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Amazon Kindle
Publishing Guidelines
This document describes the primary ways publishers, authors, and conversion houses can make their content available on the Amazon Kindle platform, and includes guidelines and suggestions developed to ensure a smooth conversion and publication process.
Publishing on Kindle: Guidelines for Publishers
Table of Contents
Getting Started
Paths To Getting Your Content on Kindle
Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing
Creating Kindle Books In-House Using Kindle Plugin for Adobe
InDesign
Creating Kindle Books In-House Using KindleGen and Kindle
Previewer Software
Instructions for Using KindleGen
Instructions for Installing Kindle Previewer
Third-Party Conversion Services
Formatting Guidelines
Text Guidelines
Cover Image Guidelines
Table of Contents Guidelines
Guide Item Guidelines
Image Guidelines
Table Guidelines
Adobe Digital Editions Compatibility Guidelines
Styling Guidelines
HTML Guidelines ..................................................................................................... 22
Formatting Tips ....................................................................................................... 22
Audio and Video Guidelines............................................................................ 22
Dictionary Formatting....................................................................................... 28
Inflections for Dictionaries.............................................................................. 29
Custom OPF Metadata for Dictionaries ...................................................... 30
Kindle Best Practices..................................................................................................30
Testing Kindle Books............................................................................................. 30
Kindle Quality Guidelines .................................................................................... 31
Appendices.....................................................................................................................32
Appendix A: Supported HTML Tags ................................................................ 32
Appendix B: Supported Characters................................................................. 34
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Outline
• Getting started
• Paths to get your content on Kindle
• Formatting guidelines
• Kindle best practices
Getting Started
There are several options for making your books available for the Amazon Kindle platform. Your options depend on the nature of your publications (such as file formats), the resources and technical expertise you have available, and your general eBook sales model. Amazon has both managed and self-service platforms to help publish your content as Kindle books. The Kindle book creation software and all publishing tools on Amazon are free. Once you make your titles available for Amazon Kindle, you will receive payments for every title sold. Below are examples of publishing needs we fit and more information on how to move forward:
• If you are a small publisher or author who wishes to take advantage of Amazon’s self-service tools to create Kindle Books and sell them on Amazon, read more on Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing, below.
• Publishers who have many titles to convert but do not wish to (or have the technical resources to) convert files in-house might want to consider outsourcing to a conversion house or creating Kindle books themselves using Kindle Plug-in for Adobe InDesign or KindleGen software (more info below).
Paths To Getting Your Content on Kindle
Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing
If you would like to convert your books into electronic format using Amazon's self- publishing tools and sell them on Amazon Kindle, please visit Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). KDP is a fast, easy self-publishing tool that lets you publish your digital text content for the Amazon Kindle. Simply upload your content, enter sales copy and pricing information, and publish in minutes. For more information and to sign up, please visit http://kdp.amazon.com.
Creating Kindle Books In-House Using Kindle Plugin for Adobe
InDesign
Publishers can elect to create their own Kindle books in-house from their Adobe InDesign content by using a free software program calledKindle Plugin for Adobe InDesign. This plug-in allows the publisher to convert content from InDesign into the Kindle format.
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You can download the plug-in from www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing. Installation and help documentation can be found here (link).
Creating Kindle Books In-House Using KindleGen and Kindle
Previewer Software
Publishers can elect to create their own Kindle books in-house by using a free software program called KindleGen. This is a command line tool that allows you to build a Kindle book based on HTML, so content in either HTML, XHTML, or IDPF 1.0 or 2.0 (OPF + HTML) is the best source for incorporation into an eBook.
KindleGen is the only tool officially supported by Amazon to convert files to the Kindle format. Only Kindle files created using KindleGen are guaranteed to be compatible with current and future Kindle devices and applications. Files created with third-party software may not work properly on current or future Kindle devices and readers.
The most recent version of KindleGen can be downloaded for free from our website at http://www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing.
Kindle Previewer is graphical user interface tool that emulates how books display on Kindle devices and applications. Kindle Previewer makes it easy to preview the layout of a book and make sure its text displays properly for any orientation or font size. This tool is recommended for publishers, eBook conversion companies, and individual authors in combination with KindleGen to produce the highest quality Kindle books.
Kindle Previewer is available for both Windows and Mac OS X platforms.
The most recent version of Kindle Previewer can be downloaded for free from our website at http://www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing.
Instructions for Using KindleGen
Please note that we periodically release new versions of the KindleGen software. Visit www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing to check for updates.
KindleGen for Windows:
1. Download the KindleGen zip file to your PC on your Desktop.
2. Extract it to 'c:\KindleGen'.
3. Open a command prompt; this can be done from the Start menu > All
Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt -- alternatively, you can go
to your Start menu in Windows and choose 'Run' and then type 'cmd'. This will open a black command prompt window.
4. Type 'c:\KindleGen\kindlegen'.
5. You will see instructions on how to run KindleGen.
6. To convert a file called book.html, go to the directory where the book is present, e.g., 'cd Desktop', and type 'c:\KindleGen\kindlegen book.html'; if
successful, you will see a successful conversion and a new file on your
Desktop called ‘book.mobi’.
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Please note: It is recommended that you follow these steps to run KindleGen. Double-clicking the KindleGen icon does not launch this program. Run the above commands without quotes.
KindleGen for Linux:
1. Download the KindleGen tar.gz to your PC in a location such as your home
(~) directory.
