Libraries have a vibrant role to play in helping communities come together to create and share books. Inkie.org is a suite of resources that supports local authors with online creation and publishing tools and allows readers to access locally-produced content. These resources, Pressbooks, Indie Illinois, and the Inkie.org Library, are free to anyone in Illinois.

Inkie.org is all about supporting local authors and our creative communities. Users can:

  • Create e-books using Pressbooks software.
  • Share their works for potential inclusion in library e-book collections. 
  • Read e-books by independently published local authors and view community created collections from Illinois libraries. We encourage libraries to these collections with their patrons by adding this link to their list of online resources: illinois.biblioboard.com

RAILS provides these services without fees to libraries or residents. For an additional, discounted cost, libraries can subscribe to Creator, a self-publishing tool for unique content, such as digital portfolios, albums from local musicians, and pictures and books from local archives. You can view these community created collections on the Inkie.org Library. See the RAILS Deals and Discounts page for more information (login required).

Everyone in Illinois can access the Indie Illinois collection of e-books. Libraries can potentially purchase Library Journal's Indie Author Project Select titles for inclusion in other e-book platforms including OverDrive and cloudLibrary. Some Indie Author Project Select titles are included in the eRead Illinois Axis 360 collection. Indie Author Project Select titles are available for simultaneous use and may earn royalties. See the Indie Author Project Select website for more information.  

Inkie.org is a partnership between RAILS and BiblioLabs, LLC to bring all Illinois libraries and residents resources to self-publish e-books, and access to independently-published e-books by local authors. Funding for inkie.org and BiblioBoard Library is provided by the Reaching Across Illinois Library System and BiblioLabs.

Help Local Authors, Teachers, and Students

Inkie.org can be used to: 

  • give local authors and creators an outlet to format and publish their books.
  • provide access to self-published materials by local authors.
  • support your library's writing groups.
  • enhance your library's programs and author events.
  • create shared reading and writing experiences.
  • enable open educational resource (OER) creation.
  • curate community collections using the Creator module.

Marketing Materials

Inkie.org Library Usage Statistics

You can retrieve Inkie.org Library usage information for your community here.