Is this a bad way to write an eBook??

Are you running a business or just messing around? If you want to become wealthy online, this is certainly not a long term business strategy. If you're only messing around, sure go for it. But most definitely avoid blatent plagiarism.

Well what can I say that has not already been said... It's a bad idea and it is plagarism, nothing more to really say besides that.

Research is what you should be doing.... Reading and learning is fine but bear in mind whatever kind of ebook you are writing, are you actually doing what the ebook suggest ??? In otherwords if a ebook says you can generate X amount of traffic by doing XYZ and doing ZYX, are you actually doing that yourself or just writing about it ???

Part of research also includes you doing the same exact thing that you are giving advice on. If you have not done what you are giving advice on then you should seriously thing about a different business..

James

I agree with everybody else. It may work for awhile, but will catch up with you.

Research and learn, it's worth the wait.

I think it's a bad idea, go hire a ghostwriter to write for you.

If you read one book and write based on that book its plagiarism.

If you read 10 books and write based on the 10 books then its research

Mark Riddle

If you set out to create something, this something needs to have something to offer. In other words, even if processing something already existent (for research, not for conceptual copy-pasting), you have to add value to it. Even review works are standalone copies - as long as they provide analysis, systematization, sampling or whatever else that could make the new product a full-fledged one.

Don't participate in plagarism. It is perfectly acceptable to use source material for reference -- you can't copyright an idea or a concept or facts, but you can copyright the form in which they are expressed -- but you need to write your OWN version and not do a paragraph-by-paragraph rewrite.

Definitely do not do this. The fact that you asked the question means that you know it's a bad idea

It's good that you did ask first, there are dishonest people who would have just gone and done it

Good luck with your ebook writing endeavors!

Hi,

I understand your desperation to enter a market by producing your own product. My advice would be this: Write about something you are passionate about and know more about than the average person. Passion is what makes an ebook special and a good seller. If you just re-hash someone elses work it will never amount to much. Like someone said above, researching your subject from a number of other books is fine - research is good - but if you come to a subject because it is important to you, rather than just as a way of making money, you will produce a far superior product.

My first ebook took nearly 6 months to write and i was working on it 12 hours plus per day at times. It wasn't a great book - I'm not a talented writer - but... it came from my heart and I worked so hard on it because I wanted it to be THE BEST in that particular niche - not just a re-hash of someone elses hard work.

Incidentally, that little ebook was picked up by a company in Singapore and overnight it led to me ditching my job and becoming an international speaker/trainer - purely because I wrote with passion. :-)

Follow the subject that you are most passionate about.

Good luck

Plagiarism means to use the words or ideas of another as your own. If all you are doing is rephrasing someone else's words but still expressing their ideas then you are probably stealing their work. I say "probably" because there is a loophole for information that is in the public domain or is common knowledge. Even then, it is best to use that information to an original purpose.

Print publishers take a dim view of the theft of intellectual property and are in the habit of suing people's socks off. They have been attacking the problem much like the record companies attacked file sharing.

Bad idea, bad bad bad idea. Seriously do not do this. You will get caught.

Enjoy the journey.

Mandy

Maybe if it's valuable information, you could make a synthesis and sell a report on that book.

I've seen many books in the lines of "The secrets of "The Secret"". You could do that also. Look for a theory book and write how to put it in practice.

But never attempt to rewrite a book from someone else. That's stealing.

It is a bad idea,

You need to do research, buy several books (or check the Library), watch videos if you can find them, and then you can attempt to write an ebook based upon what you have learned.

Remember though, if writing an ebook, I would always check it with something like an unique content (anti-plagiarism) checker such as CopySpace.

When writing an ebook for the first time it can be hard work, but the sense of achievement is massive reward for all your hard work; and you'll feel better about yourself when the money rolls in too.
cheers
Steve

Here's a guide from Citizen Media:

Using the Work of Others | Citizen Media Law Project

And remember, ideas cannot be copyrighted:

Works Not Covered By Copyright | Citizen Media Law Project

but that doesn't mean it isn't plagiarism. Quoting the legal team:

Plagiarism is the act of using another's work and passing it off as your own. While such a use could open you up to a copyright infringement claim, there is no legal liability associated with the act of plagiarism.

Why would you want to do this anyway? Its a terribile idea. You could hire on Elance an inexpensive writer and something legitimate.

Bad bad bad idea! You could get into trouble, such stuff doesn't stay for long. I'd advice you to keep out.