Publishing your eBook with Apple Books

Apple books can get overlooked by some self-publishing authors, which when you consider the huge customer base that Apple has, may be a mistake. So, what is Apple’s iBooks and how do you get your own book published through them?

Apple Books

iBooks was launched back in early 2010 and upon their iPad, with the version for their cell phones coming out later the same year, since then Apple rebranded it to just Apple Books in 2019. In this time Apple have amassed millions of titles for their store along with a huge selection of audio books too.

Apple books accept several formats for uploading your eBook, firstly, books written using their own Pages program, if you use this, Apple offer templates for creating your book which will make things easier when uploading.  

Next, are EPUB files, if you have had your eBook professionally made for your, you will have had the book created as an EPUB, this is pretty much the standard format for eBooks across the publishing world now. So, if you have an EPUB file you can upload this via the publishing portal, you can also get the file validated prior to publishing too.

Microsoft Word is also offered as an option, however, it will need to be converted using the publishing portal and the iCloud, here you can import your Word doc and convert it to Pages, from this point you should be able to check and then publish your eBook.

They also accept formats such as PDFs, Mobi and KF8, but recommend using a partner to help with getting your file ready for publication.
​
Once you have your book ready you will need to have an iTunes connect account, it’s free to sign up for and you should start by going to the Apple ID page, this will allow you to gain an ID which will give you access to a whole host of Apple services including iTunes connect. 

Creating your iTunes connect account will require some details for tax and payments, if you want to sell your books (not give them away for free), then you will need to provide these details and complete the agreement, this will get verified by Apple with the IRS.

Once you have an account, you’ll be able to upload your eBook file to it, please note that the eBook cover is a different size to Kindle, Apple recommend that the eBook cover should be 1400 pixels wide by 1873 pixels high, the design should be in RGB and either as a PNG or JPEG.
​
The royalties with Apple are quite good, they offer 70% royalty regardless of list price, there are no file delivery fees, no limits for the amount of free eBooks you offer, no price matching or third party ads either. 

​So, with a massive audience and great royalties, Apple books is a great place to sell your eBook, but as always, if you are selling your eBook in multiple channels, check the terms & conditions of those other places so you don’t miss out on specific programs like those on offer with KDP.  Also, many print on demand publishing services will make your eBook available via Apple Books too (although they may get you to remove your book from Apple Books if you have already uploaded it their prior).