More than 80% of people want to write a book, yet there is some confusion about the best online publishers to use. This article shares six online publishers you can consider for your next book- whether it’s your first, or your tenth.
Amazon’s Kindle program is undoubtedly the most popular ebook publishing program, but there are also others you might wish to try in order to make the most of your digital books. Let’s look at Amazon’s first.
1. Amazon Revealed (https://kdp.amazon.com/)
Amazon’s program is called Kindle Direct Publishing, or KDP. As the name suggests, you can sell books directly to consumers through their interface. With millions of users and more than $1 trillion in sales in 2017, KDP is the first place to publish your book, for several reasons.
i) The Kindle Select program
Give Amazon an exclusive on your book for 90 days and you will have access to their various marketing programs to help get your book discovered. At the end of 90 days, you can publish it at the other places we will be suggesting below.
ii) Ease of use
It is very quick and easy to use the KDP interface. You can have your book up and selling in a matter of only a day or two.
iii) A large customer base
Amazon started out as a bookstore. They also sell Kindle ebook reading devices. In addition, they offer free apps that allow people to read your ebook on almost any device, making your book accessible to the widest number of readers compared with the other options below.
iv) Kindle borrowing and Kindle Unlimited
With Kindle, you don’t just get paid when you make a sale. You can also get paid when people borrow your book or read it through the Kindle Unlimited (KU) program. With KU, readers pay one low monthly fee for access to around one million books in the program. Every page read gets around half a penny. This may not sound like a lot, but it can all add up – especially if you have long books and/or a lot of books.
Now that we’ve highlighted the pros of KDP, let’s look at the best sites to also add your book to.
2. iBooks
Apple products are booming, with buyers wanting content, including books, for their iPhones and iPads. Keep your ebook as plain-looking as possible so it will render well on small screens.
3. Google Books and Google Play
Google Android users want content too, so you can list books and other creative content here.
4. NOOK (https://www.nookpress.com/)
Barnes and Noble still has status as a bookseller. Their NOOK is nowhere near as popular as the Kindle, but people who love to shop at BN.com enjoy the store. NOOK also tends not to have as many “junk” titles as Amazon. KDP has attracted some real trash, plagiarized, and public domain works as a result of the “ebook gold rush” mentality compared with NOOK.
5. Kobo (https://www.kobo.com/writinglife)
Kobo took over Sony’s ebook division, so they picked up a large number of Sony users and readers. In some countries, Kobo devices outrank the Kindle. Kobo also has a very user-friendly self-publishing platform. It offers 5 million titles, and growing.
6. Scribd (https://www.bookbaby.com/ebook-publishing/publish-on-scribd/)
Scribd has opted for a membership site model that allows access to three books and one audiobook, plus unlimited magazine content, for one low monthly fee. It is easy to self-publish on the site, in any format, from short to long content.
Find your book-writing dreams slipping away? I can help you complete *and* publish your own non-fiction book within six months or less, using a framework of reasonable goal-setting and steady achievement.
