Please note:

Inclusion on this page is not a personal endorsement of any person or company. You own your own publishing choices. Choose wisely.

Also, some of the services and tools may overlap or spill into other categories, so check the web sites for specifics.

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Sections

Do-It-Yourself Tools
Ebook and POD Publishing
Fonts
Photos and Illustrations
Random for Writers
Services:
• Artwork and design
• Editing, Copyediting, Proofreading
• Formatting
• Legal
• Marketing
• Packages
• Translation
Writer Beware

Do-It-Yourself tools

• calibre, ebook formatting software
• CJ’s Easy as Pie Kindle Tutorials, Kindle formatting in MS Word
• Create Covers with PowerPoint (tutorial)
• Declan Conner’s POD Formatting Guide
• Epub Validator (free)
• GIMP, open source graphics program
• Guido Henkel’s Ebook Formatting Guide, formatting in HTML
• Jutoh, epub formatting software
• Let’s Get Digital, by David Gaughran – How to Self-Publish and Why You Should
• Lynda.com, online software tutorials (sub. req’d)
• Mobipocket Creator, ebook formatting software
• Paint.net
• Pinoy 7′s Graphics Tutorials
• Quick and Dirty Formatting Guide, by David Dalglish
• Serif’s Free Graphics and Web Programs (i.e. PhotoPlus, DrawPlus)
• Sigil, epub editor
• Smashwords Style Guide, formatting Word docs for Smashwords
• W3 Schools HTML Tutorials

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Ebook and POD Publishing

• All Romance, ebooks, not just romantic genres
• Amazon Direct Publishing, ebook
• BookStrand, ebook
• CreateSpace, POD
• Draft2Digital, ebook
• DriveThruFiction, digital downloads
• Google Books, ebook
• iTunes Connect, Apple ebooks, Mac only
• Kobo Writing Life, ebook
• Lightning Source, POD
• Lulu, POD
• PubIt, ebook
• Smashwords, ebook
• Vook, ebook
• XinXii, ebook (European-based)

Note the difference here between ebook publishers and POD (print on demand) companies which publish printed books one at a time. Amazon Direct publishes to the Kindle ereader, and CreateSpace is the POD portion of Amazon Publishing. PubIt is part of Barnes and Noble, and publishes to their Nook ereader. Smashwords submits to the Apple store, Kobo, Sony, and Diesel, as well as Barnes and Noble. XinXii seems to be its own operation and doesn’t publish to specific platforms as near as I can tell.

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Fonts

• Blambot Font Archive
• dafont, fonts
• exljbris Font Foundry, free fonts from Jos Buivenga
• Font Bureau, fonts for fees
• Font Squirrel, free fonts
• FontYukle, fonts
• House Industries Fonts, must license through H.I.
• Identifont, font identification, with links to sources
• League of Moveable Type, open source fonts
• Lost Type Co-op
• MyFonts, fonts
• Scriptorium, fonts

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Photos and Illustrations

• 123RF, royalty-free
• BigStock Photos, royalty-free
• CanStock Photos, royalty-free
• Cartographers Guild, map makers
• Cover-Ready Art, royalty-free photos
• Deposit Photos, royalty-free
• Dover Books, public domain art books
• Dreamstime, royalty-free, also has a free photos section
• Fotolia, royalty-free
• iStockphoto, royalty-free
• Karen’s Whimsy, public domain images
• List of 100 Stock Photo Sites, with details and ranks, by Scarlett Rugers
• MorgueFile, public domain
• Photoshop Support, list of free photo sources
• photoXpress, royalty-free
• Public Domain High Resolution Images
• Reusable Art, public domain
• Shutterstock, royalty-free
• Stock Free Images, free stock photos
• stock.xchang, free stock photos, now owned by Getty
• Veer, images and fonts
• Wikimedia Commons, public domain

Please note: Public domain sites offer images that are freely usable by anyone. All works created prior to 1923 can be considered “public domain”, and some artists offer their work as public domain regardless of the time of creation. Royalty-free sites offer images for one-time payment with no further royalties due. Usage rights will vary by site, so check carefully that you have the rights for the kind of uses you want (i.e., distribution, cropping, image manipulation are all separate rights).

