I'am super excited to finally launch Facet here on Hacker News.
Facet is a comprehensive toolkit designed to support the entire ebook lifecycle. This includes everything from the initial writing phase with a beautifully crafted editor, to seamless publishing, effective selling, convenient reading across all devices, and ultimately, the effortless sharing of knowledge with readers.
The inspiration for Facet came from a personal experience when my wife asked for my assistance in writing an ebook. Throughout the process, we encountered some challenges that we aim to address with our new product:
Writing and Layouting: While my wife focused on writing the book, I handled the layout. Unfortunately, every time she made changes to the text, it disrupted the layout.
Exporting for Delivery: After completing the book, we exported it as a PDF only to realize that the file size was too large for easy delivery to mobile devices.
Selling the Book: Dealing with a separate platform for selling the book proved to be cumbersome, involving unnecessary back-and-forth tasks such as changing text, exporting, fixing file sizes, and uploading to payment platforms. Facet simplifies this process, allowing for publication in just a few clicks.
Reading Experience: Exporting to PDF, especially when pinch-to-zoom is required, didn't provide an optimal reading experience for users.
Today we start Facet to allow everyone to write ebooks that are free of charge. In a few weeks -- hopefully with your feedback integrated -- we'll allow writers to put a price tag on their books.
Looking forward to your feedback here after giving it a go.
Bye Matthias