Can You Publish a Book For Free? (Explained in 2023) – Writing Beginner

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Books, Is commanding substantial observance, isn’t it? Today’s date, let’s explore some Can You Publish a Book For Free? (Explained in 2023) – Writing Beginner that you may not know about in this article on Camilledimaio!

The assessment of the article Can You Publish a Book For Free? (Explained in 2023) – Writing Beginner


Quick view

For most people, the cost of publishing a book is a major deciding factor.

Even if the cost isn’t your main focus, you’ll probably want to know how you can publish a book for free (or cheaper) so that you can save money producing your book and make more money with sales on the back end.

C

Yes, you can absolutely publish your book for free. Traditional publishing is free. You can also publish for free online at sites like KDP, Smashwords, Lulu, or even on your own website. Not only that, but you can also edit your book for free, format your book for free, create a book cover for free, and promote your book online for free.

The good news is that there are lots of options for publishing your book for free online and the selection process isn’t always obvious. So keep reading and I’ll show you, step-by-step, exactly how to publish your book for free in a way that best suits you and your book.

How to Publish Your Book For Free

(This post may have afilliate links. Please see my full disclosure)
Image by the author via Canva—Can you publish a book for free?

Can you publish your book for free? There are several options for publishing your book at no cost. The two big categories are traditional publishing and self-publishing, so let us start with those two.

Traditional publishing is where you complete your book, write a query letter to literary agents, sign a contract with a literary agent, and get a contract with a publishing house that publishes your book at no cost to you. Never sign with a literary agent or publisher that charges money to read, review or publish your books. It’s usually a scam.

  • P
  • H
  • H
  • M
  • S

Smaller publishing companies are sometimes called “indie publishers”. These can be easier to reach and often don’t require a literary agent but have much less reach.

Read More :   How to Take a Screenshot on Any Phone or Laptop

Self-publishing is where you publish the book yourself without the help of a literary agent or publishing company.

Traditional Publishing Vs. Self-Publishing: How Should You Publish Your Book For Free?

Traditional publishing is a slower and more competitive approach to publishing where the literary agent and publisher take a cut of your profits. On the plus side, they help and coach you so you are not going it alone.

And bigger publishing houses can massively increase your reach to readers.

If you choose the traditional publishing route, check out this YouTube video on the best practices for querying literary agents. It will significantly boost your learning curve and speed up your results.

Can you publish a book for free? Yes, but you may need a literary agent. Watch this video!

With self-publishing, you are by definition doing it all yourself. Yes, you can hire coaches, PR specialists and marketing, but all of that is not free.

There is much more work with self-publishing. On the pro side, you keep more of the profits.

And there are many online websites that will help publish your book at no upfront cost to you in exchange for a cut of your profits every time you make a sale.

This next video by bestselling author Gillian Perkins is a great resource for deciding on self-publishing vs. traditional publishing:

20 Places to Publish Your Book Online For Free

There are tons of places online to publish your book for free. Some are more obvious, while others few authors even know about.

In fact, I found so many that I made this chart with their site names, the format they publish in (eBooks or print or both), whether or not they require exclusive sales rights (meaning that you can only sell your books through them), and how much commission they take from your book sales.

All of these factors matter in making the best decision on where to publish your books free online.

After the chart, I’ll give you my recommendations on where to publish your book for free whether you are a beginner or are more experienced.

Read More :   book - Spanish translation – Linguee

Publish Books for Free Chart

NAME FORMAT EXCLUSIVE YOUR PROFIT
Payhip Ebooks No 95%
KDP – Amazon Ebooks Yes Up to 70%
CreateSpace – Amazon Print Yes Up to 70%
Lulu Ebooks No 90%
Tradebit Ebooks No 25-75% Depends on price of your book
Scribd Ebooks No 80%
BookTango Ebooks No 100%
Nook Press – Barnes & Nobel Ebooks No 65%
Kobo Ebooks No 100%
Smashswords Ebooks No 80%
Clickbank Ebooks No 50%
Apple Books Ibooks Ebooks Yes 70%
Draft2Digital Ebooks No 90%
Google Play Ebooks No Based on price of book
ZipSell (Open source software) Ebooks No 100%
GumRoad Ebooks No Transaction fee of .5% + $.30 per charge
Fetch Ebooks No 100%
Easy Digital Downloads Ebooks No 100%
WooCommerce Ebooks No 100%
Your Website! Ebooks or Print No 100%
T

On all 20 sites, you can publish and sell your books 100% for free. Can you publish a book for free? That’s “yes” times twenty.

That’s definitely the way I would recommend you start. You can also see that most of these sites also take a small to large commission but offer more tools and more exposure for your book.

