KDP Hates Your Low Content Books

About this video

Dale, who says he has published low-content books since 2016 and made more than a significant living from them, lists KDP’s problems with the format and his proposed solutions, in a video sponsored by Book Bolt. First, slower processing: floods of poor-quality low-content books clogged review, and some authors have waited weeks although standard approval is assured at 24 to 72 hours; he wants KDP to define the category and build a dedicated team. Second, throttled uploads: after some publishers abused auto-creation and uploading software, KDP limited daily uploads without publishing a maximum he could find. Third, no categories: a blank unicorn book is sorted as fantasy literature, harming the customer experience, so Amazon needs new browse paths. Fourth, no acknowledgement: in the CreateSpace era the topic was treated like Fight Club — do not talk about it — and KDP stayed silent until May 2022, when it acknowledged low-content books while excluding activity, puzzle and coloring books. Fifth, no expanded distribution: IngramSpark announced in early March 2020 it would no longer accept blank books or lined notebooks, requiring at least 90% written content (later loosened slightly), and because Ingram’s Lightning Source fulfils KDP expanded distribution, Dale theorises the restriction followed; he says expanded distribution had accounted for about a quarter of their low-content sales, and IngramSpark now judges such books case by case. Sixth, duplicate interiors: accounts have been suspended and terminated over them, so vary interiors and covers — Book Bolt Studio is his suggested tool. Finally, ticking the low-content box now allows publishing without wasting an ISBN, but removes Look Inside; his fix is A+ Content ‘From the Publisher’ modules with interior images and keyword-rich text to aid discoverability.

Key takeaways

• Slower processing is the first gripe: Dale says some authors have waited weeks for low-content approval although the standard time is assured at 24 to 72 hours, after floods of poor-quality books clogged the system.
• KDP throttled daily uploads after automated creation and uploading software was abused, but Dale says no maximum was published anywhere he could find — he advises asking support via the dashboard and keeping conversations by email.
• There are no proper categories for low-content books, so a lined unicorn journal can be sorted as young-adult fantasy, and until May 2022 KDP did not even acknowledge low-content books; activity, puzzle and coloring books are not counted as low content.
• Expanded distribution is unavailable for low-content books after IngramSpark’s March 2020 move against blank books requiring at least 90% written content; Dale says expanded distribution had brought in about a quarter of his low-content sales.
• Duplicate interiors have led to suspensions and terminations, so vary interiors and covers to make each book genuinely unique; ticking the low-content box now lets you publish without an ISBN, but you lose Look Inside, which Dale fixes with A+ Content showing interior images.

Episode details: published September 6, 2022 · 10:38 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Dale L. Roberts’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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