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Kindle Publishing

Name: Kindle Publishing
Rating: 4.4 (20 reviews)

Kindle Publishing on Amazon - How to publish a book through Kindle Direct Publishing and whether to enrol in KDP Select

Created byDavid James Ault

Last updated 11/2020

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Learn how to dissect the elements that make up a bestselling book in your niche or genre
Learn how to choose the best two categories for your book
Learn how to discover the keyword phrases that readers are searching for in your niche or genre
Learn how to write compelling copy for your book's description
Learn how to publish a book to the Amazon Kindle Store

Course content

6 sections • 29 lectures • 1h 24m total length

An Overview of What You Will Learn from This Course3:50
Prepare a polished book for Kindle Direct Publishing by crafting a strong title, subtitle, and description; research keywords and subcategories; and decide on pricing and KDP Select.

Introduction to Researching0:46
Research the Kindle store to spot patterns among best selling books in your niche. Use these insights to craft your book's title and description and choose suitable categories.
Researching the Categories and Sub-Categories in Your Niche or Sub-Genre1:59
Learn how to research and select two relevant Kindle Direct Publishing subcategories, evaluate competition with analytics data, rank in hot new releases, and target the right audience without forcing categories.
Researching the Best-Selling Books in Your Niche or Sub-Genre1:38
Analyze top-selling books in your niche by examining covers, titles, length, series status, formats, reviews, and pricing; compile a top-20 spreadsheet including Amazon ranking, author, price, and categories.
Researching the Best-Selling Authors in Your Niche or Sub-Genre1:51
Research the best-selling authors in your niche by analyzing their book descriptions, keywords, and copy style on sales pages, then study their bios, backlists, pricing, and samples.
Researching the Best Keyword Phrases for Your Book1:26
Research keyword phrases for your book’s discoverability on Amazon by analyzing top authors’ titles, subtitles, and descriptions, and by using Amazon search or tools like Kindle Spy to assess competitiveness.
Researching Keyword Phrases Using the Amazon Search Box3:06
Discover how Amazon's search box suggests keyword phrases like Victorian romance and Victorian romance novels, measure competition, analyze sales rankings, and identify less competitive and free-variant keywords for Kindle publishing.
Test Your Knowledge on the Researching of Your Book

Introduction to Copywriting1:01
Explore copywriting as a distinct yet essential skill for Kindle publishing, and learn to organize copy in a Scrivner folder with separate files for each area of writing.
Writing the Title of Your Book1:11
Research titles in your subgenre, analyze word counts and keywords in titles or subtitles, brainstorm options, narrow to a short list, and gather feedback to decide your book title.
Writing the Sub-Title of Your Book0:38
Include a subtitle to place keyword phrases, especially for fiction, and ensure it complements the title; subtitles are optional and keywords can also appear in the book series field.
Writing a Tagline for Your Book0:43
Craft a concise book tagline that sums up your book’s essence in a few words, to appear on the title page, back covers, descriptions, and websites.
Writing a Description for Your Book3:27
Master the three-part book description by starting with a hook, expanding with explanation, and naming main characters, ending with a crisis hint to boost sales on pages and back covers.
Test Your Knowledge on the Copywriting for Your Book

Introduction to Kindle Publishing1:29
Discover how to publish your e-book with Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), including a live walkthrough, mobi file, two subcategories, seven keywords, and title, subtitle, tag line, and description.
Step One: Enter Your Book Details2:30
Enter your book details in the KDP account, including title, subtitle, series name, volume, alternate brand, and the description field.
Step Two: Enter a Description for Your Book3:49
Craft a compelling Kindle description by transferring your tagline and book summary into the sales page, shaping the opening paragraphs and key topics like Tutankhamun.
Step Three: Using HTML in Your Description2:11
Learn to enhance Kindle book descriptions by using HTML tags like bold and h2 to structure text, spotlight calls to action, and guide readers toward Amazon's look inside feature.
Step Four: Incorporating Keyword Phrases into Your Description1:31
Incorporate keyword phrases such as ancient history, ancient Egypt, and King Tut into your description. Balance copy that sells with being found by readers through Amazon's search box.
Step Five: Adding Book Contributors and Verifying Publishing Rights1:08
Add authors and contributors such as editors, photographers, and translators; set language and ISBN; then verify publishing rights to ensure the work is not public domain and you hold rights.
Step Six: Target Your Book to the Customers1:59
Target your book to customers by selecting two non-overlapping categories with low competition, aiming for top hot new releases and top 20 best sellers, and use seven keyword phrases.
Step Seven: Selecting Your Book Release Option and Uploading Your Book1:58
Choose your release option, now or preorder up to 90 days, and upload your cover and mobi file. Review Kindle conversion, spell check, enable drm or not, and verify display.
Step Eight: The Rights and Pricing of Your Book3:52
Set worldwide rights and choose a KDP royalty of 35% or 70%, noting delivery costs affect earnings. Pricing thresholds and KDP pricing support help determine your book price across territories.
Step Nine: Kindle Match Book, Kindle Book Learning and Publishing Your Book1:45
Opt in to Kindle Matchbook to offer the Kindle edition at a discount for print buyers and enable Kindle lending, then confirm rights for all territories and publish via kdp.
Test Your Knowledge on the Publishing of Your Book