  • F
  • For intermediate to pro – Your own website (using one of the free apps or software mentioned in the chart)

Where to Publish A Book Online For Free As a Beginner

If you are a beginner, I highly suggest Kindle Direct Publishing. Why? Because they handle all of the details of publishing for you.

It’s simply an easier way to get set up quickly and started selling your book without all the fuss of having to do it manually, by yourself – and without the financial burden of hiring someone to do it for you.

You also get massive exposure from Amazon. There really is nothing else like it. Many Ebook authors say that Amazon outperforms all their other outlets – combined!

Where to Publish a Book Online for Free With More Experience

On the other hand, if you are a little more experienced, and have at least 10,000 views or more per month on your website, then I recommend publishing the book yourself on your self-hosted website. I use Bluehost because they are waaaaaay cheaper than many other hosting companies but still have all the features you will need to sell your book.

Read More :   Literary Genres - Recommended Literature List (CA Dept of Education)

When you sell your books off your own website, you have complete control of the presentation, you cut out the middleman, and did I mention that you get 100% of the profits? 🙂

So start with KDP, get a little experience, then move to selling ebooks and other digital products directly from your own self-hosted website using some of the tools in the chart (like EasyDigitalDownload, ZipSell, etc). Keep upgrading your tools as you earn income. That’s the smart and sustainable way to approach book publishing.

How To Publish A Book For Free With KDP

  1. Go to KDP
  2. C
  3. C
  4. Follow the on-screen directions to upload your book file, create a book cover, format, and publish your book.

Here is a short video to show you exactly how easy it is to sign in and get started:

Can you write a book for free? Yes, on KDP. Watch this video!

How to Publish A Book for Free On Your Website

If you want to know the easiest answer to “Can you publish a book for free?”, this is the section for you!

  1. Save your book as a PDF.
  2. Create a private page on your website or simply upload your PDF to Google Drive (or your other preferred cloud storage).

How Do You Get Paid From Publishing a Free Book Online?

If you just published with KDP, your book will become available on amazon.com as a Kindle ebook. (Note: This often takes a few days)

When somebody purchases your book on Amazon, you will receive a royalty payment through your KDP account. When you set up your account, you can direct deposit payments right into your bank account.

FYI: You can also publish your book as a print softcover through Amazon. Use CreateSpace for print books or ACX

If you published your book on your own website, follow these simple steps to get paid.

  1. If you don’t already have an account, set one up with PayPal (or your favorite payment app like CashApp). This is how you will get paid.
  2. Note, if you are on a paid, hosted website (such as WordPress.org), then you can use different applications such as an online shopping cart or store on your website, or sign up for one of the free services mentioned in the chart, like Fetch. However, PayPal is probably the easiest way to go for your free website with WordPress.com site, Wix or another free site builder.
  3. When someone purchases your book (by paying you through PayPal, for example) you give them access to your book by sending a link to Google Drive or (if the file size is low), you can perhaps just zip the file and email it to them.

Note: It’s always a good idea to check into the tax laws in your country and state to ensure that you are in compliance.

Conclusion: Can You Publish a Book for Free?

If publishing a book yourself on your own website sounds confusing or overwhelming, I totally get it. I remember feeling the same way when I first started.

Just remember, you always have an easy way to publish with KDP. That’s how you can publish a book for free.

Related posts:

  • How To Write Like Danielle Steel (10 Ways)
  • 15 Best Software for Writing a Book With Pictures (Solved)
  • What Is Copymatic? (Explained for Beginners W/ Examples)
  • How Long Does It Take To Become a Writer? (SOLVED)

Frequently asked questions

How To Get A Book Published For Free


Related Posts

How & Why I Annotate (9 Methods)

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Q&A Book, Is attracting a great deal of focus, isn’t it? Today’s date, let’s explore some…

Spoilers and Discussion Post for Every Vow You Break – Jen Ryland Reviews

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Q&A Book, Is drawing significant notice, isn’t it? Today’s date, let’s explore some Spoilers and Discussion…

Rhaenyra Targaryens fate in the books will make for grim viewing in HotD

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Books, Is receiving considerable concentration, isn’t it? At present, let’s explore some Rhaenyra Targaryens fate in…

Virgin River Fans Have Noticed Major Differences Between The Books & The Show

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Q&A Book, Is receiving considerable concentration, isn’t it? At present, let’s explore some Virgin River Fans…

Who was Enoch in the Bible?

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Books, Is receiving considerable concentration, isn’t it? Today’s date, let’s explore some Who was Enoch in…

Devin Booker

The article about %%Keyword%%, which is currently a popular topic of Q&A Book, Is receiving considerable concentration, isn’t it? At present, let’s explore some Devin Booker that…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *