In addition to instructions for the conversion and formatting process, this book contains detailed explanations of all the html and css markup supported by the kindle, instructions for achieving optimal image display quality on the e ink screen, and other details about the kindle s formatting requirements previously left to chance or speculation. Epub is a common ebook format around the web, but the kindle cant read it natively. Its not that hard to format your word document for a kindle ebook if you. The kf8 format, introduced in 2012, succeeds the older mobi7 format and allows for features like drop caps, ornaments, and custom fonts. Write your own book on pressbooks or import an existing manuscript, then choose a book design theme, and export into all the file formats you need to publish your books. Stepbystep kindle create tutorial get help with kindle create. In general ive heard good things about calibre as well, though i havent had the chance to try it for myself i was enthralled by their interface when i first opened it to be honest. How to format a kindle ebook2015 you might like to see my service page at also you get a free kindle formatting check list at let me know how. Ultimate ebook creator ebook creation software mobi, epub, word, pdf format ebooks and print books for amazon kindle self publishing, ibookstore, android devices, smart. Vellum is the single best investment any author can make. Like it or not, kindle keyword and category selection are some of the most important. Amazons kdp kindle direct publishing service gets easier to use every year. When you click publish, kindle create produces a publishable file kpf you can submit to kdp.
Kindle create finds and styles your chapter titles automatically while simultaneously building your table of contents. Kindle to pdf converter free download and software. We go over the basics of how to set up, and how to use your kindle create software and format your ebooks to publish on amazon kdp. Formatting for the kindle is really plain formatting just like typing on a typewriter, if youre old enough to remember those days. All the benefits of kindle select publishing, plus bookbabys global network. I say that because i spent weeks trying to format my first ebook a travel guide id written which included subheadings and bullet points.
If you want to publish comics, graphic novels or manga, this free tool is a. Kindle create is a free interior formatting tool that works well with most books you want to publish on amazon, but there are requirements and supported features we want you to know about before you download. Use this tool to do one last check before you publish your ebook on kdp. Kindle formatting guide virtual assistant for authors. Vellum is a fantastic software for creating apple, kobo and amazonapproved. Learn how to easily format your books for kindle self publishing, plus how to choose the right. A quick guide to formatting your microsoft word manuscript. How to format your book for kindle using microsoft word in 6 easy. Amazons kindle is a major market, and im glad to have books there. This software can convert pretty much any ebook and document format into a kindle friendly format such as.
Book formatting for ebook and print books the creative penn. Turn your completed manuscript into a formatted ebook with kindle create. I hate formatting, but pages has really helped with a lot of projects. Others will disagree but id say no, this is not particularly easy to do. Fast and affordable editing by experienced book editors. As you prepare your ebook, consider whether your content should have a fixed or reflowable format. Calibre comes with many features which you can learn about later. Kindle create creating a professional quality ebook has. And, even if you could, you cant upload that format at the kdp, the kindle digital publishing platform. Under spacing, set before and after to 0 pt, and line spacing to single.
Top tools and software for self publishing authors kindlepreneur. Get your ebook approved by amazon, ibooks, smashwords, kobo, and nook. It is the best ebook publishing software for authors. As an indie publisher, i format picture books for kindle mobi and epub3 ebooks for apple, kobo, publishdrive, follett, mackin and permabound. Amazons kindle publishing team has quietly released a new document called the amazon kindle publishing guidelines for kindle plugin for adobe indesign 0. Amazon has introduced the kindle create tool, and the information for using this.
Stand out on the digital shelf with a gorgeous ebook cover. Formatting your books for kindle and smashwords publishing. I love love love to use pages on mac for creating pdfs and ebooks. Most ebook stores use a file format called epub but amazon kindle uses a slightly modified file format called mobi.
How to format your book for kindle using microsoft word in. Most bookstore chains have their own ereader device and their own bookstore. At the time i was publishing my books using createspace now part of kindle direct publishing, and they offered an easy way to turn my books into kindles. With this software, you can convert kindle books to pdf, and then read. As of september 20, the latest kindle plugin version is 0. With the many tools you can use to write, organize, style and publish ebooks. Ghost publishing program, the selfpublish on demand training. It is a free open source program available for both pc and mac. Fortunately for us, there are plenty of sweet tools available to help us make format conversions. It has all the tools you need to easily create and format perfect ebooks for kindle. This guest post is written by publishing authority and two time bestselling author kristen eckstein. Because now that youve finished your masterpiece, its time to upload it to the publishing market place.
In the end, i found that the easiest, quickest, and most flexible means of formatting a manuscript for poetry was to use two free software tools one for kindle direct publishing and one for draft2digital. Use this free desktop standalone application as you format your book to make sure it looks as intended. How to format picture books for kindle and epub3 fiction. Watch as i import, split, format, compile and publish a book to kindle, all in under 30 minutes. The publish effortlessly to kindle using scrivener course is a completely newbie friendly guide taken from a webinar i ran introducing people to some of the powerful features and benefits of the scrivener software. There are hundreds of conversion programs and kindle meatgrinders that promise clean kindle files, yet deliver a. Formatting your manuscript for kindle direct publishers. For this and more amazing training videos, head on over to ebook publishing school. You have two weeks of free unlimited revisions if you want to change anything. Kindle file format is a proprietary ebook file format created by with the extension. You can create beautiful graphic pdfs and also textbased books and export as. If you use scrivener, you can format your book for epub and.
