST TOPIC AND THE NEXT THREE WILL BE ON THEIR CHOSEN SECOND TOPIC AND SUBMIT THE TWO BOOKS TO HIS/HER CHOSEN TEACHER IN ORDER TO GET THE CERTIFICATE.

  6. IN THE (A) HIGHER SECONDARY BOOK WRITING COURSE THE STUDENT HAS TO WRITE 5 BOOKS FOR THE FIRST SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT AND (2+3) NOVELS FOR THE SECOND ONE AND THEN GIVE THEM TO HIS/HER GURU FOR CHECKING WHO WILL THEN RETURN HIM/HER THE BOOKS BACK AFTER CHECKING AND THEN GIVE THE CERTIFICATE AFTER THIS AS SAID

  7. Thanks for sharing, Satyajay Mandal. With all those books to be completed in high school, definitely sounds like a job for a print-on-demand publisher like FastPencil.

  8. Bismillah Khan
    From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    For the Afghan General, see Bismillah Khan Mohammadi.
    Bismillah Khan
    Khan.jpg
    Shehnai Maestro Bismillah Khan in concert
    Background information
    Birth name Qamaruddin Khan
    Born 21 March 1913
    Origin India
    Died 21 August 2006 (aged 93)
    Genres Indian classical music
    Occupations Musician
    Instruments Shehnai

    Bismillah Khan (Urdu: استاد بسم اللہ خان صاحب‎; 21 March 1913 – 21 August 2006), often referred to by the honorific title Ustad, was an Indian musician credited with popularising the shehnai, a subcontinental wind instrument of the oboe class. While the shehnai had long held importance as a folk instrument played primarily during traditional ceremonies, Khan is credited with elevating its status and bringing it to the concert stage.[1][2]

    He was awarded India’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, in 2001, becoming the Third classical musician after M. S. Subbulakshmi and Ravi Shankar to be accorded this distinction.[2]

    Contents

    1 Early life
    1.1 Religious beliefs
    2 Career
    2.1 Performances at Red Fort
    3 Popular culture
    4 Students
    5 Personal life
    6 Legacy
    7 Awards and recognitions
    7.1 Awards
    7.2 Recognitions
    8 Discography
    9 Biographies
    10 References
    11 External links

    Early life

    Bismillah Khan was born on 21 March 1913 in Dumraon, Bihar in northern India. He was the second son of Paigambar Khan and Mitthan.[3] His parents had initially named him Qamaruddin to rhyme with their first-born son Shamshuddin. However, his grandfather, Rasool Bux Khan, the shehnai master of the court of Bhojpur, exclaimed “Bismillah!” (“In the name of Allah!”) at the sight of him and thereafter he came to be known by this name.[1]

    His ancestors were court musicians and used to play in Naqqar khana in the princely states of Bhojpur, now in Bihar. His father was a shehnai player in the court of Maharaja Keshav Prasad Singh of Dumraon Estate, Bihar.

    At the age of six, he moved to Varanasi.[2] He received his training under his uncle, the late Ali Baksh ‘Vilayatu’, a shehnai player attached to Varanasi’s Vishwanath Temple.[4]

    Bihar Government has proposed setting up of a museum, a town hall-cum-library and installation of a life-size statue at his birthplce in Dumraon.[5]
    Religious beliefs

    Though a pious Shi’ite Muslim, he was also, like many Indian musicians, regardless of religion, a devotee of Saraswati, the Hindu Goddess of wisdom and arts,[6] and often played at Hindu temples, including the famous Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, on the banks of the river Ganga.[7] He also performed for spiritual master Prem Rawat.[8]
    Career

    Bismillah Khan was perhaps single-handedly responsible for making the shehnai a famous classical instrument. He brought the shehnai to the center stage of Indian music with his concert in the Calcutta All India Music Conference in 1937. He was credited with having almost monopoly over the instrument as he and the shehnai are almost synonyms.

