5 Mistakes I Made Publishing My First Children's Book on KDP

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5 Mistakes I Made Publishing My First Children's Book on KDP

Рет қаралды 59,426

Heather Cash Art

Күн бұрын

Пікірлер: 143

@SeanFournier Жыл бұрын

I wouldn’t call them mistakes, because it seemed like you learned a lot from your projects! Thanks for sharing

@davidclark573 26 күн бұрын

KDP scammed me out of over $3000 dollars.

@1muddonna Жыл бұрын

2:45-Most important thing with your first children's book is just to get it finished and out there. If you obsess about mistakes, you may not finish. Thanks for reinforcing this for me :) I've had an idea for a children's book for 15 years but always delayed because I didn't feel my art skills were perfect enough. Finally just committed to finishing the book and publishing it and learn from the process. I only have one more drawing to go!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

That is awesome!!! Congratulations! ❤️❤️❤️

@halfofayellowmango2661 Жыл бұрын

Woohoo!! Would love to know how it goes!

@greener-garden-tips 5 ай бұрын

How did your sells go? I think it's cute!

@jessalinburchette1549 Жыл бұрын

I love how this book looks as all spreads. It’s really eye catching and vibrant.

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Thank you!!

@happycutebox Жыл бұрын

Would be great to see a video on the extra pages needed e.g.copyright

@angelinaluksosova3114 5 ай бұрын

Yes please ❤

@suzum5689 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this! I'm about to start my official writing journey and am immersing myself in 'publishing' videos. :)

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Awesome!! So glad you like it. Good luck!!

@melzworld90 Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for this video, Heather. Really makes me, a new KDP author, relax a little bit and stop beating myself up for making mistakes or trying just hard to get everything right. Could you also share how you were able to market/publicize/advertise your book?

@CarolSoisson-xp9tc Жыл бұрын

Everyone makes mistakes no matter how many books you have in print. That's why many authors don't go back and read their books again after publication. There's always something you want to change or a mistake may be found. Had several people read my manuscript before publishing and still found four or five places where a character name was spelled wrong after publication. Thanks for sharing your great information in all your videos. Haven't done a picture book yet, but hope to sometime. Your videos will be helpful for that.

@CIXFARM Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for sharing your experience. You are making it more easier on people like us who plan to publish their books soon!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Aww I'm so glad!!! ❤️❤️❤️

@agathaella2460 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Heather. I appreciate. Struggling with making mine perfect before putting it out there but I have learned not to, thanks to you. Please do a follow up video. 💕

@HeatherCashArt 2 жыл бұрын

Yay!! So glad you like it!!!

@Reality806 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the information. These 5 learning tools are great to hear from someone I have something in common with. I'm currently working on my second children's book, so I'll be cognitive of these 5 learning tools. Thanks again for the insight! ❤

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Awesome! Thank you, so glad you like the video!

@mraccord Жыл бұрын

Yes!!! We'd love to see a remastered version!😍

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Yay!!

@3PairDesigns Жыл бұрын

I think your book is adorable, so keep doing what you are doing, it is beautiful!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Aww, thank you so much!!!

@lynettepetersen9255 11 ай бұрын

VERY helpful! Thank you for being so transparent!

@HeatherCashArt 11 ай бұрын

Aw, you're so welcome!

@bex4741 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the videos would be cool to see one on a new layout. I have also done all spreads

@helpmetosleep Жыл бұрын

The all spreads seem great to me.... Just started vid. Not sure if it needs to say more than "copyrighted material" - def agree with "just get it out there."

@deenpoppyeats607 2 жыл бұрын

I’d like to see a video on how you promoted your book. There might already be one and I didn’t see it.

@crochetilico 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Heather for sharing those very interesting statements.😍

@HeatherCashArt 2 жыл бұрын

You're welcome!

@rsai1058 7 ай бұрын

You are so relatable and give great advice! Thank you !

@HeatherCashArt 7 ай бұрын

Aww thank you for your kind words! 💕

@mange2 Жыл бұрын

I was all excited today about getting my first Children's book published. I joined Amazon KDP and to my absolute horror, discovered their minimum colour page count is 72 pages. How on earth do you create a 72 page story for pre school or toddlers? The only option seems to be a book with multiple stories.

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Do not fear! The answer is here 🙂 kzfaq.infohmp59Z61UVs?feature=share

@zvit 2 жыл бұрын

"The Cat in The Hat," "Green Eggs and Ham," and most of Dr, Seuss's books are drawn on spreads; not pages. So, why do you regret doing that?

@HeatherCashArt 2 жыл бұрын

Ha! Nice! I didn't realize that. Thanks for pointing that out 🙂

@heidimccarthy5127 2 жыл бұрын

Great advice as always, Heather!

