How to Publish Your Book on Amazon
Are you an aspiring author who has always dreamed of publishing your own book but don't know where to start? Look no further! Amazon offers an easy way to publish your own book and get it out to the world. In this blog post, we'll guide you through the simple steps of how to publish a book on Amazon. Whether you're a seasoned writer or just starting out, this guide will help you realize your dream.
So, let's start with the easy way to publish your book!
- Create an Account on Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)
The first thing you need to do is create a KDP account, which is a free, quick, and simple thing to do. You need to go to Kindle Direct Publishing and create a new Amazon account or sign in if you have an existing account.
Once you are logged in, you will see a message on the top stating that your account is incomplete; before you can upload your book, you need to tell Amazon how to fulfill your payments.
Next, click on Update Now and fill in the following information:
- Business Type, Date of Birth, and Country: you should tick off 'individual' or 'corporate' depending on whether you are publishing as an author or a company, then select your date of birth and the country where you reside.
- Payment Information: insert your bank details for receiving your royalties from the sales across all Amazon marketplaces. If you reside in America, you must provide the account holder's name, number, and routing number; these are the first nine digits on the bottom of your checks.
- Tax Information: establish your tax identity by giving a quick tax interview.
Once you have provided all the necessary information, click "Save" and "Bookshelf" from the top menu to begin publishing your book.
After this, you will be asked whether you want to publish a Kindle ebook, paperback, hardcover, or a Series page. This guide will focus on the ebook format, although the process, including Print-on-demand services, is quite similar.
Finally, you need to customize your book page to ensure Amazon customers will be persuaded to click the "Buy Now" button when they land on it.
- Create a New Title and Enter your Book Description
The next step of this easy publishing process is to create a new title. The KDP dashboard is divided into three different sections: Details, Content, and Pricing, which we will cover one by one.
In the first step, you will be asked to share the following information:
- The language of your book;
- The title of your book and/or subtitle;
- State if its part of a series;
- State if it's a new edition of an existing book;
- The author's name (pen names allowed);
- The names of other contributors (e.g. a book illustrator or editor if it's an anthology)
After this, you will need to provide a product description - a blurp just like the one on the back of a book. Writing a compelling book description is an art in itself; therefore, take as much time as you need to make sure that it is perfect.
You must make sure that the first line is intriguing since Amazon only shows an abbreviated preview of your blurb, relying on readers to click "Read more" to expand it. You can also take advantage of Amazon's bold, italic, and bullet list options to make your description visually appealing; however, don't go overboard.
After this process, your book is ready to stand out, and it's time to position it on the right shelves of Amazon's bookshop.
- Choose your Keywords and Amazon Categories
The selection of keywords and categories plays a pivotal role in enhancing the probability of success for your book as it facilitates targeting the right audience based on their search preferences. With KDP, you have the option to choose two categories and a maximum of seven keywords that are most relevant to your book. Opt for the ones that accurately depict the essence of your book, and don't hesitate to try out different ones, as you can always modify them later.
Typically, selecting a general category, such as Travel, and a more specific one, like Hikes & Walks, is advisable. When selecting keywords, opt for ones that are closely associated with the subject matter of your book and have not been included in its title or description. Additionally, you can choose an age range and grade level to target your intended readership better, primarily if your book is geared towards children.
Before you move on to the next stage, you will be asked if your book is ready for sale or if you wish to make it available for pre-order at a particular date. Once all that is cleared, the time to upload the actual files is perfect.
- Upload your EPUB and Book Cover Files
In this stage, you will need to upload your book cover files into your KDP account. All you have to do is click the yellow "Upload eBook manuscript" button, select your EPUB file's final copy, and click "OK."
While Amazon does accept various file formats, it is highly recommended to format your file as an EPUB, as it will provide you with more control over its appearance on Kindle. Relying solely on Amazon to format your Word document is not a reliable approach and may not produce desirable results.
Ensure your Formatting is Up to Standards.
It is noticeable to readers when a book has been professionally formatted and when it hasn't. Taking shortcuts in this aspect can lead to negative consequences in the long run. While employing a typesetter can be a wise investment, it may not be financially feasible for everyone.
After choosing your manuscript, a message stating that Amazon is processing your book will appear. It is crucial to refrain from refreshing or navigating away from this page, as the process of uploading and verifying your book can take several minutes. Once your book has been formatted to Amazon's requirements, a green message will be displayed, indicating a successful upload. Although it is worth acknowledging this achievement, it is essential to remain focused as several significant steps still need to be completed.
