How to keep publishing on KDP after Publishing.com

You can keep publishing on KDP after Publishing.com's closure. Gather the work you already have, choose one book, and focus on its next unfinished stage. You do not need to make every decision about future support at once.

Publishing.com, a self-publishing education company, has closed. Some students had unused manuscript credits. Breakthrough Publishing is honoring those credits as Breakthrough Manuscript Writer credits. Affected students are being contacted by email. If you think you qualify, claim them on our claim page with proof of purchase. Our unused-credit guide has more information.

Step 1: Gather your books and files

Make a simple list of your live books, finished drafts, partial manuscripts and outlines. For each project, record its stage, the account access you have and where its working files are saved.

Find the latest manuscript, cover source and exports, images, listing text and research notes. If a file is missing, mark it as missing. Check similarly named files before choosing one, and save an untouched copy before editing.

For live books, record the edition and retailer identifier beside the matching files. This helps you know which manuscript belongs to which edition when you make an update.

Step 2: Choose one project to move forward

Look at both readiness and importance. A nearly finished manuscript with a clear reader may be a good place to start. It does not have to take priority just because it is closest to completion.

Find the first task holding that book up. Write a missing chapter before formatting. Resolve unclear image permissions before using the images. If the description promises something the book does not deliver, bring them into line.

Give your next milestone a clear result. For example: “Complete the chapter on choosing containers,” or “Approve the edited manuscript for formatting.” That tells you what you are working toward.

Write down the next action for your other books, too. You can come back to them without having to remember where you left off.

Step 3: Read the manuscript against its promise

Read the outline and full draft together. Check that every promised topic is covered and that the chapters introduce the basics before asking readers to use them.

Work through three passes:

1. Structure: find missing sections, repetition, abrupt jumps and material that belongs elsewhere.
2. Substance: check facts, instructions, examples and whether they suit the reader.
3. Prose: improve wording, transitions, consistency and readability once the content is settled.

Imagine a first-time pet-care guide that uses equipment terms several chapters before explaining them. Moving the definitions may solve the problem. You may not need to rewrite the whole book.

Keep hypothetical examples clearly labeled. Explain ideas without inventing personal experience, success stories or credentials for the author.

Our manuscript editing guide gives a fuller review sequence for AI-drafted material.

Step 4: Choose where you need help

You may know what your reader needs but want help making a consistent print layout. Or you may be comfortable with formatting and need an editor to review the book's argument.

For any task you hire someone to do, write a short brief. Include the files you will supply, the result you want, the book format and the decisions already made. Ask what you will still need to do yourself. This makes quotes easier to compare.

Breakthrough's publishing services include separate editing, proofreading and formatting offers. Editing can address structure and prose. Proofreading focuses on smaller errors. Formatting turns settled content into files for readers. Choose the service that fits your book's current stage.

Software can help with individual tasks, too. Review each draft or description to make sure it suits the book before moving on.

Step 5: Prepare and preview each format

Set the print specifications before finalizing the cover wrap. Trim size, interior choices and final page count affect production. Changes after layout can alter the page count and mean more cover work.

Review print and ebook files separately. A printed worksheet can sit beside its instructions. A reflowable ebook needs to make sense when a reader changes the text size. Check both reading experiences.

KDP's manuscript preparation guidance covers print setup, including trim, margins and bleed. Follow the current guidance for your format and preview the uploaded files before submitting them.

Record corrections precisely. “Chapter three, second table, final row is cut off” is easier to fix than “the layout looks strange.” Open the corrected export and check it again.

Step 6: Check the listing against the book

Compare the title, subtitle, author name and description with the cover and interior. Check every specific promise: chapters, exercises, recipes, templates, age ranges and included resources. Make sure the reader gets what the listing describes.

Choose keywords and categories that fit the book. If a live book's files and listing are accurate, you do not need to change them simply because your support has changed.

Use KDP's metadata guidelines when entering the listing. Course notes can still help you understand the work; check the retailer's current instructions for the submission itself.

Save the final listing text with that edition's files. You will have it ready for later corrections and can avoid bringing back an old description by mistake.

Step 7: Plan a manageable week

Choose a short list of things to finish. For example, you might review the remaining chapters, resolve image questions and prepare a clean manuscript for formatting. Set the pace around the work your book needs.

Leave room for corrections. If you find a factual issue or a problem in the preview, adjust the schedule and fix it before publishing.

At the end of the week, note what is complete, what still needs an answer and what comes next. Keeping that record makes it easier to pick up your book again, even if your tools or support change.