@HeatherCashArt 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you!

@alisagreen3162 Жыл бұрын

Great video! I appreciate you sharing your tips! Best to you on your next project...💚

@mrkengage Жыл бұрын

Love this concept for a video! Very helpful too! Thanks for the upload!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

@acmccants_songwriter Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing this useful information. You could also make your first page a copy of your cover page.

@HeartHealingReiki Жыл бұрын

Thanks for this, your video is really helpful! LOVE your character illustrations by the way! :)

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Aww thank you so much! So glad you liked the video!!

@JessicaNiles Жыл бұрын

Nice video, good tips! Love your colorful and fun office space!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Aww, thanks so much!! ☺️

@tom-ks6hz 11 ай бұрын

I wrote my childrens book 25 years ago. I’m determined to self publish next year

@SongsbyCharleneApril 10 ай бұрын

The book looks great! Congratulations!

@HeatherCashArt 10 ай бұрын

Thank you so much!!

@S-Norah Жыл бұрын

Thanks for d 7.05 minutes Heather! ❤

@seth_fb Жыл бұрын

insightful info, thank you for sharing!

@xensan379 11 ай бұрын

Looks like its a great book, thx for sharing.

@claireslattery1753 Жыл бұрын

So helpful! Thank you!!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Yay! You're welcome!

@josequintero5476 Жыл бұрын

I loved it, its like a comic.

@pruedanon2248 Жыл бұрын

thanks for this its super useful.

@YaaFrimpong Жыл бұрын

very insightful, thanks for sharing

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

@themagictreehouse_ Жыл бұрын

Thanks for this info!

@analyst1777 Жыл бұрын

Will you discuss cost of getting a book illustrated?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Do you mean hiring an illustrator? I will think about doing a video on that.

@manifestmyreality2025 Жыл бұрын

where do you go to have the books printed to hard copy before you sell on Amazon?

@veerukabaka6470 7 ай бұрын

This is awesome thanks for the lessons. How do you illustrate, do you have a video for non artists?

@HeatherCashArt 7 ай бұрын

Do you mean like how to draw videos, or creating scenes without drawing them yourself (like using Canva elements)?

@tg4941 Жыл бұрын

Hi Heather I just subbed thank you for all your advice. I luckily found Procreate on my iPad air during lockdown and was able to do my illustrations. Have you now designed all your book on your iPad using Adobe and Photoshop? Or Is it better collating all the info on a bigger computer screen?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! Thank you so much for watching and subbing! 😊 In my opinion it is sooo much easier to do the layout on the computer. I pretty much only use my iPad for drawing and then do everything else on the computer. 🙂

@tg4941 Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt yes I wondered that. The iPad is small screen and I haven't tried Adobe or Photoshop on it. Thanks for your advice it helps me a lot.

@luisrivera5314 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing

@cheery-hex Жыл бұрын

thank you muchly for this :)

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

You're very welcome 🙂

@leonelvilela5531 Ай бұрын

Hi, thank you so much for this video! What size is your book in the background Alphabet Safari?

@HeatherCashArt Ай бұрын

Hi! It is 8.25" wide by 6" high 🙂

@syl3317 Жыл бұрын

Great! Thank you for the Information😊! Is there a tutorial how to upload a children book on KDP? I cant find it anywhere!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

You're so welcome! Yes it is right here! kzfaq.info/get/bejne/b8qAdKqnttibqo0.html

@metalkingtohorses Жыл бұрын

I love all spreads but I feel like it would be costly, your book looks awesome

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Oh do you mean like if you are paying someone else to illustrate?

@metalkingtohorses Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt yes and also full color I'm an artist and the price for full color raises the book cost but its worth it, I'm taking your advice on my kids book and making it extremely inconsistent it will probably make you cringe but I am total opposite of consistent I will send you a link when its published .

@metalkingtohorses Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt what do artists get paid these days for illustrations do you know?

@kateearley9482 4 ай бұрын

Do you know by chance if there is a way on KDP where you can do a hardcover landscape orientation for a children’s book? Can’t seem to find the answer anywhere , Thanks Kate

@HeatherCashArt 4 ай бұрын

Hi! Unfortunately no, not in KDP. KDP only offers 5 options for trim size: 5.5x8.5, 6x9, 6.14x9.21, 7x10, and 8.5x11. They are all portrait orientation.

@kateearley9482 4 ай бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt Hi Heather, thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly! You have helped tremendously! I couldn’t find a straight answer anywhere else. Also thank you for your helpful videos!

@HeatherCashArt 4 ай бұрын

@@kateearley9482 aw, you're so welcome! 💕

@azeemahumar8931 Жыл бұрын

Hi Heather, can you please tell me how you got good quality paper? As my author's copy just got here and the interior seems very bad quality wise. Extremely light paper. And that is supposed to be the premium quality. What advise can you give?