Upload an Appealing Book Cover.
An eye-catching cover is essential for the successful sale of your Kindle book. If you've hired a cover designer, they should have given you a JPG or TIFF file of the front cover, adhering to Kindle's recommended resolution of 1,000 x 625px. Adding the cover is a straightforward process of choosing the "pre-existing cover" option and uploading the file by clicking on "Upload your cover file".
Similar to uploading your book, this step may take a minute to complete. Once the upload is successful, you'll receive another green notification indicating that the cover has been added to your easy book publishing on Kindle.
Once the content and cover have been uploaded to Amazon publishing services for your Kindle book publishing, you can use the "Ebook Preview" tool to examine how it will appear page by page. It is essential to take a moment to verify that everything is correct, such as the complete cover is displayed and the interior is identical to what is on your computer. In case of any error, review your files, and re-upload them.
Towards the end of this section, you will be asked if you possess an ISBN number and who you want to designate as the "Publisher." While both pieces of information are optional, it is advisable to consider them carefully. An ISBN barcode is not necessary to upload your ebook on Kindle, as Amazon will assign one for free. Nonetheless, we recommend purchasing your ISBN if you can afford it since you can register your name as the publisher and retain ownership. This will be useful if you decide to "go wide" and publish your ebook on other retailers in the future.
Now that you have crafted a strong book page, you can now price your work accurately to reap the most royalties.
- Set your book price between $2.99 and $9.99
The most important thing to know about pricing your book is that Amazon offers a 70% royalty rate on eBooks priced between $2.99 and $9.99 and 35% on anything that is outside that range.
When it comes to setting the price of your book for Kindle book publishing, it's recommended to stick to a range that will earn you 70% of the sales revenue to make things easy. However, there may be instances where you want to sell your book at a lower price to increase sales, particularly for the first book in a series. During the price-setting process, Amazon estimates your royalties by considering your book's file size and subtracting a small "delivery rate" before displaying your potential earnings per sale.
In addition to setting the price for your book, you can customize the price for each country you wish to sell in. Although you can leave it to the default setting, which automatically sets the price for all countries, adjusting the price for each country can lead to better outcomes. By doing so, you may be able to increase your sales globally. It's essential to monitor your sales trends in different countries and give them appropriate attention to grow your sales further.
Other than this, you will be asked a few necessary questions in this section, starting with if you want to enroll in KDP Select, a program that might help your book reach a larger audience on Amazon.
Choose whether you will enroll in KDP Select.
To make a decision, weigh the advantages and disadvantages of KDP Select, which is one of the Amazon publishing services: on the one hand, it offers the opportunity to promote your ebook through exclusive promotions, but on the other hand, it limits your exposure to a significant part of the global ebook market.
For instance, if your marketing strategy involves selling box sets through Apple Books or Google Play, or if you want to take advantage of regular price promotions on the platform (including the occasional "free" weekend for your book), then whether or not to enroll in KDP Select will depend on your objectives as an author and the business plan you have for your work. Remember that several self-publishing services are available, so choose the one that best suits your needs.
During the Kindle book publishing process, you will be prompted to choose the territories where you hold distribution rights, such as worldwide. Additionally, you'll need to specify your primary market: the country where you anticipate selling most of your books. If you're uncertain, it's advisable to select Amazon.com.
Once you are done with this, the time to hit the "Publish" button has arrived.
- Publish Your Book
This is the exciting moment you've been waiting for! However, before you take the final step, it's essential to take a moment to review your work. You can do this by clicking "Back to Content" on the left and making sure everything is set up precisely how you want it.
While you can make corrections after publishing, it's better to ensure that the information is correct before clicking that button. If you're not ready to publish, you can click "Save as Draft" and return to it later. If everything looks good, all that's left to do is click "Publish your Kindle ebook."
Sit Back and Enjoy
Now is the time to celebrate your book being published on Amazon. From this blog, you can easily see that publishing a book on Amazon is not so difficult. The standard time for your book to appear on the Amazon bookshelves is around 72 hours for Amazon.com, and it can take up to five days for country-specific Amazon sites.
Once you are done with your Kindle book publishing, you can focus more on your book's publishing and marketing aspects to ensure that it reaches the audience you have written it for. There are some things that you might find difficult, and if you need extra assistance, you can always reach out to the Best Ghost Writers, as we have loads of experience in publishing books on various platforms.