    Khan is one of the finest musicians in post-independent Indian classical music and one of the best examples of Hindu-Muslim unity in India. He played the shehnai to audiences across the world. He was known to be so devoted to his art form that he referred to shehnai as his begum (wife in Urdu) after his wife died. On his death, as an honour, his shehnai was buried with him. He was known for his vision of spreading peace and love through music.
    “ Even if the world ends, the music will still survive. ”
    “ Music has no caste. ”
    Performances at Red Fort

    Khan had the rare honor of performing at Delhi’s Red Fort on the eve of India’s Independence in 1947. He also performed raga Kafi from the Red Fort on the eve of India’s first Republic Day ceremony, on 26 January 1950. His recital had become a cultural part of India’s Independence Day celebrations, telecast on Doordarshan every year on 15 August. After the prime minister’s speech from Lal Qila (the Red Fort,) in Old Delhi, Doordarshan would broadcast a live performance by the shehnai maestro. This tradition dated from the days of Pandit Nehru.
    Popular culture

    Khan had a brief association with movies. He played the shehnai for Rajkumar’s role of Appanna in the Kannada movie Sanaadi Appanna. He acted in Jalsaghar, a movie by Satyajit Ray and provided sound of shehnai in Goonj Uthi Shehnai (1959). Noted director Goutam Ghose directed Sange Meel Se Mulaqat, a documentary about the life of Khan.[4] In the 1967 film The Graduate, there is a poster advertising “Bismillah Khan and the seven musicians” on a busy street of Berkeley, California.
    Students
    Khan with his son Nazim Hussain on the tabla.

    Khan seldom accepted students. He thought that if he would be able to share his knowledge it wouldn’t be useful as it would only give his students a little knowledge. Some of his followers include S. Ballesh,[9] as well as Khan’s own sons, Nazim Hussain and Nayyar Hussain.[10]
    Personal life

    On 17 August 2006, Khan was taken ill and admitted to the Heritage Hospital, Varanasi for treatment.[11] He died after four days on 21 August 2006 due to a cardiac arrest. He is survived by five daughters, three sons and a large number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and his adopted daughter Dr Soma Ghosh (famous Hindustani shastriya sangeet exponent)[12]

    The Government of India declared a day of national mourning on his death. His body along with a Shehnai was buried at Fatemain burial ground of old Varanasi under a neem tree with 21-gun salute from Indian Army.[13]
    Legacy

    Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi, instituted the ‘Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar’ in 2007, in his honour. It is given to young artists in the field of music, theatre and dance.[14]
    Awards and recognitions
    Wikiquote has quotations related to: Bismillah Khan
    Awards

    Bharat Ratna (2001)
    Fellow of Sangeet Natak Akademi (1994).
    Talar Mausiquee from Republic of Iran (1992).
    Padma Vibhushan (1980)
    Padma Bhushan (1968)
    Padma Shri (1961)
    Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1956)
    Tansen Award by Govt. of Madhya Pradesh.
    Three medals in All India Music Conference, Calcutta (1937)
    “Best Performer” in All India Music Conference, Allahabad (1930)

    Recognitions

    Bismillah Khan had honorary doctorates from

    Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi
    Visva Bharati University, Santiniketan

    Others include[15]

    Was invited by the then Prime Minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to play shehnai on the first Independence Day (15 August 1947) in Delhi’s Red Fort.
    Participated in World Exposition in Montreal
    Participated in Cannes Art Festival
    Participated in Osaka Trade Fair
    His 80th birthday was celebrated by World Music Institute in New York

    Discography

    Albums

    Sanaadi Appanna – Played shehnai for Rajkumar’s role in the movie.
    Goonj Uthi Shehnai (1959) – Provided shehnai
    Maestro’s Choice (February 1994)
    Megh Malhar, Vol. 4 (the other piece in the album is by Kishori Amonkar) (September 1994)
    Live at the Queen Elizabeth Hall (September 2000)
    Live in London, Vol. 2 (September 2000)

    Contributing artist

    The Rough Guide to the Music of India and Pakistan (1996, World Music Network)

    Biographies

    Bismillah Khan: the shehnai maestro, by Neeraja Poddar. Rupa & Co., 2004. ISBN 81-291-0351-6.
    Monograph on Shehnai maestro Bismillah Khan, by Amar jyoti, Shivnath Jha, Alok Jain, Anjali Sinha. Pub. Neena Jha & Shivnath Jha, 2005. ISBN 8175256400.
    Bismillah Khan and Benaras: the seat of shehnai, by Rita Ganguly. Siddhi Books, 1994.
    Shahnai Vadak Ustad Bismillah Khan, by Murli Manohar Shrivastava. Prabhat Prakashan, 2009. ISBN 9788173157356.
    Bismillah Khan: The Maestro from Benaras, by Juhi Sinha. Niyogi Books, 2011. ISBN 978-81-89738-91-4.

