How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP

Last Updated on: January 29th, 2021

How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon_KDP

How to become a self-published author on Amazon/KDP is the topic of this article. It contains both an infographic of the steps as well as the steps listed in text form, with a full explanation for each one.

Self-Publishing (and Becoming an Author) is Easy!

Self-publishing in today’s world is easy. ANYONE can become an author, nowadays!

Many people, however, get overwhelmed with the process, because there are many steps involved in reaching their dreams of becoming an author. That is why Wording Well offers help to those who need it!

That is also why I put together this article. It outlines the steps to becoming a self-published author and how to self-publish a book on Amazon through KDP.

This article also lists the steps in the order they need to be taken, making it easier for you to understand what is required for you to achieve your dream!

An Infographic of the Steps for How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP)

The following infographic lists the steps for how to self-publish a book on Amazon.

Below it, you will find a full explanation for each step, so keep reading!

infographic for How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP

A special thanks to the team at AirTract for creating this infographic for me!

A huge thanks to InVideo (affiliate link) for making this video for me! InVideo (normal link) is an SaaS platform that helps anyone transform their content into great videos. They help serve publishers, media companies, and brands to expand audience engagement through the power of video content.

How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP

1: Write a book.

This is the hardest part of the whole process. It’s time-consuming. You might suffer from writer’s block during this step. You might lack discipline while writing your book. That is why it is important to hire a coach or find an accountability partner who will help keep you focused and on target during this phase.

There are many steps involved in writing a book and the best one I have found to help you through your journey is the post from Write to Done called The Ultimate Guide to Plan and Write Your Book. It contains the following tips you can use:

Step #0: Check That People Actually Want This Book
Step #1: Get Clear About Your Book’s Eventual Format and Purpose
Step #2: Figure Out a Working Timetable
Step #3: Get Your Book’s Outline Started by Mindmapping
Step #4: Develop Your Ideas into an Outline
Step #5: Fleshing Out Your Chapters with Key Points
Step #6: Make Writing a Breeze with Your Standard Chapter Template
Step #7: Tackle Your Writing in a Sensible Order
Step #8: Staying Focused When You Sit Down to Write
Step #9: Knowing How to Write Each Sentence of Your Book
Step #10: Follow Your Working Schedule (and Get Back On Track When Needed)

Of course, if you are writing an e-book instead of a full-length novel, this step won’t take you nearly as long!

2. Edit your book.

Hire Wording Well’s editor, Lorraine Reguly, for this! (Yes, hire me to edit your book. I am a FANTASTIC editor! Just check out the testimonials I have received from some of my clients!)

Editing is a necessary component of the writing process and is essential to your book’s success.

If your book is not properly edited, you will receive bad reviews on Amazon, you will lose readers, and you will lose money. People won’t buy your book if they see negative reviews. They also won’t buy any additional books you might write.

It’s worth it to pay for an editor’s services, skills, and knowledge ONCE. By investing in an editor, you are also investing in yourself. You are proving that you are worth listening to, too. People will, therefore, be impressed with your book, the way it was written (ergo, the way it was edited), and you will gain fans for life! You will also reap additional rewards, such as great reviews on Amazon!

3: Finalize the book’s text.

If you have hired me for Step 2, this part will already be done.

If you hire a different editor, that person might suggest you rewrite some sections of your book. In that case. you will need to have your book proofread by an experienced editor or proofreader (such as myself). Do this to ensure the quality of your book is high and your words, sentences, and paragraphs are perfect (without typos, grammatically correct, and impactful).

4: Add images, if desired.

Images are easy to add to books (to both the digital and print versions).

Many authors are now adding images to their books because it’s easy to do so.

I included many images in my book, From Nope to Hope.

book cover for my book, From NOPE to HOPE
Maxwell Ivey included many pictures of his trip to New York City in his book, The Blind Blogger’s NYC Adventures. (Note that this link is an Amazon Associates affiliate link.)

book cover for The Blind Blogger’s NYC Adventures: + How You Can Make YOUR Dreams Come True
Jamie Dixon included many images in his training manual, Shaping Paths: How to Design and Deliver PRACTICAL Training. (Note that this link is an Amazon Associates affiliate link.)
Book cover for Jamie's book, Shaping Paths
Rita Carbuhn included images of some of her paintings in her book, Signs of His Light: Spiritual Lessons from My Journey with Cancer. (Note that this link is an Amazon Associates affiliate link.)
book cover for Rita's book, Signs of His Light

(Yes, these people are all authors whom Wording Well has helped!)

