You’re ready to publish a children’s book on Amazon.

By now, you’ve put hours, weeks, months, or possibly years into crafting this labor of love. 

It’s a thing of beauty!

And you’re ready to share it with the world. 

Now comes the business of how to sell children’s books on Amazon, using the KDP eBook and print book setup pages. 

So, what steps do you need to take to do this right? 

We’re so glad you’re here! 

Can You Make Money Publishing a Children’s Book on Amazon? 

The short answer? Yes. Yes, you can. 

The longer answer includes the conditional stuff, most of which you can probably guess: 

• The marketability of your story idea
• The relatability of your main character
• The appeal of your book’s illustrations
• The effectiveness of your marketing strategy
• The consistency of your marketing efforts

Marketing is all about making your book visible and using the right words to turn browsers into buyers. Marketing is how you turn this from a hobby into a source of passive income with a side of bragging rights. 

And it begins with the KDP publishing pages. 

Say, you do everything right, though. What kind of money can you expect to make as a self-publishing author of children’s books? 

As an indie publisher on Amazon, you earn 70% of each sale for books priced between $2.99 to $9.99. You don’t get an advance payment, but you get to see the fruits of your own marketing labors reflected on your KDP sales dashboard. 

How much you make depends on how many books you sell and how much you earn from each sale. 

• At $2.99 per book, you earn $2.09 per sale. Sell 50 books to earn $100 / month.
• At $5.99 per book, you earn $4.19 per sale. Sell 50 books to earn $209.50  / month.
• At $9.99 per book, you earn $6.99 per sale. Sell 50 books to earn $349.65 / month.

What can you do to maximize your royalty income? 

• Set the right price point for your book (experimenting is okay)
• Publish your book in multiple formats
• Optimize your book for wider distribution
• Translate your book into other languages
• Scale by writing and publishing more books

The good news? The success of your book is up to you. And, unless you know a better advocate for your book, that’s a good thing. 

What Does It Cost to Publish a Children’s Book on Amazon? 

Here’s another short answer? Not a thing. 

It’s completely free to publish a book on Amazon, whatever its genre, whether ebook, an audiobook, or a print paperback or hardcover. 

After all, by the time you have a children’s book ready to publish, you’ve likely already spent quite a bit on editing, illustrations, formatting, and cover design. 

Also, once you’ve published your book, you still have to market it. Here’s a breakdown of the expenses to expect when publishing your book. None are required, but many make getting your book in front of readers easier.

• Promotions for launch day
• Promotional tools like KD ROI
• Marketing tools like Publisher Rocket and KD Spy
• Amazon Ads
• Facebook Ads
• Google Ads
• Periodic discount promotions
• Cover design edits or upgrades

How to Publish a Children’s Book on Amazon: A Step-by-Step Guide 

We’ve broken down the process of self-publishing children’s books on Amazon into the following seven steps. You’ll be the proud author and publisher of a KDP children’s book when you finish the last one.

You can do this. 

Step #1 — Use the Kindle Kids’ Book Creator tool to create the ebook version.

As the name suggests, the Kindle Kids Book Creator tool takes your digital files for your book’s content (text and illustrations) and cover and uses them to create a Kindle eBook. 

We’ll cover the tools you’ll need to create your print book a few steps later. 

Start by creating a folder on your desktop. Once you’ve downloaded Kindle Kids Book Creator, open it and click on “Create a New Kids’ Book” and then “Continue.” 

Enter your book’s details: title, author, publisher, language, etc.). Select the desktop folder you created and click “Continue.” 

Next, you’ll select “Import your entire book, including the cover… “ and “Create Book from PDF.” 

Select “Save for Publishing,” in the File menu and click “Save.” Doing this saves the file in MOBI format for easy uploading to KDP. 

Step #2 — Or use Kindle Create for chapter books. 

Kindle Create works well if you’re writing a book for older readers, including kids who’ve moved up to chapter books. 

Like the Kindle Kids Book Creator, you can use this tool to create an ebook in MOBI format for Kindle devices and apps. But this tool also has features for creating the print version of your book. More on that later. 

Once you download Kindle Create to your PC or Mac, follow the step-by-step tutorial to upload and turn your text and illustration files into an ebook you can upload to KDP. 

Once your book is ready, you can preview it on Kindle Previewer, which is built into Kindle Create. If you’re not using Kindle Create, you can also download Kindle Previewer separately and use it to preview your book and export a MOBI file for uploading to KDP.

If you’re using Microsoft Word instead of Kindle Create, save your book as an HTML file (“web page, filtered”), and upload it to Kindle Previewer. 

If the formatting looks the way it should, and all your links work (if you have any), cue the victory dance and export a file in MOBI format to your desktop. 

