How to Self-Publish on Amazon in 2024
Becoming an indie author is a long process of writing, editing, formatting, and designing a book. Once your manuscript goes through all these steps, it is time to publish your book on virtual platforms. The best and easiest route to becoming a published author is to self-publish it on Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing). But you are a writer! The technicalities of self-publishing might be daunting for you. Moreover, DIY publishing means self-publishing your book completely on your own. I recommend hiring professional book publishing services to help you in the process. This will remove any loopholes and potential errors.
However, it is crucial to know the process even if you have hired help. So, how to self-publish on Amazon? Since we aim to support all types of writers in contributing to the literary world, we give you a comprehensive guideline to create your book on the Amazon platform in 2024.
How to self-publish on Amazon
While writing a book is creative, publishing it on Amazon is purely technical. As a writer, you need to follow the step-by-step process to upload your work on the largest book retailing site on the World Wide Web. It might take some time and effort, but it’s worth it in the end. For your convenience, here are guidelines for publishing your book on Amazon.
Join KDP and make your account
Log in to the official site www.kdp.amazon.com.
Choose sign in if you already have the account or “Sign up” to create a new account.
Accept the terms of use if you are signing up for the first time.
You will see your Amazon Author dashboard after completing the process.
Add your new Kindle book
Click the box “+ Kindle eBook” to add your title.
Begin filling in the information. For the safe side, press the “Save as Draft” tab at the bottom of the page to restart from where you left off, in case you leave in the middle.
Step 3. Set your preferred language
Once you have added your manuscript in the formats you want to publish your book, the next step is to set your primary language.
See the details of supported language in the KDP Book supported language.
Step 4: Add your book title and subtitle
The book title and the cover page design are the first two things your readers would notice. Most readers make their reading decision just by judging the title and the cover. So, please choose a title that can captivate the readers at one glance.
Step 5: Add the author’s name
The next step is to add your pen name or the name under which you want to publish your book. The same name will appear on the book cover.
In case of multiple authors, use the Contributors box to write the additional names.
Step 6: Add your book description
You are allowed to enter a book description of up to 4,000 characters. This description appears in your book’s detail section. Note that the description will eventually work as a sales pitch. So, write something that can resonate with your target readers, engaging them to read your book.
Step 7: Verify the publishing rights
Select the option “I own the copyright, and I hold the necessary publishing rights,” being the owner of your book.
US copyright law empowers you to own the rights of any work the moment you write it in any form.
Step 8. Choose your keywords
Add relevant keywords that can bring up and show your book to people when they enter these words on Amazon.
Your keywords should reflect the solution or subject the readers might be searching for.
Step 9. Choose categories for your book
Select categories for your book in the popup box. You can select two categories, such as ‘Fiction’ and ‘Juvenile fiction.’
You can tap the plus prompt to dig down under each category.
Your choice of categories also plays a significant role in your book marketing decision. Your readers can easily find your book by exploring under these categories. Moreover, it gives you a clear picture of your competition.
Step 10. Select the age limit
Leave this box if your book is not a children’s book. If it is, choose the maximum and minimum age limits from the drop-down list.
Step 11. Choose release options
Plan a marketing strategy before publishing because if you are not an established author, it is not very likely to generate massive pre-orders and sales without a marketing plan.
You can move forward by selecting the option of “Save and Continue.” You can visit this section later and set the release date before publishing your book.
Step 12. Choose DRM rights
Select DRM (Digital Rights Management) to protect your book online. It restricts anyone from copying your book for free and sending it to others.
People can loan you a book and share it with friends for some time using Kindle’s lending system. However, DRM protects from stealth.
Step 13: Upload your book
It is best to upload your book in e-pub format. Use the current Kindle format to make it available on every e-reading device.
Step 14. Upload the book cover
Considering the significance of a book cover, hiring a professional cover designer is best to achieve the best possible cover for your book. Upload the cover in the required format.
Step 15. Preview
After uploading your manuscript and cover, you can use the Kindle Previewer to preview your book.
Preview your book thoroughly to see if there is room for improvement.
Ensure correct navigation and test all the external links.
Step 16. Set ISBN and publisher
You won’t need an ISBN or a publisher if you are publishing a Kindle eBook.
Step 17: Set territories
Select all territories for worldwide publishing or where you want to publish your book according to your preference.
Step 18. Set Royalty and Pricing
You can select your royalty between 35% and 70%. Although the 70% royalty pays more., but it adds pricing limitations and a different royalty calculation.
Make Amazon.com your primary marketplace and set the list price. The other marketplaces will have different pricing according to exchange rates. However, you can also set them manually.
Select the Kindle Lending options if you want. However, if you are setting a maximum royalty (70%), it becomes mandatory to select this option.
Step 19. Publish
At this stage, you can either publish your book or set a later date to do so.
Final words
The guide will help you publish your book independently. You can add a print-on-demand option for the print version of your book with the same account. However, it has more requirements, like a specific number of pages, a spine and back cover of your book, different formatting, and more. Lastly, it cannot be emphasized enough that you should use the professional help of book publishing services to publish your book effectively on Amazon.
Appreciate the creator