PUBLISHING YOUR BOOK
with KDP
Once you’ve written your manuscript you’ll face the next (and one of the most important) steps in the process, and that’s getting your work published. Here we look at Createspace and some of the things you may want to take in to account with the design of making your book a success.
ONE - Firstly you’ll want to take some time to plan out exactly what you want and need to be able to self-publish, have you decided what size you want the book to be printed as? Createspace currently offer 12 different standard Trim sizes for the design of your book and also 3 customer ones too, the industry standard sizes are the best options to choose with the paperback most common size being 5.06”x7.81” or trade size at 6”x9”.
Have you a book cover design created for your work yet? If you want your work to be taken seriously and as the professional book it should be seen as then this should be your next step. Any good book cover designer will be able to work with you in creating a book cover which represents your manuscript, for more details on how we can help please get in touch via our contact page.
ONE - Firstly you’ll want to take some time to plan out exactly what you want and need to be able to self-publish, have you decided what size you want the book to be printed as? Createspace currently offer 12 different standard Trim sizes for the design of your book and also 3 customer ones too, the industry standard sizes are the best options to choose with the paperback most common size being 5.06”x7.81” or trade size at 6”x9”.
Have you a book cover design created for your work yet? If you want your work to be taken seriously and as the professional book it should be seen as then this should be your next step. Any good book cover designer will be able to work with you in creating a book cover which represents your manuscript, for more details on how we can help please get in touch via our contact page.
Next will be to ensure that your book has been proof read and any edits made, this is a task that you may wish to consider using professionals for or at the very least someone you trust.
With planning you can ensure that the edit, proof reading and the book cover design are completed by professionals and well within the schedule you set for yourself.
TWO - Next will be to gather the relevant information that you’ll need when submitting your work, Title, Author, Series, Publication date, ISBN (if you’re using your own that is), a description/blurb for the book (take your time on this), Author Bio (again, like the blurb take your time and make it jump off of the page! Understand what category you’ll be selecting for your book, the keywords to choose (these will help people find your book) and how much to charge.
THREE – Picking a category for your book is crucial, you should design your choice to enable as many relevant readers to find your work as possible, These categories are also known as BISAC or Book Industry Standards And Communications, being careful can give you a strategic edge when publishing but be careful, choosing over saturated categories can have a detrimental effect too.
With planning you can ensure that the edit, proof reading and the book cover design are completed by professionals and well within the schedule you set for yourself.
TWO - Next will be to gather the relevant information that you’ll need when submitting your work, Title, Author, Series, Publication date, ISBN (if you’re using your own that is), a description/blurb for the book (take your time on this), Author Bio (again, like the blurb take your time and make it jump off of the page! Understand what category you’ll be selecting for your book, the keywords to choose (these will help people find your book) and how much to charge.
THREE – Picking a category for your book is crucial, you should design your choice to enable as many relevant readers to find your work as possible, These categories are also known as BISAC or Book Industry Standards And Communications, being careful can give you a strategic edge when publishing but be careful, choosing over saturated categories can have a detrimental effect too.
FOUR - Have a design on what keywords should cover your book, the more specific you make them the better, simply choosing the words ‘thriller’ or ‘romance’ alone will make it very hard to stand out from the hundreds of thousands of other titles.
FIVE – Selecting the correct price to sell your book is always a tricky task, research will always help before you decide, so do take the time to see what the other books within your genre are priced at first. However, Creatspace will also set a minimum price for you, but the more competitive you are the greater the chance of selling your book.
SIX – Formatting is critical to ensuring your book looks professional to its readers, remember not to put any page elements outside the contents guidelines, if you use any images within the book ensure they are 300 dpi (any less and they will be blurry and be flagged by Createspace as an issue), ensure you check pagination prior to submitting.
SEVEN – Once you have submitted your manuscript ensure your order at least two copies of the draft so that you can check along with asking a friend to check the copy for you too. Once you’re happy that all is fine then you can confirm your book and it’s now ready for sale.
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