You’ve written a book. That’s the hard part done — genuinely. Everything that follows is learnable, and most of it is simpler than people make it sound. This is the guide I wish someone had handed me when I published my first book on Amazon KDP.
No jargon, no upsells, just the actual steps in the order you need to do them.
Before You Touch KDP
Three things need to be finished before you create your KDP account:
Your manuscript needs to be edited. Not by you. Not by your partner. By someone who edits books for a living. At minimum, a professional proofread. Ideally, a copy edit. Readers notice errors, and reviews mentioning typos will follow you forever. This is the one step most first-time authors skip, and it’s the one that costs them most. (If you’re looking for editing support, we offer proofreading and editing services scaled to your manuscript and budget.)
Your cover needs to be professional. Readers judge books by covers — literally, instantly, and without mercy. A cover that looks self-published will tank your sales regardless of how good the writing is. Genre conventions matter enormously: a cozy fantasy cover looks nothing like a thriller cover, and readers can tell within a fraction of a second whether a book belongs on their shelf. Invest here. (We do cover design too, if you need it.)
Your interior needs to be formatted. For ebooks this means a clean .epub or .docx with proper chapter breaks, a linked table of contents, and consistent styling. For paperback, it means correct margins, trim size, headers, page numbers, and front/back matter. KDP has free formatting tools, but the results are often rough. A properly formatted interior signals professionalism before the reader finishes page one.
Setting Up Your KDP Account
Go to kdp.amazon.com and sign in with your Amazon account (or create one). You’ll need to complete your tax information and provide banking details for royalty payments. If you’re outside the US, you’ll fill out a W-8BEN form — KDP walks you through it, and it takes about ten minutes.
One decision to make early: KDP Select (Kindle Unlimited) or wide distribution? KDP Select means your ebook is exclusive to Amazon for 90-day terms. In return, you get access to Kindle Unlimited (where readers borrow your book for a monthly fee and you’re paid per page read) plus promotional tools. Going wide means selling on Amazon, Apple Books, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, and others simultaneously. There’s no universally right answer — it depends on your genre and audience. For cozy fantasy and romance, KU is often worth it because those readers are heavy KU users. For nonfiction, wide distribution can make more sense.
Publishing Your Ebook
Click “Create a New Title” → “Kindle eBook.” You’ll fill in three pages of details.
Page 1 — Book Details: Title, subtitle, series info, description, keywords, and categories. Your title and subtitle should be clear about what the book is. Your description is your sales copy — it’s what convinces someone to click “Buy.” Write it like a back-cover blurb, not a summary. Keywords and categories determine where your book appears in Amazon’s store; research what your comp titles use and follow their lead. You get seven keyword slots — use all of them with specific, search-relevant phrases.
Page 2 — Content: Upload your manuscript (.epub, .docx, or .kpf) and your cover (a high-resolution .jpg or .tiff, minimum 2560 pixels on the longest side). Use the online previewer to check formatting on different devices. Fix any issues before proceeding — this is what readers will see.
Page 3 — Pricing: For most fiction, $2.99–$4.99 is the sweet spot for ebooks. This puts you in the 70% royalty tier (anything under $2.99 earns only 35%). For nonfiction, $4.99–$9.99 is common depending on length and specialisation. Price your first book competitively — discoverability matters more than margin when you’re building an audience.
Publishing Your Paperback
Back on your KDP bookshelf, you can add a paperback edition to the same title. The process is similar but with print-specific details.
Trim size: Choose a standard size. For fiction, 5″ × 8″ or 5.5″ × 8.5″ are the most common. For nonfiction, 6″ × 9″ is standard. Don’t get creative with trim sizes unless you have a good reason — unusual sizes cost more and look odd on shelves.
Interior file: Upload a print-ready PDF with correct margins for your trim size and page count. KDP provides templates, or your formatter can set these up. Use cream paper for fiction (easier on the eyes for long reads) and white paper for nonfiction with images.
Cover: Your paperback cover needs a full wraparound file — front, spine, and back — sized precisely for your page count. KDP has a cover calculator that gives you the exact dimensions. Get this right; an incorrectly sized cover is the most common reason paperback submissions get rejected.
Pricing: Paperback pricing depends on your page count and printing cost. KDP shows you the minimum list price based on your manufacturing costs. For a typical 200–300 page novel, $12.99–$14.99 is standard. You’ll earn about 40% of the list price minus printing costs.
After You Hit Publish
Your book goes live within 24–72 hours. A few things to do immediately:
Order a proof copy of your paperback and check it physically. Screen proofing misses things that jump out on paper. Set up your Author Central page at author.amazon.com — this is your Amazon author profile, and it’s where you add a bio, photo, and link your books together. Check your categories once the book is live — sometimes KDP assigns different categories than you requested. If the wrong ones appear, contact KDP support to fix them.
And then start thinking about visibility. A great book that nobody knows about will sell exactly zero copies. Amazon advertising, social media, newsletter building, and outreach to reviewers all play a role — but that’s a post for another day.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Skipping professional editing. This is the number one mistake. Full stop. Using a DIY cover. Number two. Writing a weak description. Your book description is the single most important piece of marketing copy you’ll write — treat it that way. Choosing the wrong categories. A cozy fantasy shelved in “epic fantasy” will be invisible to its actual audience. Pricing too high on your first book. Build readers first, raise prices later. Not getting reviews early. Send advance copies to readers, bloggers, and BookTok creators before launch. Reviews are social proof, and books with zero reviews don’t sell.
Need Help?
If any of this feels overwhelming, that’s normal. We’ve been through this process dozens of times at Heppe-Smith Publishing, and we offer KDP setup support, editing, and cover design and formatting for indie authors at every stage. Every project starts with a conversation about what you actually need — not a one-size-fits-all package.
Get in touch and tell us about your book. We’ll take it from there.
James Heppe-Smith runs Heppe-Smith Publishing, an indie press that has published over 30 titles across fiction and nonfiction. He’s been through the KDP process enough times to have opinions about trim sizes.