Successful Self-Publishing: Exclusivity or going wide

Before you publish your ebook, you need to decide where you will publish it, and consider which readers you want to reach.

Do you want to publish on multiple platforms or exclusively with Amazon?

You can publish on Amazon KDP as well as all the other platforms at the same time, but Amazon also offers KDP Select, which requires you to only sell your ebook on Amazon.

If you opt in, your ebook will be included in Kindle Unlimited (KU), a subscription service where readers borrow books, paying a fixed price per month instead of buying books individually. The author is paid from a monthly pool based on pages read (KENP), which fluctuates every month.

You opt into KDP Select for ninety days at a time, so some authors will put a book or a series in KU for a specific time, and then take them out wide onto other platforms.

You can, of course, have some books in KU, and some books wide, and change the mix over time. The more books you have, the more flexibility you have, too.

The benefits of exclusivity

It’s much easier to focus on one platform, especially as a new author. If you put your ebook into KU, readers can give your work a try and leave reviews easily without buying from an unknown author. It can be a great way to get started.

You have access to promotional tools like five free days or a seven-day Kindle Countdown deal during each ninety-day period. These books also get enhanced visibility with KU readers, who are a different market to those readers who only buy ebooks.

Some authors choose to build their entire business on Amazon, using KDP Select as their primary income source, and some authors do very well this way. However, it doesn’t work for every author or every genre, and will also vary over time.

The downsides of exclusivity

The biggest risk of putting all your ebooks into KU is dependency on one platform. Many authors see income volatility as Amazon sets the fund size and KENP rate, and one tweak can significantly impact your monthly income.

A problem with your account, due to algorithm changes or a simple mistake, can damage your author business if you’re exclusive to Amazon with everything.

You’re also missing out on a significant market through other platforms, including your own store if you want to sell direct, as well as libraries and many international markets.

When KDP Select makes sense

If you only have one book and are just starting out, then it’s definitely worth using KDP Select for at least the first ninety days. If you have several books in unrelated niches, and you want to focus your marketing, then it’s also potentially worth doing.

KDP Select can be especially effective if your series fits into a niche genre with voracious KU readers or markets dominated by KU books.

You can always experiment for a period, and then reassess based on your results.

If you opt into KU, this means your ebook must be Amazon exclusive only, but you can still publish your print book wide, and also your audiobook (unless you choose the exclusive option on ACX, covered further in chapter 2.8).

Going wide

Publishing wide means your ebook (and other formats) are available on every platform, in every country, and available to order in libraries. You can also sell direct through your own online store, or through crowdfunding, and subscription sites. (I’ll cover the various platforms available in the next chapter, 2.6.)

If you have multiple books in a series and you want to make a living with your writing for the long term, then going wide to other platforms with at least some books is the best idea, in my opinion.

You’ll reach more readers in different markets and build a more diverse and resilient ecosystem. You won’t be subject to the many changes that impact KDP Select authors, and you won’t have to worry about being targeted by scammers who focus on those in KU.

But again, you can start exclusive and expand over time as you are not locked in forever.

The advantages of going wide

Publishing wide is often the choice for authors who have multiple books in a series, who are serious about a long-term business as an author, and who want the security of multiple streams of income.

Market diversification is the main benefit. Algorithm hiccups at one retailer won’t decimate your entire livelihood, and you can make higher royalties from selling direct, especially with ebook bundle deals.

You’ll be able to reach readers on all the other ebook platforms and have a truly global business. You can also have your ebook in non-exclusive subscription programs like Kobo Plus, as well as libraries.

The challenges of going wide

If you sell wide, you need to think about updating your ebook files on multiple stores, and market differently to different readers on different platforms.

Wide readers often discover ebooks through curated promotions rather than KU binges, and it can be slower to gain traction when you split your focus.

Options for going wide

If you decide to go wide, you face a secondary question: should you upload directly to each platform or use an aggregator?

Uploading onto each retailer means higher royalties, more control over metadata, and access to promotions, if they are offered. Using an aggregator means one upload can reach dozens of stores, libraries, and subscription services. You’ll have consolidated tax paperwork and receive a single payout.

There are many sites that sell ebooks across the world, and there is no way to individually publish to them all. Plus, you want to spend your time writing, not updating multiple publishing sites. Aggregators make the process easier, publishing your books to multiple vendors while taking a small percentage of sales in return. As your backlist grows, this can make a big difference to the work involved in updating files.

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Personally, I publish direct to Amazon KDP and Kobo Writing Life because I want to retain control of my biggest income sources as well as take advantage of their promotions.

I use aggregator Draft2Digital for most other stores, including Apple Books and Nook, and I also use PublishDrive for some retailers.

I also sell direct to my readers through my own stores at CreativePennBooks.com for non-fiction, and JFPennBooks.com for fiction and memoir, which gives me the most control and the highest royalties (over 90 percent for digital products).

I have some books in KU, primarily stand-alone fiction and my British crime thrillers — a good example of a niche genre that is dominated by KU books. I also keep my translations in KU, as I don’t want the overhead of marketing wide in languages I don’t actively use. I also publish my mum’s sweet romances as Penny Appleton, and those books are in KU, since we do minimal marketing.

I have a large backlist, so it makes sense to have books available to different types of readers in different places.

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Remember, your distribution decisions aren’t permanent. Many authors adopt a hybrid mindset, moving books between exclusive and wide distribution based on strategic goals.

You have to decide what works best for your books and your publishing process at different stages of your career. What’s right for one author might be completely wrong for another. What works for one book or series may be completely different for another.

The important thing is to make an informed choice that aligns with your specific goals and circumstances, and revisit those decisions over time.

Resources:

•   Amazon KDP Select — kdp.amazon.com/en_US/select

•   Wide for the Win: Strategies to Sell Globally via Multiple Platforms and Forge Your Own Path to Success — Mark Leslie Lefebvre

• Wide Publishing for Authors: A Guide to Expanding Your Book’s Reach and Finding More Readers — Dale L. Roberts