Self-Publishing

• Cover. Needs to effectively communicate genre and tone. Include a subtitle that emphasizes the same (ex. “A Chilling Suspense Thriller”). Look at the covers of successful books in your genre and make sure yours fits.

• Description. This should also match genre and tone. Don’t include too many details, but don’t be afraid to reveal enough to hook the reader. You’re writing sales copy, not a synopsis.

• Optimize your front and back matter. 

  • • Front matter should include your copyright, a hyperlinked table of contents, and anything you want the reader to see before they start reading. Keep in mind, some ereaders may skip over this content. On the flip side, it will often be included with the retailer’s free sample so you may want to include website, mailing list, etc. links here.

    • Back matter should include a hyperlinked call to action prompting the reader to do whatever it is you want them to do immediately after finishing your book. Want them to leave a review? Give them a link. Want them to sign up for your author newsletter? Give them a link. Want them to pick up the next book? Give them a link and possibly a preview or description.

    • Are you reissuing a title that had rights reverted to you? Consider adding bonus content (ex. deleted scenes, character profiles) to add value for fans who own the original version.

• Create an .epub for free using Draft2Digital (affiliate link). Vellum is another highly lauded paid option.

• Exclusive or wide? Decide whether you want your book to be available exclusively on Amazon in order to be accessible by readers via the Kindle Unlimited (KU) subscription program, or whether you want to publish on all the retailers. KDP Select is Amazon’s exclusivity program and enrollment is on a book-by-book basis. The term is for 90 days and will auto-renew unless you opt out.

• Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is Amazon’s publishing platform. 

• Upload an .epub file. Don’t enable DRM. It won’t discourage pirates and annoys paying readers.

• Link your book to a series if it’s appropriate; Amazon will create a separate buy page for your series. Your Keywords should actually be keyword phrases (ex. “chilling suspense thriller novel”) that readers might search on.

• Pricing is personal. Experiment. 

  • • Make your prices deliberate (don’t use the auto-convert) and end them in .99 where it makes sense. This applies to all retailers.

    • 99¢ is generally the lowest you can set your price. To offer your book for free, you will either need to use your allotted KDP Select free days or price it at free on the other retailers and request a price-match via KDP Help (Pricing – Price matching). Provide links to all of the countries and retailers where your book is free.

    • Amazon pays ~67% (70% minus a delivery fee) of retail price for books between $2.99 and $9.99 USD and 35% for books outside that range and those sold in certain marketplaces. Exclusive books earn ~$.005 per page read through the KU program.

• Review your browse categories after your book is published. Every book can be included with up to ten browse categories (actually ten ebook, plus ten book). Some will be assigned based on the Categories and Keywords chosen. You may need to browse through the Amazon store or use a tool like Bklnk to find other relevant categories. Contact Amazon through KDP Help (Amazon Store & Product Detail Page – Update Amazon Categories) to adjust your categories. Keep them relevant, as they help drive Amazon’s recommendation engine.

• Set up an Author Central account, include your bio for all available marketplaces, and claim your books. You can also use Author Central to add extra book information, such as editorial reviews. Readers who follow you will receive an email every time you release a new book (sometimes weeks later).

• • • If you choose to go wide, you’ll need to decide whether to publish directly with the retailers or to reach them using a distributor/aggregator. It doesn’t have to be either/or; you can opt to go direct with some retailers and use a distributor to reach others. Advantages of going direct are higher royalties in most cases and possibly additional marketing opportunities. Drawbacks include the extra effort required to keep your book updated as well as scattered sales reporting. You are free to switch distribution methods at any time, but be aware you may lose sales rankings and reviews in the process.

    • If you choose to go direct, set up your retailer accounts well in advance. Some take several weeks to process tax forms, etc.

    • Upload your .epub file to the direct retailers. Don’t enable DRM.

    • Barnes & Noble Press.

      • • Pays 70% royalties.

        • Email BNPressSupport@bn.com and request the merchandising tab. They may reject you, but this is your best way to access their in-house promotions.

        • Select the chapters you want to appear with your sample. Don’t rely on the default.

        • B&N categories are unique to them. Choose the five that fit best. Don’t spend much time on keywords; they aren’t used anywhere.

    • Apple Books.

      • • Pays 70% royalties. Prices are set on a tier system, often ending in .99 or .49. You cannot price between the available tiers.

        • iTunes Connect is where your account will be managed and sales will be reported. Anyone can use Apple’s publishing portal to upload content. Mac users also have the option of using the iTunes Producer app.

        • If you don’t want your legal name to appear as your book’s Seller, you will need to apply to get this changed. Official paperwork, such as a DBA document, is required.