Sites like Flickr or Photobucket where people post their personal photos are not generally places to look for photos you can use in your own work. Some photos on these sites may be available for commercial use, but most are not. Always check the copyright information for any art you use.

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Random for Writers

• Chicago Manual of Style Online, subscription required
• Conlang Wikia, constructed language wiki
• Critique Circle, share your work and help other writers
• Duotrope, fiction markets database
• eBookTracker, tracks Kindle rankings over time
• E-junkie, sell your work online
• ErrNet, proofreading software
• Fantasy Novel Name Generator
• Ganxy, online book showcase
• Gordian Plot, plot wiki
• Got Print, business cards and other marketing materials
• kindle sales rank calculator
• Libre Office, free office suite
• Listverse, top 10 lists of all sorts
• MacinCloud, rent-a-Mac
• Mail Chimp, email list manager
• Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus
• Metaphor Database, U of VA.
• Name Generator, character details by ethnicity and country
• The Next Big Writer, writing critiques, sub. req.
• Novel Rank, Amazon ranking auto-tracker.
• Open Office
• Oxford English Dictionary, subscription required
• Plagiarism Detection, at Wikipedia, with list of programs
• Quotes About Writing, from Goodreads
• Reddit Selfpublish
• Scrivener for Mac OS
• Scrivener for Windows
• Smashing Magazine, design and typography
• The Shared Self-Publishing Experience
• Tracker Box, sales tracking software
• TV Tropes, tricks of the trade for fiction writers
• WriteItNow, creative writing software
• Writer’s Knowledge Base, “the best writings about writing”
• The Writer’s Resource Directory
• Undercover Reporting: Deception for Journalism’s Sake: A Database
• Wattpad, a community of readers and writers
• Women Fighters in Reasonable Armor, ladies that actually dress for dealing damage
• Writer’s Resource Page
• YMLP, email list software
• yWriter5, free writing software

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Services

See also: Kindleboards Yellow Pages for Authors, huge list sorted by service. The links here have all been recommended by at least one author.

Artwork and design
Editing, Copyediting, Proofreading
Formatting
Legal
Marketing
Packages
Translation

Artwork and design
• Alexey Aparin, illustration
• Awesome Book Covers, Damon Za
• CCR Book Cover Design
• Chris Rallis, illustration
• Cover Bistro, pre-amde designs
• Covers by Laura, Laura Morrigan
• CreativIndie Covers, Derek Murphy
• CrowdSpring, logos and graphic design, crowd-sourced
• Daniele Serra, Illustrator, cover design
• Dara England, cover design
• Deanna Dionne, cover design and illustration
• Depthcore, digital art collective
• DeviantArt, original art at various price points
• Dreamsprings, cover art by Marion Sipe
• eBook Cover Designs, Brandi Doane
• ebook indie covers, premade covers
• Elsa Kroese, illustrator
• Enita Meadows, cover design
• Extended Imagery, cover design
• Flip City Covers, cover art
• Freelance Ganey, cover art and illustration
• Genkis, illustrateur, webdesigner et infographiste
• Go Bold Design, Cory Clubb
• Go On Write, cover design, pre-made and by commission
• Graphicz X Designs, cover art and designs
• Hot Damn Design, graphic design and photography
• Igor Kieryluk, graphic design
• Indie Designz, covers and print design
• Jenn LeBlanc, illustrated romance
• Jeroen Ten Berge, illustration, design, branding
• Jes Richardson Design, cover art
• J.L. Ward Art, (formerly 50 Dollar Covers), cover art
• J Simmons Illustration, cover design
• JT Lindroos, cover design and illustration
• Killer Covers, covers, web site design. Mostly non-fiction.
• Kit Foster Design, book covers
• Larry Rostant, illustration and original art
• Laura Heeks, illustrations and photography
• LFD Designs, cover design
• MaeI Design and Photography, graphic design
• Mark Churms, military and historical artwork
• Max M. Leon, graphic design, fine art, and illustration
• Novel Prevue, promotional video and cover art
• Part Zero, Chris Steininger, cover art
• Peter Ortiz, artist
• PhatPuppy Art, graphic design
• Phycel Design, graphic arts and web development
• Predatory Ethics, covers for hire
• Rae Monet, Inc. Design, book covers and web site designs
• Razzle Dazzle Design, graphic design
• Rebecca Swift Artwork, art services for authors
• Renu Sharma, cover art
• Robin Ludwig Design, book cover design services
• Sarah Marino, illustration
• Scarlett Rugers, book cover design
• Spider’s Soul art by Cris Ortega
• Standalone Complex, cover art
• Streetlight Graphics, graphic design
• Tara Schuler, graphic design
• TERyvisions, graphic design
• The Red Epic, historic and fantasy illustration by Jared Blando
• Through My Eyes, digital art by Karri Klawiter
• Tiziano Baracchi, fantasy art. Gallery at Deviant Art.
• Two Frequencies, art and illustration by Mandy Roberts
• Walking Stick Books, cover art, interior design, marketing art
• Wayward Sun Studio, graphic design
• Wicked Cover Design
• You’re Published, design and layout for POD