Create interactive web books, pdfs for print, and ebooks, all from one place. Kindle to pdf converter is a conversion tool that used to convert ebooks and supports the ordinary kindle ebooks format. It actually incorporates some of the open source code from calibre, above. These images demonstrate the same book with kf8 and mobi7. Anyone whos tried formatting their ebook themselves will tell you its no small feat. The first step is to download a free software program called calibre. Maybe you dont have the cash to splash on yet another piece of writing software. Publishing takes less than 5 minutes and your book appears on kindle stores worldwide within 2448 hours. Open kindle create and click new project from file.
Best tools to convert epub to mobi and other formats. What is the best software to use to format a book for. Formatting for a print book is a bit trickier and finding your feet with e publishing first is a good option. The tool you choose depends on your book and file format doc, docx, pdf, and. Scrivener makes everything easy, from composing a draft, to giving your book a structure, to exporting your final manuscript as a kindle compatible ebook. Thanks for any info, as id like to start formatting as soon as possible. Kindle devices and apps are designed to use amazons ebook formats. This decision tree can help you choose the best resource for your book. For the best results, we recommend a microsoft word docdocx or a kpf file created with kindle create. The best tools for kindle self publishing format, promote, and. Kindle create is a free interior formatting tool that works well with most books you want to publish on amazon, but there are requirements and. How to use kindle create software to format ebooks part 1. Ebook formatting is the preparation of a digital file, to ensure that it meets the publisher s requirements and is an enjoyable reading experience. Kindle create is one of the musthave self publishing apps for all authors.
You can learn about the 10 steps to publishing your own book, the six key foundations of marketing, the best way to launch your book, and more. So, i figured it would be beneficial if i provided a list of exactly what didnt make the cut and what tools or services i still use today to take my kindle publishing to the next. Many first time bootstrappers will just take their word document and crank it through the amazon mobi generator. How to format a poetry book for selfpublishing ebooks. Formatting tools or services formatting is one of the most undervalued aspects to selfpublishing. Kindle create creating a professional quality ebook has never. However, just like azw, you cant upload an azw3 file format at the kdp. How to make an ebook kindle and epub conversion diy book. Click the format list the dropdown at the bottom of the dialog box and choose paragraph. For help formatting a quality ebook, see this stepbystep guide. Thats definitely an avenue you want to consider when publishing your ebook. By colin dunbar in todays self publishing world, its a good idea to have your book available in as many formats as you can.
List of recommended formatting options for ebook and print selfpublishing. Formatting your books for kindle and smashwords publishing 0. To achieve the rich formatting in the kindle ebooks it creates, vellum makes use of a kindle format known as kf8. How to format your book for amazon kindle using microsoft. Getting started with kindle create self publishing. Formatting for kindle can be tough, and poorly formatted books can. See our guides for formatting your manuscript and creating a cover. Check out this video walkthrough showing you how i format a book for kindle right on my computer screen.
Professional ebook formatting services for authors. Choose the type of book youre making and click choose file. It has detailed guidelines, with screenshots and clear instructions, on how to optimize. In many cases, this will suffice, but if you start including pictures or other technical goodies, then you need something more. You can upload and convert your ebook manuscript file from several supported formats. The tool you choose depends on your book and file format doc, docx, pdf, and whether you want to use a guide or downloadable desktop formatting tool. Kindle direct publishers kdp is about as close to perfect as you can get in a publishing program. Epub vs mobi vs pdf and why does that matter to me. To update your book, open kindle create and click resume existing project or file open recent. Professional ebook formatting is required to get proper chapters tagging, clickable table of content, and a flexible layout compatible with all ereaders. Kinstant formatter is a webbased formatter for kindle ebooks.
Under indentation special, set first line indent to 0. This is where converting your files from epub to mobi azw files becomes paramount to the launch of your ebook. Adobe indesign desktop publishing software and online publisher 12month subscription with autorenewal, billed monthly, pcmac by adobe 2. Earn up to 70% royalty on sales to customers in the us, canada, uk, germany, india, france, italy, spain, japan, brazil, mexico, australia and more.
Kindle formatting and publishing has become very easy for most people, now that microsoft word formatted files are accepted by kindle direct publishing. The top 10 most useful ebook writing software publishdrive blog. Formatting is one of the most undervalued aspects to selfpublishing. Pressbooks is simple book production software, built with the web in mind. Amazon kdp have kindle create, a kindle only formatting tool. The latter, azw3, is a file format, created to emulate whats called kf8, the moreadvanced kindle formatting by a piece of free library software called calibre. How to convert a file from word to epub or mobi file format.