A Word on Exclusivity2:24
Self-published authors learn how to decide between exclusive Amazon distribution via KDP Select and broader reach with other ebook distributors, noting the three-month exclusivity requirement.
The Advantages of KDP Select2:20
Enroll in KDP Select to earn a share of the global fund when readers access your book through Kindle Unlimited and the Kindle Owners Lending Library, and use countdown deals.
The Disadvantages of KDP Select1:14
Exclusivity with Amazon locks your e-book to one distributor for at least three months, limiting sales and free distribution. Decide based on where you are on your self-publishing journey.
Why New Authors Should Choose KDP Select1:11
New authors with one book should consider three months in KDP Select to tap advantages and earn more revenue than other distributors.
Why Established Authors Should Disribute Wide1:55
Established authors should distribute wide rather than rely on KDP Select. Leverage Apple, Kobo, and Google Play for merchandising, international reach, and wider reader access.
Test Your Knowledge on Selecting Whether to Go Exclusive with KDP Select or Not

BONUS LECTURE: How To Source Fonts For Your Books20:46
Explore where to source fonts for Kindle publishing, books, and merch, compare paid and free options, licensing essentials, and practical tips for commercial use across print on demand and ebooks.
BONUS LECTURE: An Introduction to Print On Demand for Writers and Creatives10:32
Explore the print on demand landscape, including Merch by Amazon, and learn how Amazon handles production, royalties, and risk with design research and trademarks.

Requirements

If you intend to publish an eBook to the Amazon Kindle Store, then you will need to have a well written, professionally edited and correctly formatted book
You will also need a professional looking cover that works well in the genre or niche you are writing in.
I recommend that you purchase a copy of the writing tool, Scrivener, but it is not a requirement of the course

Description

In this Kindle Publishing course for self-published authors, I will show you the steps you need to take in order to successfully publish your book on Amazon, through Kindle Direct Publishing.

***** Last UPDATED in November 2017 *****

You will learn how to Research the elements that make up a bestselling book in your niche or genre and then how to Write effective copy that will hook readers and entice them to buy your book.

You will learn step-by-step how to actually publish your ebook through KDP and also whether or not you should place your book exclusively within KDP Select.

Research the Bestselling Authors and Books in Your Particular Niche or Genre

Are there certain authors in your niche or genre that seem to be amongst the bestsellers, time and time again?

Perhaps they have a huge following or just write incredible books, but the chances are that there are a number of things that you can learn from both them and their books.

In the section on Researching, you will discover:

How to dissect the elements that make up a bestselling book in your niche or genre
How to mirror what the bestselling authors do to create a description that sells
How to choose the best two sub-categories for your book
How to research keyword phrases for your book, WITHOUT having to pay for expensive software

Write Compelling Copy that Will Sell Your Book on its Amazon's Sales Page

You may well have written your book, but that doesn't mean you still don't have some more writing to do. This particular type of writing is totally different to the creative writing you have been doing up until this point. And requires a totally different skill set.

In the section on Copywriting, you will learn:

How to write a good title for your book
What your sub-title should incorporate
What your book’s tagline should try to achieve
How to write a description for your book that will pique the reader’s interest

An Over-the-shoulder Look At How To Publish a Book on the Amazon Kindle Store

Once you have researched the ideal categories and keywords for your book and have also written the perfect copy, the next stage is of course to actually go onto KDP and publish your book.

And I thought the best way to show you how to do this was to take you step-by-step through the Kindle Publishing process.

In the section on Publishing To KDP, you will learn

How to enter your book details
How to expand on the book description you have written and create a description for your Amazon Sales Page
How to set up your book’s pricing
How to incorporate your keyword phrases
How to use HTML so that your book stands out from the crowd

Is Exclusivity the Correct Choice For You?

Before you click on that Publish button, you still have a very important decision to make, namely whether to place your book exclusively with KDP Select.

And in the section on Selecting, you will find out:

The advantages of KDP Select
The disadvantages of KDP Select
And when an author should or should not go exclusive

At the end of each section of the course, I have included:

a Quiz - to test your knowledge of what you have just learned
a PDF - with links to the resources and tools mentioned in the section, as well as some further reading on the topic.
a Task Sheet - which sets out a number of tasks for you to complete in order to practice what you have learned.

And by completing the quizzes, the extra reading material and the tasks I have set, I believe you will take even more from the course than if you just sit and watch it, so I highly recommend that you do so.

By the end of this Kindle Publishing course, you will have all the elements correctly in place to successfully publish your ebook on Amazon.

Who this course is for:

Authors who have yet to publish a book
Authors who have already published books, but who would like to sell more books on the Amazon Kindle Store
Anyone with an interest in self-publishing
Authors who want an over-the-shoulder look at Kindle publishing

Kindle Publishing

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

An Introduction to the Course1 lecture • 4min

Researching6 lectures • 11min

Copywriting5 lectures • 7min