So how do you publish a hardcover on KDP?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Don\u2019t worry, I\u2019ve got you covered with step-by-step instructions on how to do that in this article, along with some info on Lulu and IngramSpark, and which you should choose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Why you should consider publishing a hardcover book<\/li>\n
- Which platform you should choose, IngramSpark, Lulu, or KDP Print<\/li>\n
- Step by step instructions to create your hardcover book in KDP<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Table of contents<\/h2>
- Why Should You Publish Hardcovers on Amazon?<\/a><\/li>
- KDP Hardcovers vs. IngramSpark vs. Lulu<\/a><\/li>
- Step 1: Get Started in KDP Hardcover Creation<\/a><\/li>
- Step 2: Book Details Page<\/a><\/li>
- Step 3: Hardcover Content<\/a>
- Trim Size<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li>
- Step 4: Formatting Your Manuscript<\/a><\/li>
- Step 5: Adjusting Your Book Cover<\/a><\/li>
- Step 6: Rights and Pricing Page<\/a><\/li>
- Step 7: Publish!<\/a><\/li>
- Final Thoughts<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Why Should You Publish Hardcovers on Amazon?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
There are three reasons why you might want to publish your hardcover book on Amazon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- You have multiple options: <\/strong>Having a hardcover in addition to your ebook and paperback<\/a> give your readers more options. If they like hardcovers, they might be attracted to you because you offer them. But even if they don\u2019t read hardcovers, readers will be more attracted to your cheaper ebook when they see both a paperback and a hardcover that are much higher in price. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- It looks more professional:<\/strong> Having a hardcover on your Amazon makes it look more like the bestsellers that often have one of each major book format (ebook, paperback, hardcover, audiobook). <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Because they\u2019re awesome:<\/strong> Okay, maybe they\u2019re not for everyone, but a primary reason why you might want one is because it looks good on your shelf. There\u2019s also something nice about the solid feel of a durable hardcover. When you hold a hardcover that you wrote, it feels like an accomplishment, more so than normal that is.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
I will say, hardcovers do take additional work to put together, so if you\u2019re short on time, it\u2019s not necessarily a \u201cmust-have\u201d for authors. However, it can be a fun little way to diversify your income and turn your book into a more professional-looking machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
KDP Hardcovers vs. IngramSpark vs. Lulu<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
All three of these platforms: IngramSpark, Lulu, and KDP offer ways to create hardcovers. But which should you choose?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We\u2019ll come out with a full review and breakdown of each in a future article, but from my own experience I find that IngramSpark produces the better quality hardcovers, and offers better options for expanded distribution of hardcovers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That said, KDP is by far the best when it comes to simplicity of creating a hardcover. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lulu used to be a big name in publishing, and they do have one advantage in that they have integration with Shopify for selling books directly. But I find that their end result is too expensive for the reader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With this in mind, I\u2019d make your decision this way:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- If you\u2019re published wide<\/strong> and therefore value expanded distribution, go with IngramSpark<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- If you\u2019re exclusive to Amazon<\/strong>, go with KDP<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
With that out of the way, let\u2019s talk about how you can actually publish a hardcover book through KDP print.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 1: Get Started in KDP Hardcover Creation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
KDP only recently (as of this writing) created a beta to publish hardcovers. Amazon has already updated it with new features. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you are part of the beta, there are two places where you can go to find the hardcover creation area. The first is near the top of the page, under \u201cCreate New Title\u201d, as seen here:<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"publish](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-buttons.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nYou can also reach it by looking under a specific book, where it will have an option for creating a hardcover.<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"publish](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-buttons2.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nFor this article, I actually created a hardcover using these steps, so follow along with me as we set about putting this sucker together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 2: Book Details Page<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
If you\u2019ve published a paperback book on KDP before, the next page will look very familiar to you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Note: <\/em><\/strong>If you haven\u2019t published an ebook or a paperback on KDP before, I highly recommend you do that first. Hardcovers are slightly more complicated, but build nicely on what you learn in ebook and paperback publication. If you don\u2019t have a book to publish, I\u2019d finish that first.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The book details page has pretty much all the same information that you would find when publishing a paperback. So you\u2019ll want to start by filling out all the relevant fields:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- Language<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Book Title<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Subtitle<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Series Name<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Edition Number<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Author<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Contributors<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Description<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Publishing Rights<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Keywords<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Categories<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019re done there, go ahead and hit \u201cSave and Continue\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 3: Hardcover Content<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n![\"print](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-print-options.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nNext you\u2019ll come to the Hardcover Content page, where you upload your manuscript and book cover. Now, if you don\u2019t have those yet, don\u2019t worry, we\u2019ll cover it in steps 4 and 5. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This area also looks very similar to publishing a paperback, with a few exceptions. The most important of which is\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trim Size<\/h3>\n\n\n