5: Write a description of the book (AKA the blurb).

Hire Wording Well’s writer, Lorraine Reguly, for this. (Yes, hire me to help you write a blurb that will capture the interest and attention of your potential reader/buyer!)

Having a blurb that piques someone’s interest is essential to generating sales. A well-written blurb will summarize what the book is about, state what’s in it for the reader (especially if it’s a non-fiction book), and will capture the attention of the reader, making the reader want to both buy and read your book!

This is an important step in becoming a self-published author on Amazon because people will want to know what your book is about. It’s also a key factor in generating sales!

6: Obtain an ISBN for each version.

There is a lot of controversy over whether you should actually purchase your own ISBN or simply use the ASIN that KDP will assign to your book.

An ISBN (International Standard Book Number) is the most important identifier your book can have. It typically contains 13 digits and is used to identify to booksellers and readers what your book is about, who the author is, and who the publisher is. It also links to essential information used in sales-tracking, retail inventory systems, library catalogs, bookstores, online stores, and for new digital editions of old books.

I am all for obtaining an ISBN for each version of your book because you have more rights if you have your own ISBN! For example, if you have published on Smashwords and used a free ISBN, you cannot use that ISBN to publish on Draft2Digital. The same applies to print books. If you publish with Lulu, you cannot transfer that ISBN to Amazon/KDP.

Furthermore, there are 4 things to be aware of when considering the free KDP Print ISBN, outlined in the following italicized text, which was taken from this article about ISBNs:

1: Using the free ISBN means you must use KDP Print to print your book. You cannot use the free ISBN to print with IngramSpark, for example. Or any other printer for that matter. You are locked in.

2: The name of your publisher will be “Independently published.” If you are doing PR outreach to bookstores or the media, this is like a tattoo on your forehead that says “Amazon-only author.” Many stores and media outlets do not like Amazon.

3: You cannot get a Library of Congress Control Number if you use the free KDP Print ISBN.

4: If you opt for the free KDP Print ISBN, and later change your mind, any reviews associated with that ISBN will likely stay with the book that has the free KDP Print ISBN. (And no, you can never delist or prevent this edition from appearing for sale on Amazon.)

However, the choice is up to you. I would suggest researching the pros and cons for yourself before making a final decision. Reading this article on ISBNs is a great place to start.

Note that ISBNs are free to Canadians (residents of Canada) but need to be purchased if you live in the United States of America. Each country has its owns rules regarding ISBNs, so be sure to find out the rules and laws set out by your country of residence.

Also note that Canada has a law for all authors, called Legal Deposit.

Read the article about Legal Deposit on my author site to learn more.

Library-and-Archives-Canada-Legal-Deposit-Information (needed for How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP)

7: Format the digital version and format the print version (if you are making it available in print).

KDP requires you to follow certain guidelines regarding the files you (and they) use to publish your book.

For example, they prefer a .doc file for an e-book and a .pdf file for a print version. They also want a .jpeg of the cover for the digital version and a print-ready .pdf for the print version.

Hire Wording Well’s formatter, Lorraine Reguly, for this! (Yes, hire me to provide you with whichever author assistant services you need!)

This is an important step in becoming a self-published author on Amazon because a poorly-formatted book won’t keep your readers reading. However, if you format your book properly and make it look nice, your readers will keep reading until the end! They might also leave you a review on Amazon, share your book with their friends, and help you generate additional sales!

8: Create a cover for the digital version and create a cover for the print version (if you are making it available in print).

Hire Wording Well’s designer for this.

Ravi Verma from Rdezines is who I used for my book, From Nope to Hope.

From NOPE to HOPE book cover
Ravi is who Maxwell Ivey Jr. used for his third book, The Blind Blogger’s NYC Adventures.
book cover for The Blind Blogger’s NYC Adventures: + How You Can Make YOUR Dreams Come True
Rita Carbuhn used Ravi for her book, Signs of His Light: Spiritual Lessons from My Journey with Cancer.
e-book cover for Signs of His Light: Spiritual Lessons from My Journey with Cancer
Leslie Tucker used Ravi to design her book cover after hiring someone from Fiverr who delivered garbage to her. Ravi did a great job on the cover for You Deserve to be Loved by You! (Note that this link is an Amazon Associates affiliate link.)
 e-book cover for You Deserve to be Loved by You!

