How to upload your puzzle book to Amazon KDP

Before you start, have three things ready. The interior PDF from the export screen. A cover PDF, which is a separate file. And the facts of your book: its trim size, page count, whether it is colour or black and white, and whether you used bleed. You will need to enter exactly the same choices on KDP.

In your Bookshelf, create a new paperback. The first page is the details. Choose the language, then the title and subtitle. Put what the book is and who it is for in the subtitle, for example sixty fun puzzles for ages six to eight. Add your name as the author. The description is what a buyer reads, so say what is inside, how many puzzles, and whether solutions are included. You can add up to seven keywords. Think of what a parent would type in the search box, like ocean puzzles for kids or word search ages six to eight. Choose the categories that fit, and for a children's book set the reading age. Save and continue.

Page two is the content. Take the free ISBN that KDP offers, unless you have your own. Then the print options, and these must match your PDF. Ink and paper: most puzzle books use a black and white interior on white paper, which keeps the printing cost low. Choose colour only if your book was set to print in colour, because KDP charges colour for every page. Trim size: pick the same size your book has in the app. Eight and a half by eleven inches is the classic activity book size. Six by nine and eight and a half by eight and a half are also offered. Bleed: choose no bleed, unless you turned on Add bleed in the export screen. Then pick matte or glossy for the cover. Matte feels soft and looks calm, glossy makes colours stand out. Both are fine for an activity book.

Under manuscript, upload your interior PDF. KDP processes it, which can take a minute for a hundred pages. Under book cover, choose to upload a cover you already have, and upload your cover PDF. The cover is always a separate file: back, spine and front in one piece. Its size depends on your trim size and page count, so make the cover after the interior is final. KDP also has its own Cover Creator if you do not have a cover yet.

Now launch the previewer. This is your proof on screen. Page through the book and look at the edges. Nothing important should sit outside the safe area, and the first page should be on the right. The app's export checks already took care of margins and page count, so the interior usually passes straight away. If KDP flags something, read the message, fix it in the app, export again and upload the new file. When it looks right, approve it.

The last page is rights and pricing. Choose where to sell, usually all territories. Enter your list price. KDP shows the printing cost and what you earn on each sale, so you can see straight away whether the price works. Look at what similar books sell for. Before you publish, consider ordering a proof copy, so you hold the real book in your hands. Try a few puzzles with a pencil. Is the grid big enough? Do the lines print clearly? A proof costs only the printing and shipping, and it can save you a bad review. Then click publish. Amazon reviews the book, which can take up to a few days, and sends you an email when it is live.

Changed something later? Edit the book in the app, export again and upload the new interior on the same KDP page. Keep the page count the same if you can, because a different page count changes the spine, and then the cover has to change too. Next, learn how to make the cover file in Make a KDP paperback cover that fits. My Puzzle Book Generator is free to try.