        • Apple Books is open to promoting books regardless of how they’re published. However, getting merchandising support is difficult. If you can find one, attend an Apple Books presentation to connect with their marketing team. Alternately, you may consider reaching Apple Books via Draft2Digital, as D2D sometimes has promo opportunities you can apply for.

        • Choose all of the relevant categories for your book. There is no limit.

    • Kobo Writing Life.

      • • Pays 70% royalties for books priced at $2.99 USD and up, and 45% for books below that. If your book will be priced under $2.99 USD the majority of the time, you will earn more in royalties (~59%) by reaching Kobo through Draft2Digital. Kobo also has a $30 CAD accumulated royalty minimum before they will pay you.

        • Kobo distributes with a network of partners across the globe. If you publish on Kobo, regardless of whether you go direct or use a distributor, you cannot opt out of these (unless you decline to publish in certain territories).

        • Email writinglife@kobo.com and request the Promotions tab. They give it to anyone who asks. Also ask to be added to their OverDrive promotions emails. (The same applies for the Audiobooks tab and audiobook promos as well, if you plan to publish those directly.)

        • Kobo Plus is Kobo’s subscription reading program, similar to Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited, except exclusivity is not required to enroll your books. Once a title has accumulated 300 minutes read, you will be paid whatever the calculated rate is. You do not earn anything for titles that have accumulated less than 300 minutes read or minutes read during a reader’s free Kobo Plus trial period.

        • OverDrive is a library-facing retailer. Books earn 50% of the library price for outright purchases (a one copy, one user checkout model) or a fraction (5%) for the cost-per-checkout model. If you enroll, your book will be available through both models.

    • Google Play.

      • • Pays 70% royalties regardless of price in most marketplaces, or 52% royalties of your book’s list price in the marketplaces (mostly the Asian territories) where they still discount your list price. Check your international prices to ensure they are not being discounted. You can view your storefront pricing by country by adding “&gl=[two-letter country code]” (don't include the quotes or brackets) to the end of your book’s Google Play URL. Define specific prices for the major English-speaking marketplaces as well as in any countries where Amazon has a storefront, then include a catch-all for the rest of the worldwide marketplaces.

        • Discounted prices managed in the Promotions section may receive special Google Play promo attention.

        • Choose all of the relevant categories for your book. There is no limit. Keywords should be included with your description.

• In addition to reaching the major retailers, distributors can also make your book available to some smaller marketplaces, including libraries and subscription services (ex. Everand), you may not be able to publish with directly. If you’ve chosen to go wide, it’s generally beneficial to make your book available in as many marketplaces as possible. Choose one distribution method per book per retailer; do not double-publish the same title.

• Draft2Digital (affiliate link).

  • • Pays ~59% royalties for the major non-Amazon retailers.

    • Their conversion tool will turn a Microsoft Word file into an .epub that can be used anywhere.

    • Can handle royalty splits for multi-author works.

    • Sign up to be notified of relevant retailer and library promotional opportunities: https://draft2digital.com/forms/draft2digital-promotions-form/

• Smashwords. (Note that Smashwords was acquired by Draft2Digital in 2022; it is expected the two will merge at some point.)

  • • Pays ~60% royalties for the major non-Amazon retailers.

    • Has their own storefront. Storefront royalties are the best available: 85% minus transaction fees. Create coupon codes as an easy way to give away copies of your book. Enrolling your books in the site-wide sales (the option will appear on your Dashboard if available) they host two or three times per year can also be good for discoverability.

    • Their conversion tool accepts Microsoft Word files, but it can be difficult to use if your document isn’t formatted to specification. You can also upload .epub and .mobi files (like those generated by Draft2Digital), although samples will not be available with this option.

• Other distributors.

  • • PublishDrive and StreetLib are two more options. Several others exist as well. You will need to do your own research on these.

• Libraries.

  • • Several library retailers are accessible through Kobo (for OverDrive), Draft2Digital, Smashwords, and/or other distributors.

    • Depending on the retailer, libraries may have the option to either purchase a copy of your book or pay every time your book is checked out. Outright purchases generally pay ~47% of your library price, adds your book to the library’s collection for life, and allow one library patron to check out the ebook at a time. The pay-per-checkout model earns a fraction of your library price (5% or less), allows for simultaneous checkouts, and you are paid every time your book is borrowed.

    • Library pricing is personal. A general guideline is to set your library price at two to three times your retail price.

    • Library promos. These can be great for discoverability, as OverDrive (and possibly others) does not otherwise have a recommendation engine.

• Sell direct. Set up your own author storefront using PayHip or another option.