(Yes, Max, Rita, and Leslie also hired me to edit and format their books. That is why I have no problems promoting their books. Their books are awesome! Plus, they are all edited and formatted to perfection!)

Ravi comes highly recommended by me because of his excellent skills and low prices.

Getting a book cover designed professionally is an important step in becoming a self-published author on Amazon because a good book cover is one of the first things that catches a reader’s eye. A great cover will lead to additional sales, too!

9: Create a KDP account and fill out your taxation information.

This is easy to do. Create your account here and then fill out the necessary areas so KDP has the information it needs.

10: Hook up a bank account to your KDP account (so you can get paid the royalties from your book sales).

To add a bank account, sign in to KDP.

Click (Your Name’s) Account at the top of the page. For security purposes, you will be taken to the sign-in page for account confirmation.

Then, in My Account, click Getting Paid.

Click Add Bank Account, choose the location of your bank account, and click Add.

Depending on where you live in this world, follow the instructions listed here to attach your bank account to your KDP account.

You then need to verify your account with KDP. This process takes less than a week.

KDP will deposit some money into your account. You will need to wait for them to do this, then log back into your account and indicate the amount they deposited.

Once your bank account has been successfully hooked up and verified, you can proceed to the next step for how to become a self-published author on Amazon!

11: Upload the appropriate book files to KDP.

As mentioned in Step 7, KDP requires you to follow certain guidelines regarding the files you (and they) use to publish your book. For example, they prefer a .doc file for an e-book and a .pdf file for a print version. They also want a .jpeg of the cover for the digital version and a print-ready .pdf for the print version.

It’s now time to upload these files!

12: Fill out the necessary information for each version (including keywords and pricing).

Log in to your KDP account and fill out each field.

13: Proof your book using KDP’s online previewer.

Launch the previewer and see how your book will look.

Check for spacing issues. A common one is that the text doesn’t always line up with the opposite page at the top of each page.

14: Fix any spacing issues and upload the revised file (and repeat as often as necessary, until the interior is perfect).

Fix the spacing issues in the original Word document, save it as a .pdf file, and re-upload it.

Launch the previewer again.

Repeat this process as often as necessary.

15: “Approve” your files.

Once your book “looks” great in the previewer, approve your files, then submit them to KDP for review.

16: Click “Publish my book” and wait for KDP to review and approve your files.

KDP will review and approve your files, usually within 24 hours. They will email you once they have been approved (or if they find any issues with them).

Once they have approved your files, your book will be LIVE ON AMAZON and ready for purchase!

How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP is easy!

Ta-da!

If you follow all the steps outlined above, you will become a self-published author on Amazon/KDP easily!

Are You Ready to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon?

If you’re ready to become a self-published author on Amazon, let me help you!

Hire me for my writing services.

Hire me for my editing services.

Hire me to be your coach.

Hire me for my author assistant services.

Wording Well takes pride in each service because client satisfaction is a priority!

Let me help you make your dream of becoming an author come true!

WordingWell Logo

Lorraine Reguly, smiling

68 thoughts on “How to Become a Self-Published Author on Amazon/KDP

  1. says

    Hello Lorraine,
    Wow! What a well written and informative article.
    I have had a fantastic experience with Amazon and will be eternally grateful for them reviving my career and taking my books to the next level. and especially your tips is very helpful for me. Thank you for sharing this! It does give new insight into success….

    • says

      Aana, thank you for the compliment.
      It’s great to hear about your success and I am glad you have had a positive experience.
      If you need any help with your other books, let me know!

  2. says

    Much obliged to you for composing such a top to bottom article regarding this matter. Extremely pleasant instructional exercise for another amateur like me, I love to compose little funnies as pictures for kids

    Much appreciated again Lorraine, for your lovely article.

  3. Abhishek Thakur says

    Lorraine,
    Thanks a lot for sharing this awesome info. I personally like all points you explain clearly and in detail. Thanks for your great article. It’s very helpful for a beginner who wants to publish a book.

