As I get asked questions about this a lot, I’ve collated my top tips for publishing a book. This saves me from re-typing the same information lots of times and means I’m less likely to forget something! I hope you’ll find this information helpful when publishing your own story.

Printing and Distribution

I use Amazon’s KDP service to publish my books. Amazon prints a book each time someone orders it. They deduct the printing cost, then what’s left is split 40:60. Amazon take the 40% cut, which includes the packaging and delivery, as well as the convenience of it being on Amazon for people to buy, and the author receives 60% of the sales after printing costs (£3.50ish for a 24-page book, but it varies as different countries have different printing costs and taxes).

You can sign up for KDP here if you have an active Amazon account: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/. You have to sign up at the “.com” site, even if you’re not in the US, but you can then publish books on all Amazon sites.

Once you have signed up to KDP, if you go to your “Bookshelf” it’s quite straightforward to add your book’s Amazon description, categories, etc. You then upload the PDF, select paper quality and set pricing. Once you set the pricing for your books, you can see what royalties you’ll receive. The paper quality you choose will affect your print costs.

If you opt for “expanded distribution” when uploading your book, Amazon will also market your book to shops etc, and your royalty is approximately halved if they sell books that way, but that’s still higher than the royalty you’d get from a traditional publisher (typically 10%). My books have appeared on the websites of WH Smith, Waterstones, Barnes and Noble, Target, and lots of other online bookshops. When deciding what shape you want your book to be (more on this below), bear in mind that not all book types qualify for expanded distribution. Distributors accept certain book dimensions and paper types. You can see the requirements here.

You can order a proof copy of your book before you hit “Publish.” I recommend doing this to test your options, for example, if you’re not sure whether you want a matte/glossy cover or white/beige paper, you can order one of each. It’s also helpful to see how colours come out in print, as it can differ slightly from what’s on a screen.

Design and Layout

KDP have downloadable templates here. I use some of the 8.5×8.5 templates to make square books and 6×4 for my autobiographical book, but as you can see, there are a lot of options! Bear in mind that some shapes will be more likely to be picked up for expanded distribution, and note that different shapes and types of book have different minimum page requirements.

I usually draw my own illustrations or someone draws them for me, then I edit them with free software called GIMP that I think is best described as Paint for grown-ups, or Photoshop for the inexperienced, depending on your perspective! There are lots of brilliant YouTube tutorials to help you get started using GIMP. I scan the pictures in and edit them into double page spreads using GIMP, then re-size each page using the “page slice” tool to accurately split my double-page spreads. I export the images to JPG or PNG, then paste into the KDP template, making sure my double-page spreads align.

I use fonts from Google Fonts, which in my opinion look more professional than using the standard fonts available in Microsoft Word. Google Fonts have a lot of options and you can input sample text to see how your font will look, before downloading it.

Advertising and Marketing

There are a lot of paid advertising options available, and the “best one to use” will depend on lots of factors and be constantly changing! I have tried several different options at different times, as different social media platforms have risen and fallen in popularity. I recommend you watch YouTube tutorials or take an online course before leaping into paid advertising, so that you can understand the process and get the most out of the tool you are using.

I did a lot of marketing on social media before publishing my first book, and that helped a lot with the launch. If you sell a lot of books within the first few days of publication, Amazon’s algorithm will detect that it’s a popular book and show it to more people, so it’s worth getting people excited about your book BEFORE you publish it. If you have a look at my social media pages, you’ll see the kind of content I post is a mixture of book-related and parenting-related content, to keep it interesting. If you’re not confident with social media, I recommend at least setting up the accounts once you know what handle you want to use, then you can follow other authors or influencers, who may inspire you to create content that brings attention to your book.

Events can help boost sales, often due to the marketing around the event. For example, when I am doing library book reading/signing events, I usually send a press release to the local papers and flyers to all the local schools a few weeks before the event. I also send an update to the press after the event, so they can do an article about how it went. Similarly, when I am a guest on podcasts or I write articles for magazines, I post about these things in Facebook groups, so even more people hear about my books.

Administrative Notes

The following tips are based on publishers in the UK. Other countries have similar schemes, so be sure to check your local options and requirements if you are based elsewhere.

• I usually order my own ISBNs from Nielsen, but you can use the free ISBN provided by Amazon if you prefer. There is some information about the difference here.
• If you publish a book in the UK, you are required to provide a copy to the British Library. This system is called Legal Deposit and has existed in English law since 1662.
• You may be able to claim Public Lending Rights (a royalty) from the libraries that lend out your books. Find out more about this here.

Best of luck with your publishing journey!

Disclaimer: The tools and steps listed above may change over time. This is not legal advice and is shared in an attempt to help people trying to publish their own stories, but I do not guarantee results! Legal requirements may vary in other countries and over time.