I spent the day yesterday setting up an account with Amazon and KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing). I'm not sure if it will be a good platform for selling my patterns or not but thought it would be worth trying! I'm constantly on my Kindle and thought other people might be the same. Sometimes it's nice to follow a pattern from your tablet rather than looking for your paper version!
First of all, I looked at what knitting patterns were available for baby knits. I browsed through them and downloaded some samples before going on to buy one that I really liked. I realised I'd have to change the format for my patterns so that it is more like an ebook rather than a traditional printed pattern, removing the columns and rearranging some of the pictures for example.
Kindle ebooks require a front cover in a picture format such as jpeg. So I took my pattern cover, deleted the pattern and changed some of the formatting. I selected all, copied and then opened Paint and pasted it in. I had to do this a few times since some of the details were distorted when it was transferred into Paint. When I was happy with my cover, I saved it as a jpeg.
I opened up my original pattern and deleted the front cover - what was left was now my 'manuscript'. I had a few adjustments to do after changing the columns.
In Amazon, I logged into my newly created KDP account and set up the details for payments etc - which was quite time-consuming as I had to add bank details (IBAN and BIC codes - which can usually be found on a bank statement) and tax codes.
The actual adding the pattern to Amazon was quite quick and straightforward. If you don't have a front cover they offer you a option of creating one (however some people online recommend using fiverr.com for a cheap but professional cover design). The other details you have to enter are quite straightforward such as author name. There is a preview button, and it is highly recommended that you use it to check formatting issues where there are tables etc - however, each time I tried to view it, it didn't work. I think that my front cover image was such a high picture size that my computer and/or internet wasn't able to complete the action!
Finally, a message appears saying that it can take up to 72 hours for your ebook to appear on Amazon after you click 'publish' but I received a text after a few hours saying that my epattern was live and ready to view.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=premature+baby+romper&rh=n%3A341677031%2Ck%3Apremature+baby+romper
Would love this romper pattern if you do it as a printed pattern angela
ReplyDeleteThank you for your interest in my pattern. If you contact me via Etsy (AngelaTurnerDesigns) I could set up a listing for a printed copy of the romper pattern especially for you. Could you advise me on your location if you are outwith the UK so that I can get a quote for postage from the post office, thanks.
Delete🐑 Angela