Kindle Direct Publishing for Absolute Beginners – 2023 Update

I’ve just updated Kindle Direct Publishing for Absolute Beginners again. I first published this e-book back in February 2014 – nearly 10 years ago! Over that almost-decade it has continued to sell and I’ve continued to update it every 12-24 months in the hope of not misleading readers with outdated information.

This time, as I was going through the manuscript checking links, processes, new facilities etc., it struck me that over the years it has become much easier to self-publish on Amazon and no one should be frightened of the technicalities – because, mostly, it’s not technical!

Here are a few examples of the changes I’ve seen:

Product Description (on screen equivalent to the back cover blurb) – In the early days if you wanted to include bold, italics or other formatting it was necessary to use html coding. Now Amazon provide a facility similar to Word where you can select this formatting from a bar on the screen.Manuscript Format – In the beginning the self-publishing gurus advised uploading the manuscript in html format, however I now simply upload the Word .docx and find the results are just as good (applies to text-only manuscripts with no illustrations).Paperbacks – In the early days these had to be published separately using the Createspace platform and author copies were shipped from America, meaning extra expense plus a time delay. Now paperback publishing can be done via the same Amazon KDP Dashboard as the Kindle version and the books for the UK are printed in Europe, saving time and money. (By the way, if you use one of the Amazon-provided templates, I find formatting a print book is simply a copy and paste exercise).Amazon Ads – Those who want to get serious about marketing can now pay (according to the number of clicks on their ad) for the books to show up when shoppers use specific search terms.

Does anyone else think Amazon KDP is getting easier and more user-friendly?

If you’re contemplating self-publishing, Kindle Direct Publishing for Absolute Beginners does what it says on the tin. It will hold your hand and guide you through the various topics and processes you should know about before you take the plunge.

These reviews sum it up:

“My third time of re-reading this excellent how-to book and getting more out of it each time.” – Tektron.

“This book is clear and concise and is a very good guide for beginners. Topics are clearly explained and are well covered.” – John Parnham.