A popular practice among those who are trying to make money working from home is to write and sell, or try to sell, ebooks. But after awhile, what happens most often is any of the following:

1) Nothing sells at all.

2) A few copies may sell, but nothing big really happens over time.

3) An ebook may enjoy some popularity, but it's short lived, then dies. Bummer!

So let's discuss how to write ebooks that actually sell - and long term.

Hook Up as a Ghostwriter

You can pretty much guarantee payment for your ebooks if you are ghostwriting, writing them for people who hire you first. Head to freelance bid sites like Elance.com and register for a provider account. Then bid on projects seeking ghostwriters, and write under contract.

Also pitch proposals to local and online business contacts and publishers in your niche. Set up an online portfolio with your credentials, some writing samples and pricing basics. Then ask for writing work, following up each month or quarter to touch base and ask again.

Always ask for referrals, too, regardless of whether the potential prospect or client ordered from you. These people may know someone in need of an ebook right now.

Pick up writing books from your local library or online at Amazon.com. There are many books out there that teach how to write good query letters, how to create and set up your portfolio, and how to pitch publishers and businesses. Continue to brush up on your writing skills regularly, too. And list your new course completions and other achievements on your online resume.

Set Up Test Samples

Write some of your ebook and set up text samples to see how well it sells. You can sell a chapter as a report, for example, burning it onto a CD or printing it out and selling copies on eBay.

Test different keyword combinations in your eBay titles, as this is the main way to attract shoppers. Hint: using eBay's Advanced search tool, seek closed auctions with your keywords to see what sold, what had a lot of bidders.

Long Term Commitment

Keep a list of leads going and growing, all the time, tweaking as people move and lose contact, are no longer a valuable prospect, etc. And market regularly to your list, telling about your latest publication, sharing your own industry news in an ezine or other type of newsletter.

Set goals for how many ebooks you'd like to write and sell, and go for goal. Aim to get that many ebook orders. Target a certain number of ebook sales per month. Then divide and conquer.

Determine which selling methods work best from hundreds of ways out there you can learn more about in marketing books, courses, ebooks, articles and websites like at the Small Business Administration (SbA.gov).

Then test and see which work for you and your budget like: press releases, classified ads, articles, postcard marketing, telesales, direct mail sales letters, setting up affiliate programs for your services and your ebooks, joint ventures, conducting workshops and seminars, forum postings, banner ads, traffic exchanges and many other ways.