Then, when you’re ready, upload that MOBI file to KDP and begin your setup. 

Step #3 — Use KDP eBook set-up to publish your Kindle ebook.

The steps on KDP’s ebook setup pages are clear and easy to follow. The more you know about your book, its categories, keywords, and how it will add value to your reader’s life, the quicker this process will be. 

You’ll start by clicking “Create” in the section titled, “Create a new title or series.” 

On the next page, you’ll select the type of book you want to create: Kindle eBook, paperback, hardcover (beta), series page, or Kindle Vella (new). 

Under “Kindle eBook,” click on “Create eBook.” On page one, you’ll set up the following: 

• Language (English, etc.)
• Book Title and (optional) Subtitle
• Series info (if your book is part of a series)
• Edition number (if this is a new edition of an existing title)
• Author
• Other contributors (coauthors, editors, etc.)
• Book description (with HTML tags for formatting)
• Publishing Rights 
• Keywords (up to 7)
• Categories (up to 2)
• Age and Grade Ranges
• Pre-Order Options

Page Two is where you’ll upload your ebook’s files — the MOBI for the book’s interior and the PDF for its cover — so KDP can convert them into a ready-to-publish Kindle ebook. 

Once KDP has approved your files, you can preview the finished ebook on the built-in Previewer to make sure it looks as it should and that all the links work (if you have any). 

Page Three is where you’ll set your book’s price and see the royalty payment you’ll earn from each sale. From here, you’ll also set your preferences for your book’s distribution. 

At the bottom of Page Three is where you’ll finally publish your Kindle ebook. 

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Step #4 — Prepare your book for print. 

You can use Kindle Create to prepare your children’s book for print publication. 

On the other hand, if you’d rather, you can also use Microsoft Word or other book creation software to prepare your book for print. 

You’re good as long as you can export your book’s interior file as a PDF — after setting your book’s trim size and margins and adding page numbers. 

Once you have PDF files ready for your book’s interior and cover, you’re ready to upload them to KDP Print and publish your book. 

Step #5 – Use KDP print setup to publish your paperback or hardcover book. 

Now that your ebook is ready, it’s time to create the version of your children’s book you and your readers will hold in your hands — the one with that new book smell and all the feels that go with opening the box with your first printed book. 

Part of the process is selecting a trim size for your book, and KDP Print recommends standard sizes to optimize your book’s distribution. 

Select one of the most popular options: 

• 5” x 8.5”
• 6” x 9”
• 14” x 9.21”
• 7” x 10”
• 8” x 10”
• 5” x 8.5”
• 5” x 11”

Once you’ve uploaded the PDF files for your book and KDP Print has approved them for publication, you can preview it right there from the setup page before ordering a printed proof to look over — which we highly recommend doing. 

When your book looks as it should, it’s time to publish. 

Step #6 — Prepare for your launch. 

Part of publishing is setting a release date — when your book will go LIVE on Amazon in ebook and/or print. 

We recommend setting that release date far enough into the future to allow you time to rally your launch team, decide on your promotional strategy, and schedule the promotions you’ve chosen for your book. 

This will also give you time to guest blog about your book or request a podcast interview with someone whose podcast is a good fit for your children’s book. 

Your launch team is an invaluable asset, and you can ask them to do any of the following:

• Download and review your book when it goes live; 
• Share links to your book on social media; 
• Write a brief testimonial you can share; 
• Email their mailing list about your book;
• Blog about your book or consider an author interview. 

During the time between publication and book launch day, you should make it visible and relevant to your readers, given the resources at your disposal. 

Step #7 — Think like a publisher.

First of all, when you’ve got a published book ready to share with the world, it’s time to celebrate what you’ve accomplished.

Of all the folks out there who’ve talked about writing a book, you’re one of the relatively few who have actually done it. Be proud of that! 

Next comes the work of marketing your book. And to do that effectively, you’ll need to put on your publisher hat. 

You, as the publisher, will take the actions necessary to make your book visible and use the right words to convince your ideal buyer that your book is well worth the price you’re asking. 

Take a moment to brainstorm the benefits of reading your book. Does your book have a message you’re keen to share with your reader? 

What specific problem does your book address that you can reference in your book’s description on the Amazon sales page? What did you feel as you were writing this book?

What keywords should you use to ensure Amazon shows your book in the search results when browsers are looking for a particular kind of children’s book? Marketing tools like Publisher Rocket make it easier to identify those keywords.

You’re ready to publish and share a children’s book you’ve written. We’re so excited for you, and we hope this time is full of the support, encouragement, and accolades you richly deserve. 

May your book reach its intended audience and become a cherished favorite. 

The post Your Complete Guide To Publishing A Children’s Book On Amazon appeared first on Authority Self-Publishing.