Tips for using the new pre-order function on K.D.P

I’ve just finished a full draft of my fifth novel, ‘Memorial for the Dead’. From this point, it will take me another 2-3 weeks to complete the editing process. The jacket for the book is already designed and ready to go. This puts me in the perfect position to submit my book for pre-order on Amazon kindle. This function has only been available for a few weeks and it’s excellent to be able to utilize it.
So, what benefits does having your new book available to pre-order really confer? Well, you can build up publicity for your new title ahead of the release date. This means that when your book becomes available, it will get a decent number of sales on one day which helps to boost your profile on the Amazon system. This will make your new book more ‘discoverable’, which is the key word in on-line publishing these days. Pre-order has been a tool available to conventional publishers for quite some time, so now that self-publishers and small publishers can use it too, it helps to even out the playing field. Which is good for consumers, as it keeps prices for e-books competitive.
I have completed the pre-order process today and can report that it is straightforward and painless. You use the ‘add new title’ button on you bookshelf page and fill in the details as if you were uploading a final version. The screen then gives you the option to use the pre-order service, so you click on this.
Now you are ready to upload your cover thumbnail which, as always, needs to be in JPEG format. All details of the specification are available on the help bars.
What you may not be expecting, is that you will need to upload a full draft of your book, although you can make it clear this isn’t the final version for publication. You can then view your draft on the digital downloader, this is a real bonus, as KDP use their spellchecker on it, and you can review the kindle format at this early stage, which should shorten the editorial process.
Once you’ve uploaded and checked the draft, you save and continue to the pricing page. This you fill in as normal, ‘publish’ and then you’re all set to have your book available for pre-order.
Top Tip: You will be asked to set a date for when your book will be available for purchase. KDP will then insist that you get your final version submitted by 10 days before that date. So make sure you’ve given yourself enough time for all the editing. Obviously, Amazon want to give a release date they can guarantee, so ensure you’ve allowed enough time for the polishing up of your final draft. This is a function you should really only use if you are very confident of the timescale. Make sure you have at least one full draft finished before you even consider going for it.
This is a great new function which I shall look forward to using with my future books. Good Luck!

Five top tips for getting the correct kindle format:

I have recently published my fourth novel. This involves getting the formatting right for both the paperback version and the Kindle e-book. I would say that only this time around have I finally worked out the best way to do it. So, here are my top five tips:
1. Use a template.
Even before you start writing your novel, make sure you are typing into the correct template. Kindle Direct Publishing provide templates on their site and there are other extremely helpful souls out there on the World Wide Web who have made their templates available for others to use. Choose the one which suits you best. Then, you will not lose the structure you’ve created when you convert it for uploading i.e. chapter headings, different fonts/ font sizes/italics. I have always used microsoft word for this process and these documents convert well into kindle format.
2. You may need to create a ‘paper’ book version of your manuscript and an e-book version.
This will only need to be done after you have finished! Kindle tends to like formatting to be as simple as possible so if you have used drop caps for the start of paragraphs or any other fancy design techniques, it might be best to keep these for your paper book but simplify them for kindle. Save them as two separate docs and name them distinctly differently.
3. For your kindle version, keep indents at the beginning of paragraphs narrow. If you are working in word, use the ruler function to keep left indent small, this will avoid them spreading out and getting out of sync when the document is converted. It has taken me until now to work this out!! V. important tip!!
4. It is essential to insert/page break at each new chapter. If you don’t, then your text will all blend together and you will not get a new page for each new chapter and your book appears much more professional with them.
5. Make sure you use the digital preview function. It will show you how the final book will look on Kindle. turn every page until you reach the end of the book. Don’t be afraid to go back to your document and make all the changes that are necessary to get it right. Now I have learnt how to do it properly, I have gone back to all my previous titles and polished up their formats. Publishers should take heed and do the same. Kindle’s service of re-upoading your interior is fast and efficient and ensures a top quality final product.

No one gets it absolutely correct first time around, but practise makes perfect! Good Luck!