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Amazon KDP Overview

Amazon KDP Overview

So after doing two low content books via Amazon KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing), I thought I would share my experience! Here is my Amazon KDP overview.

Amazon KDP Overview and my journal

What is Amazon KDP?

Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing or Amazon’s KDP is an option to self-publish your book as a Kindle eBook, paperback book, or both. And you publish it to the Amazon for free. When you sell a book, you receive a 70% commission AFTER the cost of printing.

Printing Costs

For one version of the journal I have published with Amazon KDP, the cost of printing this ran at about $3 for me for a 200-page book using the black and white option for the inside pages, but the cover was in color.

To check out my journal or buy it via Amazon, go here:

Also, note that the cost of printing only applies to paperback versions of your book. But there is no printing cost for eBooks.

Calculate Your Printing Cost

If you want to calculate how much your printing cost may be, use the Amazon printing cost calculator here. It will depend on your market, the number of pages, trim size, cover finish, bleed options, and color options for inside pages.

Basically, it depends on your printing options, which are described further here.

Amazon KDP Overview on Commissions – What Do You Earn?

So after you deduct the cost of printing from your book’s price (FOR PAPERBACKS ONLY), which you set, then you can earn up to 60% royalty on sales to customers in the following countries:

  • US
  • Canada
  • UK
  • Germany
  • India
  • France
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Japan
  • Brazil
  • Mexico
  • Australia
  • and more.

Royalty for Kindle eBooks

For Kindle eBooks, you earn a 70% royalty. And there is no printing cost.

KDP Select

Also, there is an option to enroll in KDP Select which gives you a higher royalty percentage and your book is available through Kindle Unlimited and the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.

Amazon KDP Overview on Signing Up

To sign up for it, you simply go to this website: https://kdp.amazon.com/. And you can log-in using your Amazon account. If you do not have one already, do not worry. They are easy to create! And free!

Also if you are interested in checking out the benefits of Amazon Prime, try out a free trial.

Amazon KDP Overview – Prepare Your Book

Provide Your Book Description

First, you need to add the name of the book, the author’s name, any co-contributors, and the book description. Note that the description will be what shows up when customers view your live listing.

ISBN

For paperback books, you will need an ISBN. You can either buy one or use one you have already, or have it created for you for free with Amazon in a matter of seconds.

But for Kindle eBooks, an ISBN number is not required.

Create and Upload Your Manuscript

Prepare your manuscript, aka the inside of your book, following the guidelines provided by Amazon here. Note that for low content books, you can find many templates to use for free!

To find them, just do a quick search on the internet or check out what Amazon offers. You may get an idea of how to best do this yourself in the style you want once you see a few examples.

For eBooks, you also have the option to use Kindle Create.

Then upload your manuscript when preparing your book as one single PDF file.

Prepare the Book Cover

Again, follow the Amazon KDP book cover guidelines. Here you can also find some templates to use for both the cover and/or the manuscript. And you can use Cover Creator to design your book cover easily right in Amazon KDP.

Note: if you use Cover Creator, you will need at least 120 pages to have text on the book’s spine (for paperbacks). If you upload your own cover formatted per the guidelines as a PDF document, then you only need to have 100 pages. If you do not want spine text, then you do not need to worry about this.

Also note that when using Cover Creator, the image you upload will need to either fit within the bleed lines (the red-dotted lines you will see in the tool) OR extend past them entirely.

What Else is Required?

Besides conforming to the format requirements, you only need the title of the book on the cover or the book spine for paperbacks. This can be simple, such as “journal.” Check out my other journal, with fewer pages and also some pages to doodle/take notes in.

Buy it here:

Order a Proof Copy

After you have done the above steps, for paperback books you can order a proof copy to make sure it looks how you want it to! Simply generate the book, then click order a proof copy. You will then be emailed a link to place the order.

Once you are emailed the link, which is almost immediate, note that you have 24 hours to order the proof copy.

Also, note that it will have not available for resale across the cover of the book. And you will pay standard shipping, even if you are a Prime member.

Kindle Previewer

For eBooks, you can get an idea of how your book will look with the Kindle Previewer.

Submit the Book for Approval to Get Published!

When you want to publish your book, then submit it for approval. It can take around 72 hours, but it may take more or less time depending on the current demand. For example, it is busier around the holidays.

Once your book is approved you will get an email with a link showing your live listing!

And what if it is not approved?

Do not worry. If it is not approved the first time, then it will tell you why. For example, you may have not included the book title on the cover or spine (for paperbacks). You can fix this and resubmit it. Just go to Bookshelf and click on the book that needs modifications.

Also, you can make some modifications even after the book goes live for sale. But do note that some can take longer than others.

If you want to link your eBook to a paperback book, then you can! Just select this option when adding the second book and give buyers the option for ordering either type.

Payment

So for an Amazon KDP overview on payment:

  • You do not have to pay to publish your book for sale!
  • When you sell your book, then you receive a royalty. This will go into your account. The amount will depend on whether it is an eBook, paperback (cost of printing + different royalty percentage), and whether you chose to use KDP Select.
  • Make sure you enter your tax information.
  • To cash out, you will need a balance from royalties of $100.

Final Thoughts

So I think Amazon KDP is a cool way to get into self-publishing for either Kindle eBooks or paperbacks. And I love that they offer the paperback option as well as Content Creator to easily make your beautiful cover.

The printing costs and royalty percentages are a bit steep if you are doing the paperback option. But I think they are fair. And you will get your book out to a large market.

It is a good idea to check out what is trending by searching for some similar keywords in the search bar on the main Amazon page. For example, if you search for “colorful cover journal” or “journal and notebook”, what do you see come up first?

Or scary fiction novel?

And do there seem to be a lot of sales? These are just examples. But using terms related to your book can help you structure your description and perhaps title to optimize your placement in search results. And remember niche sales are still good!

amazon kdp overview and my journal

Again, it is available on Amazon here.

Other Money Making Options

Plus, remember to check out these posts for ways to make money online, save, and referral codes for apps and sites.

And contact me with questions. Happy selling!

Plus, buy one of my journals! They are near and dear to me. As the cover was created with the help of a loved one.

Mood

Codex – Ramin Djawadi

To preview or listen to via Apple Music:

And for Amazon:

Welcome back Westworld.

We each gave the other a beautiful gift 💕…We are the authors of our stories now.

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