How to Self-Publish a Book on Amazon, Step by Step

Self-publishing on Amazon is free, open to almost anyone, and faster than most first-time authors expect. You upload your files through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), set a price, and your book can be live within a few days. The hard part is not the upload. It is getting each piece right before you press publish.

This guide walks through the process in the order you will actually do it, with the decisions that matter most at each step.

Step 1: Set up your KDP account

Go to kdp.amazon.com and sign in with an Amazon account, or create a separate one for your publishing business. Before you can publish, KDP asks for two things:

• Tax information. US authors complete a W-9 style interview inside KDP. Without it, you cannot publish or get paid correctly.
• Payment details. Add a bank account so royalties can be deposited. Amazon pays royalties monthly, roughly two months after the end of the month in which sales happened.

Use your legal name for tax purposes. Your pen name, if you use one, goes on the book itself and is set separately for each title.

Step 2: Get your manuscript properly edited and formatted

Readers forgive a lot, but not typos on page one or a layout that falls apart on their Kindle. Finish editing before you format, because every change after formatting costs you time.

Ebook formatting

KDP accepts Word documents (DOCX), EPUB files, and KPF files created with Amazon's free Kindle Create tool. Ebooks are reflowable, which means the text adjusts to the reader's screen and font size. Keep it clean: use real heading styles for chapter titles, avoid manual spacing with the Enter key, and include a linked table of contents.

Paperback and hardcover formatting

Print books need a fixed-layout PDF set to your chosen trim size. A 6 x 9 inch book is the most common choice for nonfiction and many novels, while 5.5 x 8.5 inches suits shorter fiction and memoir. Set proper margins, add page numbers and running headers, and start chapters on a fresh page. KDP's print previewer will flag text that sits too close to the edge.

Step 3: Prepare a cover that meets KDP's specs

Your cover does most of the selling on a crowded results page, and it has to work as a small thumbnail as well as full size.

• Ebook cover: a single front image. KDP recommends a height-to-width ratio of 1.6:1, and 2,560 x 1,600 pixels is the commonly used size. Upload a JPG or TIFF.
• Print cover: one PDF containing the back cover, spine and front cover as a single wrap, with bleed added around the edges. The spine width depends on your page count and paper type.
• Use KDP's free cover calculator and template generator to get the exact dimensions for your trim size and page count before your designer starts.

Step 4: Decide on your ISBN

Kindle ebooks do not need an ISBN. Amazon assigns its own identifier, called an ASIN. Paperbacks and hardcovers do need one, and KDP gives you two choices:

• A free KDP-assigned ISBN. It costs nothing, but KDP will be listed as the publisher of record, and you cannot use that ISBN with other printers or distributors.
• Your own ISBN. In the US you buy it from Bowker. You can name your own imprint as publisher and use the same ISBN wherever that edition is sold.

If you only plan to sell on Amazon, the free ISBN is fine. If you want bookstores, libraries or other platforms to carry your book, owning your ISBNs gives you more control.

Step 5: Fill in your book details

This is where readers and Amazon's search find you. Take your time with each field:

1. Title and subtitle. For nonfiction, a clear subtitle that names the benefit or topic helps people understand the book at a glance.
2. Description. Write it like the back cover copy: a strong opening line, what the book is about, and who it is for. Short paragraphs read best.
3. Keywords. You get seven keyword slots. Use phrases readers would actually type, such as "cozy mystery set in Maine" rather than single words.
4. Categories. Pick the most specific categories that honestly fit your book. Narrow categories are easier to stand out in.

Step 6: Price your book and choose a royalty option

For ebooks, KDP offers two royalty options:

• 35% royalty. Available at almost any list price, within KDP's minimum and maximum limits.
• 70% royalty. Available when your ebook is priced within a set range (historically $2.99 to $9.99 in the US store) and meets other conditions. A small delivery fee based on file size is deducted from each sale.

For most first-time authors, pricing an ebook within the 70% range makes sense. For paperbacks, your royalty is a percentage of the list price minus the printing cost, which depends on page count, ink and trim size. KDP shows you the exact figure as you type a price. Royalty rules and thresholds do change, so check KDP's current pricing page before you finalize.

Step 7: Decide whether to enroll in KDP Select

KDP Select is an optional program for ebooks. In exchange for selling your ebook exclusively through Amazon for 90-day periods, you get:

• Inclusion in Kindle Unlimited, where subscribers read your book and you are paid for pages read.
• Access to promotional tools such as Kindle Countdown Deals or free book promotions.

Exclusivity only covers the ebook. Your paperback, hardcover and audiobook can still be sold elsewhere. Select tends to work well for genre fiction, where many readers use Kindle Unlimited. Nonfiction authors who want their ebook on Apple Books, Kobo or library platforms often skip it. You can enroll for one term, see how it goes, and leave when the term ends.

Step 8: Publish your print edition

Set up the paperback as its own format within the same title so Amazon links the editions together on one product page. Upload your interior PDF and cover PDF, review the online previewer carefully, and approve your proof. Hardcovers follow the same process with their own cover template.

Step 9: Plan your launch

Publishing is not the same as launching. A book uploaded with no plan behind it tends to sit quietly. A few weeks before release:

1. Line up early readers who can leave honest reviews in the first weeks after release.
2. Set up your Amazon Author Central page with a photo and bio.
3. Tell your email list, social followers and professional contacts, with a clear link.
4. Consider a short ebook pre-order period so you can build momentum before release day.
5. Plan a modest ad test once you have a handful of reviews, rather than spending heavily on day one.

Self-publishing on Amazon comes down to a clean manuscript, a professional cover, sensible pricing and a launch plan. Each step is manageable on its own. If you would like a second pair of eyes on any of them, our team is happy to talk it through in a free consultation.