Just recently one of my clients wanted to upload three of her books onto a new site, but she couldn’t find her ‘final’ epubs. I looked on my computer and her folder was a mess… she was my first client and I was just learning… and learning… and learning. Now I have a client folder, inside that – one folder for each book… all formats… easy to find. So we found the latest date… and went from there, but even then, there was lots of tweaking going on in Sigil to make the TOC work and to be sure the ebook validated through IDPF, the International Digital Publishing Forum.
So, I guess this is a warning about organization. Think ahead. I guarantee that next year or the year after you’ll want to upload a new cover, add some content, change out your dedication (maybe taking off your ex’s name… life changes, you know).
And remember to have those honkin’ big display covers on hand… and check current image specs at Smashwords, Kindle and the other eRetailers such as B&N/PubIt, iBooks/iTunes (you can get a publishing account there now, and upload directly to iBooks using an epub).
Technology is changing so fast. As long as you just upload your ebook and forget it you’ll probably be ok, but if you ever want to tweak it, then all bets are off, new rules apply, particularly with cover images and I would think formatting of the new versions that you want to upload to all the ebook sites.
I’ve learned my lesson today… organization, organization, organization. Words to rule your life!