    References

    “Virtuoso musician who introduced the shehnai to a global audience”. The Independent. 22 August 2006. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
    “Indian music’s soulful maestro”. BBC News. 21 August 2006. Retrieved 2010-01-01.
    “Bismillah Khan”. The Telegraph. 22 August 2006. Retrieved 10 January 2013.
    Bismillah Khan: The Shehnai Maestro by Neeraja Poddar, Rupa & Co., New Delhi, 2004.
    “Ustad Bismillah Khan’s Birthplace in Bihar faces wrath of negligence”. IANS. news.biharprabha.com. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
    “Rediff Slides on Ustad Bismillah Khan”. Retrieved 2006-08-21.
    “BBC on Ustad Bismillah Khan”. BBC News. 2006-08-21. Retrieved 2006-08-21.
    Bismillah Khan Performs Music For Guru Maharaji Prem Rawat on YouTube
    Lalithaa Krishnan (2009-08-20). “Clear and sparkling”. The Hindu. Retrieved 2014-01-14.
    “Ustad’s son chosen to carry on his legacy”. The Times of India. 23 August 2006. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
    “Ustad Bismillah Khan hospitalised”. Times of India. 2006-08-17. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
    “Bismillah Khan”. Personalities. webindia123.com. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
    “India mourns legendary musician”. BBC. 2006-08-21. Retrieved 2007-03-13.
    Sangeet Natak Akademi, Youth Awards, Feb 2007[dead link]
    “Standard IX Textbook – Step to English, Chapter 13: Shehnai Maestro Bismillah Khan” (PDF). National Council for Education Research and Training. Archived from the original on 2006-09-27. Retrieved 2006-09-21.

    13. ^ Life history of Bismillah Khan, the Legend of Varanasi 14. Meeting a Milestone: Ustad Bismillah Khan. A Documentary by Goutam Ghose, 1989
    External links

    Times of India: National mourning for Ustad Bismillah Khan
    http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-fridayreview/clear-and-sparkling/article659558.ece
    http://www.artists-india.com/instrumentalists/S-Ballesh
    http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/music/clear-and-sparkling/article6079.ece
    http://www.indianstage.in/EventDetails.do?eventId=5566#.UtJ13NncbN0
    Ustad Bismillah Khan at the Internet Movie Database

    [hide]

    v
    t
    e

    Bharat Ratna laureates

    Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1954)
    C. Rajagopalachari (1954)
    C. V. Raman (1954)
    Bhagwan Das (1955)
    Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya (1955)
    Jawaharlal Nehru (1955)
    Govind Ballabh Pant (1957)
    Dhondo Keshav Karve (1958)
    Bidhan Chandra Roy (1961)
    Purushottam Das Tandon (1961)
    Dr. Rajendra Prasad (1962)
    Dr. Zakir Hussain (1963)
    Pandurang Vaman Kane (1963)
    Lal Bahadur Shastri (1966)
    Indira Gandhi (1971)
    V. V. Giri (1975)
    K. Kamaraj (1976)
    Mother Teresa (1980)
    Acharya Vinoba Bhave (1983)
    Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (1987)
    M. G. Ramachandran (1988)
    B. R. Ambedkar (1990)
    Nelson Mandela (1990)
    Rajiv Gandhi (1991)
    Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (1991)
    Morarji Desai (1991)
    Abul Kalam Azad (1992)
    J. R. D. Tata (1992)
    Satyajit Ray (1992)
    A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (1997)
    Gulzarilal Nanda (1997)
    Aruna Asaf Ali (1997)
    M. S. Subbulakshmi (1998)
    Chidambaram Subramaniam (1998)
    Jayaprakash Narayan (1998)
    Ravi Shankar (1999)
    Amartya Sen (1999)
    Gopinath Bordoloi (1999)
    Lata Mangeshkar (2001)
    Bismillah Khan (2001)
    Bhimsen Joshi (2008)
    C. N. R. Rao (2014)
    Sachin Tendulkar (2014)

    Bharat Ratna

    Authority control

    WorldCat
    VIAF: 12491733
    LCCN: n89630618
    ISNI: 0000 0001 1459 8259
    GND: 119300311
    BNF: cb138959622 (data)
    MusicBrainz: 5ef6fb81-7e5c-43df-86bb-822775300532

    Categories:

    Shehnai players
    Hindustani instrumentalists
    1916 births
    2006 deaths
    People from Bihar
    Indian Muslims
    Artists from Varanasi
    Deaths from myocardial infarction
    Indian Shia Muslims
    Recipients of the Padma Bhushan
    Recipients of the Padma Shri
    Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan
    Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
    Recipients of the Bharat Ratna

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