\n![\"hardcover](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-trim-sizes.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nAmazon has a more limited number of trim sizes<\/a> available for hardcover publishing. They include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- \n
- 5.5×8.5\u201d (13.97×21.59cm)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- 6×9\u201d (15.24×22.86 cm)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- 6.14×9.21\u201d (15.6×23.39 cm)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- 7×10\u201d (17.78×25.4 cm)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- 8.25×11\u201d (20.95×27.94 cm)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
So if you published a paperback using any trim size that is not included here, such as 5×8\u201d, then you will have to reformat your manuscript and cover to work with the new size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 4: Formatting Your Manuscript<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As mentioned, there\u2019s a good chance that the manuscript you already prepared for a paperback will not work for a hardcover. If that\u2019s the case, you will need to resize it to the desired dimensions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thankfully, Atticus<\/a> makes this easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had published my paperback as a 5×8\u201d<\/strong>, so I had to resize it to a 5.5×8.5\u201d<\/strong>. Since my book was already formatted in Atticus, all I had to do was go to the formatting tab and hit one button, and presto, it was ready to be exported to a PDF in the correct size. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s it, literally just one click. It was one of the easiest processes I\u2019ve gone through.<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"trim](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-trim-sizes-atticus.png\")
Changing Trim Sizes in Atticus.io<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n Once that was done, I downloaded the PDF and immediately uploaded it into the \u201cManuscript\u201d section of the Hardcover Content page. Easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Atticus saves a ton of time, not just with changing trim sizes, but with formatting in general. It has all the features that Vellum has<\/a>, and it\u2019s available for nearly half the cost. In short, it\u2019s one of the most important tools you can have for creating your manuscript.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Get Atticus Now<\/a><\/center>\n\n\n\n Step 5: Adjusting Your Book Cover<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Next, you will need to adjust your book cover to fit the dimensions that they require. Hardcovers have extra wide margins, so you will need to do this regardless of the current size of your paperback cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the Hardcover Content page, under \u201cBook Cover\u201d, you\u2019ll find a link that says \u201cdownload a KDP template\u201d. Click this link to find the exact dimensions that you should use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve done that, you\u2019ll get a field with these options to fill out:<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"getting](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-template1.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nMake sure these fields match the Print Options that you selected in the Hardcover Content page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For this example, I made the above selections and entered my word count.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve done that, click \u201cDownload Template\u201d and you should be given a file that looks like this:<\/p>\n\n\n
\n![\"an](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/publish-hardcover-template3.png\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nIf you\u2019re familiar with the templates for paperback<\/a>, you\u2019ll notice that the margins are a lot bigger in this template, which means you may have to get creative to make sure that your cover doesn\u2019t lose much of the important parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Additionally, you will almost certainly have to adjust the title, author name, and any other text on the cover to fit the new margins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This can be a complicated step. If you do not have skills with Photoshop or Canva to do it yourself, then I suggest reaching out to the cover designer<\/a> to do it for you. Give them the template that you downloaded and they can fit it to the right dimensions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you have a PDF of your cover, upload it and then click on \u201cLaunch Previewer\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This will allow you the time to take a final look at the cover and manuscript together to make sure that everything looks good. If it does, move on to the Rights and Pricing page by clicking \u201cSave and Continue\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 6: Rights and Pricing Page<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
This page should also be very familiar to authors who have published ebooks and paperbacks before. It\u2019s almost identical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Start by entering in the number of territories you plan to publish in (for most authors this will be all of them), then select your primary marketplace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Under \u201cPricing, royalty and distribution\u201d you\u2019ll enter the price of the hardcover book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As with paperback publishing, it gives you a minimum price to make a profit. Unlike paperback publishing, there is no expanded distribution option, which as far as I can tell is the only part of this page that is different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Step 7: Publish!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Then all you have to do is click publish! Amazon will look it over to make sure that everything is in order, and if it is, your hardcover should be available to purchase on Amazon within 72 hours (though I find that it\u2019s usually within the first 24 hours).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next is the \u201csimple\u201d matter of marketing your book, and we have a lot of tools to help you there as well. Just check out our Book Marketing Hub<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Publishing a hardcover book is not quite as simple as an ebook or paperback, but it\u2019s certainly a lot simpler than it used to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now that Amazon offers hardcover publishing, the biggest hurdles that you should focus on are reformatting the manuscript and resizing the cover. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
- If you\u2019re exclusive to Amazon<\/strong>, go with KDP<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
- It looks more professional:<\/strong> Having a hardcover on your Amazon makes it look more like the bestsellers that often have one of each major book format (ebook, paperback, hardcover, audiobook). <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Step 4: Formatting Your Manuscript<\/a><\/li>
- KDP Hardcovers vs. IngramSpark vs. Lulu<\/a><\/li>
- Why Should You Publish Hardcovers on Amazon?<\/a><\/li>
![\"Atticus](\"https:\/\/kindlepreneur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Atticus.png\")
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