How to Publish a Book in 2027: A Step-by-Step Guide to Self-Publishing

How do you publish a book? As a self-publisher you go through eight steps: edit the manuscript, choose the title and keywords, design the cover, format the interior and create an EPUB, sort out the ISBN, add the copyright page, upload to your platforms and check a printed proof. Uploading is free on Amazon KDP, IngramSpark and Apple Books; your money goes into editing, the cover and formatting. Below is every step with the platforms' requirements, a side-by-side of fees and royalties, and a walkthrough of publishing on Amazon KDP. Everything is current as of November 2026.

The eight steps at a glance

Step 1: Is your manuscript ready?

Publish the version you no longer want to restructure. Get beta readers on structure and pacing first, then have it edited: readers spot typos and contradictions at once, and so do reviews. What professional editing costs is in our guide How much does it cost to edit a book: at Reedsy's 2026 rates, a copy edit of 60,000 words runs about $1,200 to $1,920.

Our editing tool checks spelling, grammar, style, sense and logic, facts and sources, and finishes with a final proofread. Every change is marked, and you accept or reject it. The first 3,000 words are edited for free; a manuscript of up to 60,000 words costs $82.80690 tokens.

No manuscript yet, just an idea for a how-to or nonfiction book? Then Bookfairy writes the whole book from your idea, and you read the outline and chapter 1 for free first.

The words-to-pages calculator tells you how many printed pages your book will have. You need that number for the cover, the spine and the printing cost.

Step 2: Choose your title, keywords and categories

Readers find books through the store's search box, so the words they type belong in your title, subtitle and keyword fields. KDP gives you seven keyword fields, and each one holds a phrase, not just a single word. You also pick the categories your book is listed in, and print distributors such as IngramSpark use BISAC subject codes.

• Keyword research gives you up to 100 keywords with search volume plus 10 titles with subtitles built on the strongest ones, for $7.2060 tokens.
• Categories suggests Amazon categories with the current rank of the number 1 and 2 books, plus BISAC and THEMA codes, for $4.2035 tokens.

Step 3: Design the cover

An ebook only needs the front cover. A paperback or hardcover needs a full wrap: back cover, spine and front cover with bleed, and the spine width depends on page count and paper. The free book spine calculator gives you the width, and the KDP cover calculator builds the matching template.

Our cover tool shows you three drafts for free and delivers the finished cover as a print-ready PDF plus the front for the ebook, for $12.00100 tokens: front, spine and back, with the spine calculated from your page count, the EAN-13 barcode from your ISBN, your publisher logo and the back cover text.

Later, the cover workshop translates the cover, same look in the other language ($4.8040 tokens), changes the trim size or page count with the spine recalculated ($2.4020 tokens), makes an audiobook cover ($2.4020 tokens), swaps barcode or logo ($1.2010 tokens) or changes the cover in your own words ($1.2010 tokens per change).

Step 4: Format the interior and create the EPUB

A Word file is not yet a book. For print you need a PDF in your trim size with chapter openings, running heads, page numbers and clean hyphenation. For ebooks, a reflowable EPUB is the standard: the text adapts to the screen and the reader's font size. KDP accepts EPUB, Apple Books requires EPUB, and Draft2Digital distributes the EPUB you upload as it is.

• Book formatting delivers the print PDF in common KDP trim sizes, and you see the first 10 pages for free.
• The EPUB tool builds an EPUB 3 with a clickable table of contents and shows you the EPUBCheck result.
• Both together cost $26.40220 tokens.

If your printer requires PDF/X-1a, the PDF/X-1a converter converts your print PDF. KDP doesn't require it but names PDF/X-1a as its preferred format.

Step 5: Do you need an ISBN?

An ISBN identifies one edition of your book in the trade. Every edition needs its own: paperback, hardcover and ebook each get a different number.

Ten ISBNs cost little more than two single ones, and most books need two or three (ebook, paperback, hardcover). The barcode for the back cover comes from our free ISBN barcode generator.

Step 6: Add a copyright page

The copyright page sits right after the title page. It usually holds the copyright notice with year and name, the publisher (your name or imprint), the edition, the ISBN of that edition and any disclaimers. Registering your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office is optional; filing online costs $45 for a single author with one work that is not made for hire, otherwise $65 for a standard application.

Selling printed copies in the European Union? Since December 13, 2024, the EU General Product Safety Regulation requires manufacturers to give their name, postal address and electronic address on the product or, where that is not possible, on its packaging or an accompanying document. Ask your platform what it needs from you.

Step 7: Choose your platforms and upload

You do not have to pick one platform. A common setup is ebook and paperback on Amazon, the paperback through IngramSpark for bookstores, and the ebook on Apple Books or through a distributor. How they compare:

The percentages are not all taken from the same base, so compare what actually reaches you per copy. Printing cost is the biggest deduction on a paperback. On Amazon.com, a 300-page black-ink paperback costs $1.00 + 300 × $0.012 = $4.60 to print; the free printing cost calculator runs the numbers for your book.

KDP Select: If you enroll your ebook in KDP Select, a free 90-day program, the Kindle ebook can only be distributed through KDP for that period. Print editions are not affected. Enrollment renews automatically unless you opt out.

How to publish a book on Amazon KDP

1. Create your account. Sign in to Kindle Direct Publishing with an Amazon account and complete your tax and payment details.
2. Create a new title. Choose Kindle eBook, paperback or hardcover. You set up each format separately.
3. Enter the book details. Title, subtitle, author, description, keywords and categories. KDP also asks whether the content is AI-generated; answer truthfully.
4. Upload your content. For the ebook, the manuscript (for example as EPUB) and the front cover. For the paperback, the interior PDF and the full cover. This is also where you choose the ISBN.
5. Preview. The previewer shows the book on devices and in print. For the paperback you can order a proof copy.
6. Set the price and publish. Pick the royalty option, territories and price, and decide whether to enroll in KDP Select.

The description is what readers see right after the cover. The book description tool reads your whole manuscript and gives you six versions, including KDP HTML and a back-cover text, for $4.8040 tokens.

Step 8: Check the proof, then go live

Order a printed copy before you approve the paperback. Paper shows what a screen hides: a spine title that sits off-center, inner margins that are too tight, a cover that prints too dark. For the ebook, page through the file in the previewer and on a real device.

Once the book is live, you can add A+ Content to your Amazon product page: images and text below the description. Our A+ Content tool builds the modules in the sizes Amazon requires.

What does all of this cost?

Publishing itself is free or cheap on the big platforms. The costs sit in editing, the cover, formatting, ISBNs and marketing. A full breakdown with market prices and a worked example is in our guide Self-publishing costs. All Bookfairy prices are on the pricing page.