To create and sell an ebook, prepare a reader-focused manuscript, format and validate the file, confirm you have the rights to every included asset, choose a sales route, then set the listing details, territories, price, and payment information. Before promoting it, inspect the live listing and the ebook as readers will see them. The key financial decision is not just the royalty percentage: eligibility, delivery costs, taxes, territory, and any distributor share affect what you may receive.
1. Define the book and its reader
Make a specific reader promise
Decide who the ebook is for and what readers should be able to understand or do by the end. A focused promise helps guide the manuscript and later gives you a consistent basis for the title, cover, description, sample, and promotion.
Finish and check the content
Review the manuscript for accuracy, clarity, and completeness before formatting. For a personal-finance ebook, take particular care with figures, dates, and claims that may change; make clear when information applies to a specific place or circumstance.
2. Edit and prepare the ebook file
Organize the book
Arrange the front matter, main text, and back matter. Amazon KDP’s publishing overview gives a title page, table of contents, and author bio as examples of book matter, and points authors to Kindle Create as a formatting aid: KDP publishing overview.
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Check navigation and media
- Use clear chapter breaks and a navigable table of contents where appropriate.
- Check links, images, captions, and any references to outside material.
- Choose a file format supported by the store or distribution service you plan to use.
- Preview the converted ebook and correct layout or navigation problems before submission.
Apple’s web publishing workflow requires an EPUB and says submitted EPUBs must pass the latest EPUBCheck version. Its formatting guidance is available at Apple Books book requirements.
3. Create the cover and listing details
Prepare a cover that represents the book
Make sure the cover is legible at small sizes and accurately signals the subject and intended reader. KDP describes options including Cover Creator, templates, and an author-provided cover in its publishing overview.
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Write accurate metadata
Prepare a consistent title and author name, a clear description, language, categories, and other requested listing information. The cover, description, sample, and categories should reflect what is actually in the ebook; misleading claims can set reader expectations the content does not meet.
4. Confirm rights before you publish
Make sure you own or have permission to publish the text, images, illustrations, cover art, and other material in the ebook. Apple lists digital rights to the books as a prerequisite for setting up publishing; its account guidance also covers seller setup: Apple Books account setup. If a license or permission is limited by territory, format, or duration, check that it covers the distribution you intend.
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5. Choose where to sell the ebook
Direct publishing and distribution through a service are different workflows, not necessarily mutually exclusive choices. Compare reader reach, exclusivity, file requirements, control over price and territories, royalty calculations and deductions, reporting, payment, and convenience. Check each platform’s current rules before listing the same ebook through more than one route.
| Route | What the platform guidance establishes | What to weigh |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) | KDP describes ebook and print self-publishing, rights and list-price setup, and promotional tools: KDP publishing overview. | Kindle audience, file and metadata workflow, eligible royalty option and territories, delivery deductions, and whether KDP Select exclusivity fits your plans. See KDP Select terms. |
| Apple Books direct | Authors can submit an EPUB with a cover, sample, description, metadata, price, and country or region availability through Apple’s portal: Apple Books publishing. | Account setup, EPUB readiness, territory and pricing choices, and reporting. Apple’s account requirements include banking and tax information: Apple Books account setup. |
| Draft2Digital | Draft2Digital describes ebook formatting and distribution, channel selection, price setting, sales reports, and monthly payment: Draft2Digital FAQ. | Available channels, the service’s share and current fees, control over metadata and pricing, reporting, and whether you already have direct listings. |
Understand exclusivity before enrolling
KDP Select enrollment makes the ebook exclusive to Amazon while it is enrolled, according to KDP’s Select terms. If you want the ebook available through other stores during that period, check those terms before enrolling.
6. Submit, validate, and inspect the listing
- Open the publishing workflow. Sign in to your chosen platform or distributor and start a new ebook listing.
- Upload the ebook and cover. Follow that service’s file requirements. Apple’s web workflow also calls for a sample and description; its EPUB validation requirement is described in Apple Books book requirements.
- Enter metadata. Add the title, author name, description, language, categories, and other requested details, checking them against the finished book.
- Preview or validate. Use the available preview or validation tools to check chapter order, navigation, images, links, and layout. For Apple Books submissions, the EPUB must pass the latest EPUBCheck version.
- Review before release. Check the rendered product page and ebook for errors, broken links, incorrect details, or a mismatch between the cover and contents. Correct problems before directing readers to the listing.
7. Set price, territories, and payment details
Compare royalty terms in context
KDP describes ebook royalty options of 35% and 70%, subject to eligibility and eligible territories. For eligible sales under the 70% option, the calculation can subtract delivery costs and applicable VAT; the applicable price and territory rules depend on the selected marketplace. Check KDP ebook royalty options and its pricing page before choosing.
Apple states that it pays 70% royalties on every ebook regardless of price and has no file delivery fees. This is Apple’s published platform policy, not a forecast of income; confirm the terms that apply to your account and territory on its Apple Books for Authors site.
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Draft2Digital says it earns a percentage of sales; consult its current FAQ for the service’s terms. A royalty percentage alone does not show what you will earn. List price, territory, taxes, eligibility, delivery costs, and any distributor share all matter, and none of the platform percentages guarantees sales.
Complete the seller setup
Select the territories where the ebook may be sold and set the price according to the platform’s options. Complete required banking, payout, and tax information; Apple specifically identifies banking and tax details in its account setup guidance. Before finalizing a price, read the current terms for the marketplace and distribution route you selected.
8. Promote the ebook and learn from results
Make the product page useful to readers
Use a cover, title, description, categories, and sample that accurately show the reader benefit and the scope of the book. Apple offers product-page guidance and promotional assets, including promo codes, through Apple Books promotion resources. KDP lists author pages, advertising, A+ Content, and other tools in its publishing overview; advertising availability can vary by country.
Review performance before making changes
Use the sales reporting available through your chosen platform or distributor to see how the ebook is performing. Draft2Digital describes daily reporting and monthly payments in its FAQ, while Apple points authors to sales reporting in its author resources. If you revise the description, price, or promotion, base the change on a specific reason or observed result. Promotional tools can support discovery, but they do not ensure sales.
Quick Recap
Pre-publication checklist
- The manuscript is edited, complete, and organized with appropriate front matter, body, and back matter.
- You have rights or permission for the text, images, cover art, and other included material.
- The ebook file is supported by your chosen route, validated where required, and previewed for layout and navigation issues.
- The cover, sample, description, title, author name, language, and categories accurately represent the book.
- You have checked exclusivity, royalty terms, deductions, price options, and territory rules for your chosen distribution setup.
- Required banking, payout, and tax details are complete.
- The listing and rendered ebook have been inspected before promotion.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