Editing, Copyediting, Proofreading
• Aeroplace Media, copyediting and proofreading
• Aidan Taylor, editor
• Anita Bartholomew, editor
• Ashley Case, light and heavy proofreading
• Daisycakes Creative, editing by Lauren Dee
• Diana Cox, novel proofreading
• Editing by Margaret, services list at link
• Editorial Freelancers Association, with online directory
• Elizabeth Lyon, editor
• Erin Bow, editing for YA and MG writers
• Felicia Sullivan, editor
• Gregory Lynn, editor
• Have Faith Proofreading, Faith Ann Carroll, copyediting and proofreading
• Hazard Editing Services, editing and proofreading
• H. Danielle Crabtree, editor
• Hock’s Editing Services, Neal Hock, editor
• Holloway House, editing and proofreading
• Homunculus Editing Services, Derek Prior, editor
• Ink Slinger Editorial Services
• Joshua Essoe, editor
• Karin Cox, editor
• Malone Editorial Services
• Purity Jones, editor
• Raighne Davidson, copyediting and proofreading
• Red Adept Publishing, editing services
• Rhonda Edits, editing by Rhonda Stapleton
• Unbridled Editor, editing by Toni Rakestraw
• Victory Editing, Anne Victory. Also the home of Arkali’s Oops Detection.
• Wordsmith Editing, Peggy Ireland, editor
• Word Webbing, editing by Annetta Ribken

Formatting
• 52 Novels, ebook formatting
• Awesome Book Layout
• Cyber Witch Press, formatting
• Guido Henkel, formatting
• Late Nite Books Publishing Services, POD and ebook formatting
• L.K. Campbell, ebook formatting
• Word Pursuit, formatting by Jason Anderson

Legal
• David P. Vandagriff, contract lawyer
• Elaine English, IP lawyer

Marketing
• Amazon Product Visualizer, find your also-boughts
• AuthorBuzz, M.J. Rose
• Bewitching Book Tours, blog tours
• BlogAds, paid advertising
• Book Basset, paid advertising for Kindle bargains
• Book Blast, advertise free and bargain books
• BookBub, advertise free and bargain books
• Book Goodies, book listings
• Book Review Broker, matches books to reviewers
• Bookish Snob Promotions, blog tours
• eBook Marketing Services, graphics, ads, web design
• Frugal Freebies, advertise free books
• FSB Book Blogger Directory
• June’s Freebies and Reviews, resources for promoting free books
• Kindle Books and Tips, paid advertising for Kindle books
• Project Wonderful, paid advertising
• The Blurb Doctor, MeiLin Miranda, “Let me help you fix your blurb”
• The Cheap Ebook, author advertising on the cheap

Packages
• BookBaby, flat-rate ebook service
• Everything Indie, various services, also packages
• Lucky Bat Books, various fee-based services
• ODesk, outsource to freelancers

Translation
• American Translators Association, foreign language translations.

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Writer Beware
• Absolute Write, Bewares and Recommendations Forum
• Preditors and Editors, lists services with warnings and recommendations
• Writer Beware, warnings and scams, by the SFWA

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Last Update: May 20, 2013