3 BIG Amazon KDP Mistakes New Publishers Make (And How to Avoid Them)

Stop Overthinking, Start Publishing: KDP Mistakes You Must Avoid

Hi, my name is Subha and I have been publishing low content and medium content books on Amazon KDP since 2017. When I started, I made my fair share of mistakes.

In this post, I’m going to break down the three biggest mistakes beginners make on KDP — and exactly how you can avoid them so you can keep publishing books for years to come.

So let’s get right into it.

Here’s the Thing Most Beginners Get Wrong

Most beginners never publish their first book. It is not because Amazon KDP is hard. It is not because creating an interior or a cover is hard. And It’s definitely not because this model is not for beginners.

It’s because they make simple mistakes from the very beginning.

As they are new to this business model, they don’t know the basics. They tend to make mistakes that may lead them to quit — or even worse, get their account banned.

Let’s talk about those mistakes.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Mistake #1: Trying to Learn Everything at Once

They try to learn a lot of things at once. They want to master everything very fast.

They:

• Watch random tutorials
• Jump between tools and strategies
• Switch between niches
• Watch every YouTube video
• Download every free eBook

They try to learn everything as fast as possible. This is the number one mistake:

Trying to learn everything at once and trying to learn everything as soon as possible.

How to Avoid Mistake #1

Follow one clear, step-by-step process.

Pick one person, one course, one eBook — one source of information — and stick to it.

Start small.

• Create your first interior.
• Create your first cover.
• Upload it onto Amazon KDP.

Your focus should be finishing — not mastering everything.

Create a very simple book interior and a very simple book cover and publish it on Amazon KDP. Then improve with every new book.

So the solution is simple:

• Start simple
• Follow one person or one channel
• Use one source of information
• Create your first interior
• Create your first cover
• Publish on Amazon
• Improve while creating your second book

Mistake #2: Choosing Bad or Risky Niches

Most beginners try to copy trending ideas. They create books blindly.

They ignore copyrights and trademarks.

They end up entering saturated markets like coloring books for adults — very saturated and surface-level niches — and they end up making no sales.

In worst cases, they even lose their account due to copyright or trademark violations.

How to Avoid Mistake #2

Think simple and beginner friendly. Validate demand before creating any book.

Always check trademark safety. You should use the USPTO website and other relevant trademark sites. You need to check all your book ideas for trademark and copyright issues before publishing.

Also avoid very highly competitive, surface-level niches where tens of thousands of books are already live on Amazon.

So again:

• Think simple
• Think beginner friendly
• Validate demand
• Check trademarks and copyrights
• Avoid highly competitive niches

Do the research process before uploading any book.

Mistake #3: Overcomplicating Book Creation

Yes, it is always right to validate and research your book first. But overcomplicating book creation is also a mistake.

If you are a beginner and you are trying to create one of the best covers in your niche before publishing, you are making a mistake.

• Create a decent cover.
• Create a decent book.
• Make it live.
• Then track how it’s working.

You can always improve later.

You can:

• Upload a new cover
• Change keywords
• Update your listing

Many beginners wait for perfection before publishing.

How to Avoid Mistake #3

If you are just getting started and you don’t know the whole process, your first goal is to learn:

• How to create an interior
• How to upload it onto Amazon KDP
• How the research process works

That’s why you need to start simple. You can create very simple interiors using Canva. I have videos about that on my channel.

Focus on getting your first book live on Amazon. Then improve after gaining experience. But don’t use copyrighted or trademarked words just to get your book live. Don’t take shortcuts that can lead to an account ban.

What I mean is: Start simple, do your homework, do your due diligence, and get your first book live on Amazon.

If You Need Help Getting Started

If you don’t know where to get KDP templates, you can download 15 free beginner-friendly KDP templates. 👉You can get them here.

👉 If you want a full step-by-step roadmap, you can check out Amazon KDP for Beginners — it’s my course. It is beginner friendly, simple, practical, and currently highly discounted.

If you have questions, let me know in the comments. I’m happy to answer.

Thanks for reading. See you in the next one.

Subha