• Serialized apps. Radish, Chapters, and similar apps may be a good fit for your books. Be sure to read any contracts carefully (never sign away exclusive rights), as the serialized apps may negotiate on an author-by-author basis and the initial terms proposed are often not in your favor.

• Niche stores. Stores focusing on specific genres, such as Eden Books for romance and romantic suspense, may be worth looking into.

• Collection sites. StoryBundle could be an option if you have a connection with one of their curators. You can also try submitting to their slush pile.

• Preorders. Decide if you want to put your book up for preorder before it is released. This can help with landing retailer promotions, and sales count twice towards rankings on most of the non-Amazon retailers: once when a reader preorders and a second time on your release date. For Amazon, there generally isn’t much benefit to doing a preorder unless you’re aiming to hit a bestseller list.

  • • Notify the retailers of your upcoming release.

      • • If you have the B&N Press merchandising tab, apply for the B&N Press Presents promo.

        • Kobo: https://kobowritinglife.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058975472-Tell-Us-About-Your-New-eBook-and-Audiobook-Releases-

        • Draft2Digital: https://draft2digital.com/forms/draft2digital-promotions-form/

    • Don’t upload an incomplete ebook file. For retailers that allow assetless preorders, skip the file upload altogether until the final version is available. Kobo and Google Play require a file. Either skip these retailers, wait until the final file is ready, or use a file that makes it clear it’s meant as a placeholder (not retailer recommended).

    • Don’t lower your price after the preorder is set up. Be aware Google Play preorders may be subject to discounting. Skip them if this concerns you, as Amazon will price-match and any accumulated preorders will be discounted to the lower price.

    • If you have to extend your release date, Amazon may take away your preorder privileges temporarily.

    • Smashwords also has a pre-sales option.

• Price discounts. Discounting your book for a limited time or, for series starters, permanently can be a good way to attract new readers. 

  • • Some retailers allow you to schedule price promos in advance. Use these with caution as the schedule can’t always be altered once established. In general, allow a few days for price changes to take effect, especially with Amazon. If your book is Amazon exclusive, take advantage of the KDP Select free days or the Countdown Deal option.

    • Notify the retailers so you can be considered for merchandising opportunities. 

      • • Draft2Digital: https://draft2digital.com/forms/draft2digital-promotions-form/

        • Smashwords (for BookBub promotions): https://bit.ly/SWmerch 

    • If other authors are offering discounts at the same time, set up a group landing page featuring all of the discounted titles and have everyone share.

    • Arrange for newsletter swaps with other authors in your genre.

    • Advertise your sale in a promo newsletter such as BookBub (THE best newsletter promo site), Freebooksy, or Fussy Librarian.

• Amazon Kindle Deal or Prime Reading. Nominate your book for consideration: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/marketing/manager

• Pay-per-click advertising. Available on BookBub, Facebook, and with Amazon Advertising.

• BookBub partner account. Set one up and claim your books. Your followers will receive a new release notification if your new book qualifies and is linked to your profile in time.

• Goodreads author account. Set one up. Include a bio and your website and social media links. Ask a librarian to fix any book information that isn’t right or to link your books with a series, if applicable. Add your books to your reading list and use the review feature to add author notes.

• Multi-author collections. Bundling up same-genre books by multiple authors and offering the collection at a discount can be a good way to reach new readers.

• Review the Preparing Your Book section. Besides your book itself, your book’s packaging will influence sales more than anything else. Review it periodically and refresh as needed.

• Newsletter. An author newsletter can be a good way to establish a relationship with your readers. MailChimp accounts are free if you have under 2,000 subscribers. MailerLite is another reputable option.

• Social media. Set up social media accounts if you so desire. Focus on the ones you enjoy. For Facebook, an author page, not a personal page, is ideal for business purposes.

• Website. Ensure your website includes your book’s information and purchase links.

• Books2Read links. These are free to set up and can be a good option for wide books, less so for titles exclusive to Amazon. They redirect based on the user’s country, and will take the reader directly to their preferred retailer if one is defined.

Sign up for these. It’s free money. Include your affiliate code on your website book links; using your affiliate code with email and social media links may be prohibited depending on the program terms.

• Amazon: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com

• Apple Books: https://appleservices-console.partnerize.com/login/appleservices

• Google Play: https://signup.partnerize.com/signup/en_us/google-play

• Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/p/affiliate

• Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/account/affiliate/manage

• David Gaughran has an author newsletter, Starting From Zero video course, and Let’s Get Digital ebook, all free: https://davidgaughran.com/

• Joanna Penn runs The Creative Penn, which includes a podcast. She focuses a lot on craft but also shares information on self-publishing: https://www.thecreativepenn.com/