Local Author Making A Mark In The Ebook World

Oct. 4, 2011 - PRLog -- Altoona author and resident, Ryan Strohman, has published two ebooks using a self-publishing service, Smashwords.com, and plans on publishing many more.  His first novel, Project Utopia, is about nanotechnology gone awry and takes place in Pittsburgh.  It has received numerous positive reviews on Smashwords.com and is widely available for ereaders, tablets, and smart phones.  Paradox, his second published novel, is about a college student who, trying to flee a terrorist act on a college campus, finds himself caught up in the middle of a mind-bending, time-travelling thriller.  The novel takes place in State College.  Both of his novels reference the Altoona area frequently.

Says Ryan, “I’ve been writing off and on for about ten or fifteen years now, and rather than go the traditional route of submitting my work to agents and waiting forever to hear back from them, I decided to use Smashwords.com to self-publish my novels as ebooks.  Tablets, smart phones, and ereaders are all the rage today with the iPad, Android devices, and Nook and Kindle ereaders, and I see paper novels dying off in the next few years.  Ebooks are cheaper and more environmentally friendly, and services like Smashwords.com allow writers to publish their work to all the major ereader outlets for free.“

Other authors are inquiring about using self-publishing to get their work noticed as well.  Numerous friends, family, and colleagues have asked Ryan about how to self-publish and get noticed.  “It’s fairly easy,” he says.  “The hardest step is to actually write something that people will enjoy.  Once you have that, just go to the Smashwords website and follow the instructions.  You have to format your document properly and submit it, and it’s a good idea to come up with some clever artwork.  You can get a free ISBN through Smashwords as well so that you can be entered into nearly all of the major ebook marketplaces.”

Both of Ryan’s ebooks are available in a variety of formats.  To view his ebooks, check out his profile page at http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/rastrohman.  You can also find Project Utopia by doing a search for the book in your favorite ereader marketplace.  His second novel, Paradox, will also be widely available soon.

About Smashwords

Founded in 2008, Smashwords operates the world’s leading ebook publishing and distribution platform serving authors, publishers, readers and retailers. Smashwords makes it free and easy for the world’s authors and publishers to instantly publish and distribute their books as multi-format ebooks. Smashwords puts authors and publishers in full control over the pricing, sampling and distribution of their works. Authors and publishers receive up to 85 percent of the net proceeds from sales of their works. Smashwords has distribution relationships with leading online retailers such as Apple, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Sony and Diesel ebooks, and leading mobile e-reading apps including Aldiko, Stanza, Kobo, FBReader and Word-Player, spanning all major mobile platforms including Android, Blackberry and iPhone. Privately held Smashwords is based in Los Gatos, California, and can be reached on the web at http://www.smashwords.com/. Visit the official Smashwords blog at http://blog.smashwords.com/

About Ryan Strohman

Ryan Strohman has lived in the Altoona area his entire life.  Having graduated from Penn State in 2000, he currently works in the IT field.  His wife, Lisa, and toddler son, Adam, are his pride and joy.  When he is not writing techno-thriller novels, he enjoys reading, running and exercising, and watching television and movies.  You can get in touch with him through his Smashwords.com profile or through Facebook and LinkedIn.