  4. says

    A very informative post with all the details required to become an author. Accidentally stumbled upon your website and found it to be very resourceful and helpful. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

  5. Pankaj says

    Thank you Lorraine for the detailed information, newcomers additionally perceive this and the infographic is superb i actually looking for that sort of information, Amazon has a giant buyer base and im considering to publish my first guide on amazon
    Thanks again

    • says

      Prabin, there are so many steps to the process that it is easy to get confused! That’s why I wrote this article.
      I am glad you liked it!

  6. says

    Thank you for writing such a in depth article on this subject. Your content is so convincing that I never stop myself to say something about it. You’re doing a great job. Keep it up. Thanks again Lorraine, for this article.
    Dela recently posted…Hello world!

  7. Hey Lorraine,

    Amazing post with effective tips to become a self-published author. I really like your post especially the pictorial representation that you have included. Whereas the tips that you have suggested will help a lot and helps several users, people to become a self-published author.

    Writing and editing the book is truly vital. The image plays a vital role, hence including an attractive image is also important. Description of a book also describes many things, and also helps readers to understand that what the book is about, hence writing a description of a book really means a lot. Creating a cover for the digital and print version is really a good idea.

    Your all the listed tips are effective but I truly like the idea of writing a description of a book, including images, formatting the digital and print version and creating a cover for digital version as well as the print version. As this post will help several people to become a self-published author.

    Truly helpful post and thanks for sharing.

  8. Thanks, Lorraine

    I was planning to write and become an author on Amazon and sell my own books
    I was not sure how to proceed, that’s surely because of lack of information on how it has to be done
    I believe now after reading your article it may take a month now to publish my book

    Wish me luck !!
    Thanks again
    Shahbaz ahmad recently posted…DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_NXDOMAIN | Fix forever

  9. Hi Lorraine,

    I just stumbled on this post now and I have to say, I wish I had seen it three years ago. I spent more money than I care to admit on a self-publishing “course” that more or less just walked me through the steps you’ve outlined here (sometimes in less detail than you’ve included!). This is a great resource. Thanks for sharing!

    • says

      Akash, I would encourage you to do that. I put together only five short stories in Risky IssuesRisky Issues. That was my first book.

      I am sure that a motivational book would help many people!

      If you need a hand, let me know. I’m happy to help.

    • says

      KDP has guidelines for which formats are accepted for print and for digital versions. The best formats are .doc files for digital and .pdf files for print.

      If you want help formatting your versions, you can hire me to help you.

    • says

      Jeff,

      Amazon will give you either 35% or 70% of the selling price. It’s up to you to determine this when you set the pricing for each book.

      There are other sites and platforms where you can sell your book that don’t take as much. One example is Selz.com, where Maxwell Ivey Jr. Also sells his books.

      Plus, you can sell digital versions of your book on your website, like I did with my book, From Nope to Hope, here.

      I hope this helps!

  10. I really like this. I am starting a novel myself. I am writing books for esacademy-usa.com and eshcs.com because I feel that they have good elements for stories especially since health care is on the rise. I’m going to use this information, share it, and see if I can become an author too. Thank you!

  11. Dr Steve Knoxx says

    A breathtaking post with the itemized data for a creator. Your post will without a doubt help me in turning into a decent creator not just on amazon even on different stages as well. Much obliged for sharing this great post.

  12. Thanks so much for this post! It’s so much more detailed than other posts I’ve read, and I really appreciate that. I’ve been considering writing a book, but wanted to know more about the process of self-publishing and this helped me tons.

  13. Thank you so much for this post! When reading up on self-publishing, I’ve always found it so confusing and daunting really if I’m honest. This infographic and your step by step guide truly simplifies all of the noise and does make it seem like a possibility for the future. Now I just have to finish a book and I’ll be on my way. Fingers Crossed! Love your content! Thank you for your wisdom as always.
    Keiran
    KeiranCrying.com
    Keiran Potter recently posted…Anxiety and Mental Health- Confessions of an Introvert

  14. A fabulous post with the detailed information for an author. Your post will surely help me in becoming a good author not only on amazon even on other platforms too. Thanks for sharing this wonderful post.

    • says

      Rob, there was a huge need for this post. There is no other post about becoming an author that outlines the steps in order!

      As someone whose expertise lies in these areas, I NEEDED to help others.

      I hope you pursue your writing dreams! Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you!

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