Uploading Your First Book

Getting your book onto BookAuth is straightforward and takes about 5 minutes. This guide walks you through every field, every option, and every best practice so your first book listing looks polished and professional from day one.

What You'll Learn

How to navigate to the book creation page
What each field does and how to fill it optimally
Cover image requirements and best practices
How to upload your manuscript in ePub or PDF format
How pricing models work (Free, Paid, Subscriber-Only)
How to publish or save as draft

Creating a New Book

Step 1: Navigate to the Book Creation Page

You can reach the "Add New Book" form in two ways:

From your Dashboard — click the "Add New Book" quick-action card
From the sidebar — navigate to Content > My Books, then click the "+ New Book" button in the top-right corner

Book Creation Form

Step 2: Fill In Book Details

Title

Enter your book's title exactly as you want it displayed
This appears on your book page, in search results, and on your author website
Maximum 200 characters

Synopsis

Write a compelling book description using the rich text editor
You can use bold, italic, bullet lists, and links
This is the primary sales copy that convinces readers to purchase or add your book to their reading list
Aim for 150-300 words — long enough to hook readers, short enough to scan

Pro Tip: Structure your synopsis like a movie trailer: set the scene, introduce the protagonist, hint at the central conflict, and end with a question or cliffhanger that makes the reader want to know more.

Cover Image

Upload a high-resolution book cover:

Specification	Requirement
Minimum dimensions	800×1200 pixels
Recommended dimensions	1600×2560 pixels (standard 5:8 ratio)
Accepted formats	JPEG, PNG, WebP
Maximum file size	10MB

Your cover is automatically optimized for thumbnails across the platform (search results, reading lists, book clubs, etc.).

Genres

Select up to 3 genres from BookAuth's taxonomy
Genres determine where your book appears in the browse directory and recommendations
Be specific: "Paranormal Romance" is better than just "Romance"

Step 3: Upload Your Manuscript

BookAuth accepts two manuscript formats:

Format	Best For	Notes
ePub	Digital reading	Preferred format — responsive text flow
PDF	Fixed-layout books	Good for illustrated books, cookbooks, art books

To upload:

Click the "Upload Manuscript" area (or drag and drop your file)
Wait for the upload to complete — a progress bar shows the status
The file is automatically validated for structural integrity

Pro Tip: Don't have your book in ePub format? Tools like Calibre (free) or Vellum (Mac) can convert your Word document to professional-quality ePub.

Step 4: Set Pricing

BookAuth offers three pricing models:

Free

Available to all readers at no cost
Great for: first-in-series books, reader magnets, short stories, promotional giveaways
Readers can download immediately without checkout

Paid (Direct Sales)

Set a fixed purchase price (e.g., $4.99, $9.99, $14.99)
Readers pay through Stripe's secure checkout
You receive: sale price minus platform fee minus Stripe processing fee

Platform fees by plan:

Free plan:     You receive 92.1% of list price (5% platform + 2.9% Stripe)
Pro plan:      You receive 94.1% of list price (3% platform + 2.9% Stripe)
Business plan: You receive 95.1% of list price (2% platform + 2.9% Stripe)

Subscriber-Only

Exclusive to readers subscribed to your VIP tier
Great for bonus content, exclusive novellas, or premium editions
Subscribers get instant access; non-subscribers see an upgrade prompt

Step 5: Set the Book Status

Status	Meaning	Visible to Readers?
Draft	Work in progress, not publicly visible	❌ No
Published	Live and discoverable on the platform	✅ Yes

Save as Draft if you want to continue editing before going live
Set to Published when you're ready for readers to discover your book

Step 6: Save or Publish

Click "Save as Draft" to save without publishing
Click "Publish" to make your book live immediately

Published books are:

Instantly searchable in the BookAuth catalog
Displayed on your author website's book listing
Eligible for ARC campaigns
Available for purchase (if priced)

After Publishing

Once your book is live:

Share the book URL with your audience — each book gets a permanent link
Launch an ARC campaign to build pre-launch review momentum
Send a newsletter to your subscribers announcing the new release
Create a discount code for a launch promotion
Check Analytics to track views, purchases, and engagement

AI-Powered Metadata

If you're on a Pro or Business plan, the AI Assistant can help with book setup:

"Analyze my book and suggest genres" — AI reads your synopsis and recommends the best genre fit
"Generate tags for my book" — creates keyword tags based on your synopsis and genre
"Write me a book synopsis" — drafts compelling sales copy based on a brief description you provide
"Suggest content warnings for my book" — identifies potential content warnings based on your manuscript

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I edit my book after publishing?
A: Yes! You can update any field (title, synopsis, cover, pricing, manuscript) at any time. Changes take effect immediately.

Q: Is there a limit to how many books I can publish?
A: No. All plans, including Free, support unlimited book listings.

Q: Can I unpublish a book?
A: Yes. Change the status back to Draft to remove it from public visibility. Existing purchases and downloads remain valid.

Q: What happens if I upload a new manuscript version?
A: The new file replaces the old one. Readers who already purchased the book will have access to the updated version.

Q: Can I sell the same book on Amazon and BookAuth simultaneously?
A: Yes. BookAuth does not require exclusivity. You can sell on as many platforms as you like.

Managing Book Metadata & Details
Book Cover Images — Requirements & Best Practices
Book Pricing — Free, Paid & Subscriber-Only
Book Status Lifecycle (Draft → Published → Archived)
Genres, Tags & Content Warnings