@yeesh8450 6 ай бұрын

Hey I ordered a proof copy but the pages are not glossy I’m not sure what option I am not selecting, I selected glossy for the cover but the actual pages are not great please help 😢 thank you

@HeatherCashArt 6 ай бұрын

The pages aren't really super glossy... If you picked premium color that's the highest quality you can get from KDP but it's not amazing or anything. If quality is super important to you I recommend IngramSpark.

@thistledownsfarm8373 Жыл бұрын

Very helpful video! Do you have any more info on creating a copyright page?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

I don't but I will add it to my list of videos to make!

@Persistent_Group 9 ай бұрын

Do you have a video showing how to register a book for copywriting?

@HeatherCashArt 9 ай бұрын

You don't need to, it is already copyrighted the moment you create it, due to the Artist's Copyright.

@Moreno2774 9 ай бұрын

@HeatherCashArt, thanks for the response, Heather. And one more thing if you dont mind, what if I want to use a Pen name and not my actual name, do I need to register it then?

@HeatherCashArt 9 ай бұрын

@@Moreno2774 No it is still your property. 🙂

@SLB-re1sp Жыл бұрын

I’m trying to get my first book out but stuck at the error message of “content out of margin” and “fonts not correctly embedded”. I tried following kdp instructions to fix those issues to no avail.. so frustrating!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! For content out of margin, it sounds like you probably have text outside of the margin. Just pull the text in some more! For the fonts - what program are you laying your book out in? You'll either need to make sure it embeds the fonts (there should be a checkbox when you are exporting) OR just flatten everything (which I think is the better option, less chance that it will look different after uploading).

@jaxkewl 11 ай бұрын

is the copyright page part of the standard 32 pages that you create? where did you find a template copyright page? also do you wish you had done a back cover, maybe a picture and summary on the back?

@HeatherCashArt 11 ай бұрын

Hi! Yes the copyright page along with any other non-story pages does count toward the number of pages in the book. Re: Copyright text, I just kind of grabbed different things from different sources (like looking inside books I have for example) to come up with something. If you want I can send you my sample text, just email me at heather@heathercash.com. and now that we are talking about it I realize I should probably put it on my website for people to be able to access it easily! I did do a back cover with a summary! Thanks for the great questions ☺️

@timm2020 Жыл бұрын

What do you do if your book is only say 10 pages? KDP has a a 24 page minimum how do you get around that?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! You can try adding some "filler" pages, like a copyright page, and a title page, and also put blank pages between each of those. You can also try putting a blank page between each illustrated page, so basically when you're flipping through the book, you have the illustration on the right, and blank on the left, if that makes sense. Also if you have 2 blank pages in the beginning (which is the equivalent of 1 sheet of paper since the pages are two sided) and 2 blank pages / single sheet at the end, that will take care of 4 pages. But you can't have like 10 blank pages in a row. Another option if it's a children's book is to have the image on the left and text on the right or vice versa. Hope that helps!

@marc-andregarcia7776 Жыл бұрын

Hey! Very nice video thanks! I have a question can you take the book of your video as an exemple and tell me what parameters you used on KDP amazon website? Like number of page, size of the book hardcover etc ? Thank you !

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! Yes it is 8.25x8.25, 24 pages, paperback 🙂

@meerabahl5344 Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for your input! Do you use Amazon Ads or other tools to promote your books?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! I've only dabbled in the ads, I did get sales from it but I ended up with no profit because the ads cost too much 🫤 I don't get many sales, only some here and there. I do sell locally at local shops where I live, and that goes great.

@meerabahl5344 Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt Thanks for an honest reponse, Heather, appreciate it!

@canadacpaonlineacademy4451 Жыл бұрын

I am getting an error that the hardcover needs 72 pages. Am I selecting something wrong?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hardcovers do need to be that many pages. If you have less, you'll need to do a softcover book (like mine).

@sharayprevost7122 Жыл бұрын

I think this is super cute, no mistakes

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Aww thank you Sharay ☺️

@mihaelacaprita8510 Жыл бұрын

Hi please can you tell me what program you use to create the image? Thank you!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! For most of the images in this book I painted them traditionally with acrylic on canvas. But then towards the end I got an iPad pro and used Procreate. For the book I'm working on now, I am also using Procreate on my iPad pro.

