Should I Publish My Book as a Serial on Royal Road or Wattpad First?

You can serialize a book on a free site first and still sell it on Amazon later, but the order matters if you want Kindle Unlimited. Amazon’s KDP Select program asks that your Kindle ebook is exclusive to Amazon while you are enrolled. So before you post a single chapter, decide whether KDP Select is part of your plan.

Can I post my book for free and then sell it on Amazon?

Yes. Wattpad’s terms of use (last revised 13-May-19) say “You own all the rights to the content you create and post on the Wattpad Services.” You give Wattpad a nonexclusive licence to publish it there, and the terms allow you to advertise the sale of your content in ebook or printed form on outside platforms. Nonexclusive means you can license the same work to others.

One more line in those terms is worth knowing: Wattpad says it can remove content you post for any reason. Keep your own copy of every chapter.

Royal Road has its own terms. Read them before you post there, in particular the parts about rights and about removing chapters.

What does KDP Select require?

KDP’s page on KDP Select enrollment says it is a free 90-day program, and that “Your Kindle eBook must also be exclusive to the Kindle Store for the KDP Select enrollment period.” During those 90 days the ebook can only be distributed through KDP and public libraries. The same page says print and other formats can be sold elsewhere.

That is all the page says about it. It does not mention free chapters or serials on other websites, so I cannot tell you whether serial chapters count. Do not guess. Ask KDP support the exact question, in writing, and keep their answer.

What should I take down before I enroll?

Plainly, from what KDP says: the ebook itself must not be for sale or free in any other store or format while you are enrolled. If you have put the ebook on Kobo, Apple Books or your own site, it has to come off first.

For the serial, the rule is not spelled out, so here is the cautious route. It is my advice and not a KDP rule. Finish the serial, remove the chapters from Wattpad or Royal Road, wait until they are gone, and then enroll. If you want to keep a teaser up, ask KDP support whether the first few chapters are fine before you keep them there.

If you want to know what you get for giving Amazon that exclusivity, see does KDP Select promote your book and how Kindle Unlimited pays and what KENP means.

Should I serialize first at all?

It depends on what you want from the book.

• Serialize first if you want early readers and comments while you write, and you are happy to go wide (selling on many stores) with the finished book or to take the chapters down later.
• Skip it if your plan is Kindle Unlimited from launch day, because you will be taking the chapters down anyway and the readers you built may not follow you to Amazon.

Either way, serial readers behave a bit like beta readers who never stop. If you want sharper feedback on the finished draft, read how to find beta readers.

Before you decide, map your whole route from draft to launch. My free 12-step self-publishing checklist shows where distribution choices like this one fit.

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