Yesterday I laid out the steps for publishing a paperback book on Amazon, the first in a three-part series. Subscribe so you don’t miss any posts!
Today I want to help you avoid making the mistake of neglecting to publish an eBook in addition to your paperback book. You’ll sell a lot more eBooks than print books on Amazon or anywhere else.
Much of the marketing you’ll need to do if you want to sell any books will be impossible without an eBook version. eBooks are free to give out, and you should give out a lot of them if you expect to raise awareness of your book and sell any copies.
Here’s now to publish an eBook on Amazon:
Cover
Your paperback cover won’t work for your ebook. If you took my advice and hired a professional cover designer for your paperback book, they will also provide a properly formatted eBook cover.
Formatting
You can upload a .doc file—even an .rtf file—to Amazon, and they’ll format it for you. It won’t look amazing, but it will work.
The next cheapest way to format your eBook is to hire someone on Fiverr to do it for you. You can find an experienced and well-reviewed freelancer to do this for around $100. The Cadillac option is to lay it out with Vellum ($250). The software is extremely easy to use. It will format your eBook perfectly—and beautifully—for Amazon at the click of a button.
Uploading
Once you have your cover file and interior file—or even a rough draft of them—log into the Amazon KDP account you created to publish your paperback book and follow the steps below to upload your eBook.
I’m skipping over the steps you can handle on your own if you have a fourth-grade education or greater.
Scroll down to the paperback book you set up previously. Click the “Create Kindle eBook” button.
Enter your title and subtitle. Make sure it’s exactly the same as your paperback title.
Enter a book description. This doesn’t have to be the same as your paperback book, but if you have a good description for your paperback, why reinvent the wheel?
Chose your categories wisely, and be sure to select all three allotted. The more detailed the categories, the better. Be sure they accurately represent your book. Use different categories than your paperback book, if you can, in order to increase your chances of being seen. For help with choosing keywords, I recommend Publisher Rocket. Lifetime access is only $25.
Choose and fill in all seven keywords. Use long-tail keywords. Make these different than the keywords you chose for your paperback to increase your reach. Use Amazon’s guidelines.
If you decide to make your eBook available for pre-order, make sure it’s set to release the same day as your paperback.
On the next page, upload your eBook and cover files.
Enter the ISBN number you saved when you created your paperback book.
On the next page, select “Enroll my book in KDP Select.” You’ll make more money and have more promotion options.
Leave “All territories” selected.
Leave “Amazon.com” selected under “Primary Marketplace.”
Select 70% under “Royalties.” This makes you exclusive with Amazon, and it’s what I recommend. You’ll make more money, and Amazon will make your book available on other seller’s sites. It’s an offer you can’t refuse, and it’s why they’re a monopoly.
Price your book at the lowest price allowable, $2.99, and let Amazon autofill the other territory prices.
Click “Publish.”
You’re done!
This post Scott Dikkers wrote about how to publish an eBook is a kind and generous gift to all writers. I clicked that little "save" button so I can always find it to refer back to and share with writer friends. Thank you, Scott!
Yes, indeed. Sometimes, I don't even bother to publish a paperback, only an ebook on Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). And, to add, Amazon has a serviceable, if clunky app for formatting Kindle ebooks. It's called Kindle Create. It's free. https://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Create/b?node=18292298011