@thewriterchick134 Жыл бұрын

Hi, I am an established author and earlier this year began my journey into writing children's books. I thought I had done my homework but recently found out Amazon requires a children's book to be at least 24 pages. Mine is not. I have been working with an illustrator and am pretty far into the process and she did not tell me. I admit, I should have checked but it never dawned on me to do that. I have been counting on this book being released this year. I have book signings set up and don't know what to do! I reached out to the artist and I am waiting to hear back from her. Any advice? Thank you!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! How many pages is your children's book? You can always add more filler pages like cover page, copyright page, about the author, dedication, and you can even put a blank page between each of these (essentially making them single-sided). I've even seen some other fun ideas like "this book belongs to ________", first and last having a neat pattern made with the book artwork, activity pages... The possibilities are really endless!

@marianchus Жыл бұрын

Hi Heather, thanks so much for your video. I am having problems with resolution, I designed my book in Adobe Illustrator, 8,5 x 8,5 inches, I export in RGB in the highest quality possible, but when I see the art on Kindle Kids' Book Creator the quality looks very bad. Not sure what to do as it is exported as the highest resolution possible. What can I do? Do you have a video about this? Or can you help me?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hmm, I wonder if it might just be the preview. Did you try exporting to mobi & viewing the final version? Feel free to send me a sample of what you're importing into kids book creator and I'll be happy to take a look! heather@heathercash.com

@marianchus Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt Oh, now that you mentioned, I am referring at the view before exporting. You mean when the file is exported the quality gets better? I am going to try to export. Also, can I create 1 file for Kindle in RGB and in the right proportions for Kindle and then another file in CMYB with a 8,5" x 8,5" size for printing?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

@@marianchus I'm not sure if the quality will get better. But I figured it's worth a shot :) Yes, you can create an RGB file for Kindle and then a CMYK file for print. Just remember it won't be exactly 8.5x8.5, it will need to include a little extra for bleed. If you export he book and still have issues with the quality, email me your Illustrator file and your PDF that you're generating from it, and I will take a look. :) heather@heathercash.com

@marianchus Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt You are so awesome!!! Thanks so much for helping me!! I might drop you a line if I get too stuck! Keep the awesome work!

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

@@marianchus Aww, thanks ☺️☺️☺️

@lvciddd. 11 ай бұрын

I have used a gimp not good for book lvciddd

@HeatherCashArt 11 ай бұрын

Oh I thought that Gimp was pretty advanced by now?

@SquirreldomIsFreedom 10 ай бұрын

Have you made a children's book using Canva?

@HeatherCashArt 10 ай бұрын

Yes and I have a whole series of videos on the topic! Here is the playlist 🙂 Canva - Children's Book for Amazon KDP: kzfaq.info/sun/PLfwRTvxmUwGyGN_hvhs6ghn7zssVvy9UT

@aquariusknowsbest5379 Жыл бұрын

Hi I’m having trouble with my cover page

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

What kind of trouble?

@aquariusknowsbest5379 Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt I’m trying to combine the front and back and it’s not working I’ve completed two books but haven’t been able to post it it’s not accepting it

@aquariusknowsbest5379 Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt also if you don’t have 24 picture pages how do you get around that because there’s a minimum of 24 pages

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

@@aquariusknowsbest5379 you can add a few blank pages in the front and back.

@RaEmpress11 7 ай бұрын

What trim size did you use please?

@HeatherCashArt 7 ай бұрын

For this one I did 8.25x8.25" 🙂

@shaunnyr Жыл бұрын

Hi. Did you end up making sales from your first book?

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! I make a little here and there but not a ton.

@patricej8896 11 ай бұрын

I heard you couldn't do 2 page spreads on kdp...your all spreads arent 2 page spreads?

@HeatherCashArt 11 ай бұрын

You just can't upload it as a whole spread. You have to break it up into two pages. Check my tutorials that show you how to do it in Photoshop, Canva, or Procreate!

@patricej8896 11 ай бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt ok thanks so much. I'm going to check it now

@mac878 Жыл бұрын

How are you defining "spreads"? Do you mean two-page illustrations or color bleeding? Also, what are you referring to when you say you used "traditional media" and that you "painted it all"? Having spent several years researching self-publishing a children's picture book I haven't come cross these terms. Thanks, Heather.

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

Hi! Thanks for your questions and for watching my video! By spread I mean when an illustration spans across both the left and right page. As opposed to having, say, an illustration on the left page and text on right, or an illustration on left page and a different illustration on right page. What I mean by traditional media and painting it all is that I literally used acrylic paint on canvas for the artwork as opposed to doing the artwork digitally using an iPad or Wacom tablet. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions 🙂

@mac878 Жыл бұрын

@@HeatherCashArt Thank you, Heather. I appreciate your quick response. I thought that is what you meant but I wanted to be certain. I just haven't heard either referred to that way. So, along with being a writer, you're also an artist. As I often say, "It's hard to hide talent." Much success and take care.

@HeatherCashArt Жыл бұрын

@@mac878 Aw thank you!