2. Extract it under '~/KindleGen'.
3. Open a command prompt and type '~/KindleGen/kindlegen'.
4. You will see instructions on how to run KindleGen.
5. To convert a file called book.html, go to the directory where the book is present, e.g., 'cd Desktop', and type '~/KindleGen/kindlegen book.html'; if
successful, you will see a successful conversion and a new file on your
Desktop called ‘book.mobi’.
Please note: It is recommended that you follow these steps to run KindleGen. Double-clicking the KindleGen icon does not launch this program. Run the above commands without quotes.
KindleGen for Mac:
1. Download the KindleGen.zip to your PC in a location such as your home (~)
directory.
2. Unzip it under '~/KindleGen'.
3. Open a command prompt and type '~/KindleGen/kindlegen'.
4. You will see instructions on how to run KindleGen.
5. To convert a file called book.html, go to the directory where the book is present, e.g., 'cd Desktop', and type '~/KindleGen/kindlegen book.html'; if successful, you will see a successful conversion and a new file on your Desktop called ‘book.mobi’.
Please note: It is recommended that you follow these steps to run KindleGen. Double-clicking the KindleGen icon does not launch this program. Run the above commands without quotes.
In order to create Amazon Kindle files using KindleGen, you will need to have a single HTML file that represents the entire book, or you will need to provide IDPF spec 1.0 or 2.0 compliant files. You can look at the IDPF’s OPF spec here:http://www.idpf.org/doc_library/epub/OPF_2.0_latest.htm.
Using the IDPF spec, you can create a Kindle book with multiple HTML files and a single OPF file that links all of them together.
Instructions for Installing Kindle Previewer
Please note that we periodically release new versions of the Kindle Previewer software. Visit www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing to check for updates.
Kindle Previewer for Windows:
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1. Download “Kindle Previewer” available for Windows from the link www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing.
2. Store the executable (KindlePreviewer.exe) to the local disk.
3. Execute “KindlePreviewer.exe” by double-clicking the .exe.
4. Accept the EULA from the dialog box with details to install Kindle Previewer.
5. Kindle Previewer will be present in Start > Programs > Amazon > Kindle
Previewer after successful installation.
Kindle Previewer for Mac:
1. Download “Kindle Previewer” available for Mac from the link www.amazon.com/kindlepublishing.
2. Save the zip file (KindlePreviewer.zip) to the local disk.
3. Double click the zip file to unzip the Kindle Previewer.
4. Drag Kindle Previewer from Downloads folder to Application folder.
5. Start Kindle Previewer.
Use F1 or the Help menu to find the Kindle Previewer User’s Guide.
Third-Party Conversion Services
Publishers have the option to outsource conversion of titles from a variety of formats to eBook formats. Conversion houses offer publishers solutions and services that include taking a variety of input formats and creating eBook or print-ready output. The typical input formats are:
• Word (.DOC, .DOCX), Rich Text Format (.rtf), Text (.txt)
• Scanning of print book
• FrameMaker, InDesign, PageMaker, QuarkXPress
• XML (i.e., DocBook, etc.)
• HTML, XHTML
• IDPF format (also known as OEB (.opf) or EPUB)
It is important to mention that the the process of converting nonreflowable content (such as PDF or scans) to reflowable content is labor intensive and requires specialized formatting knowledge.
As you explore conversion house options, it is recommended that you confirm which source format the house requires as part of their conversion of files for use on Kindle.
The preferred outputs from conversion houses to be processed by Amazon are:
• Books in Amazon Kindle format (.mobi/.prc – all 3 file extensions are equivalent)
• Metadata in ONIX format (XML)
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Amazon can also process content in EPUB source format. KindleGen will compile the file and run checks for common errors. Any errors or warnings will prevent the titles from becoming available; these will have to be addressed in the ePub file before the title publishes in the Kindle store. Also, titles in EPUB format must be tested on Amazon software and/or hardware and must abide by the publishing guidelines in this document.
Conversion houses can also be of service in helping publishers supply eBook retailers with metadata. You can search the web for “ebook conversion” to find a list of partners to work with.
Formatting Guidelines
There are differences between writing HTML for websites and for Kindle Books. There are many web page design practices that should be avoided when creating Kindle Books in order to provide the right reading experience.
Text Guidelines
Text guideline #1: normal text
The “normal” text in a Kindle book must be “all defaults.” We encourage content creators to use creative styles for headings, special paragraphs, footnotes, tables of contents, and so on, but not “normal” text. The reason for this is that any styling on “normal” text in the HTML would override the user’s preferred default reading settings. Users tend to report such behavior as a poor experience. Here are the most important points:
• “Normal” text must not have a forced alignment (left-aligned or justified).
• “Normal” text must use the default font family. The <font face=”…”> tag is ignored on the Kindle platform, but even so, make sure it is not used on “normal” text. The same applies to the CSS font-family style.
• “Normal” text must use the default font size. The <font size=”…”> tag or its equivalent in CSS should not be used in “normal” text.
• “Normal” text should not be bold or italicized. Selected parts can of course use such styling. This guideline only prohibits a book that would be entirely
bold, for example.
• “Normal” text should not have an imposed font color or background color.
• Forcing “normal” text color to white is not supported.
Text guideline #2: page breaks
Blank lines of text should not be inserted to create empty pages. Use the page break standard CSS page-break-before and page-break-after attributes.
Text guideline #3: paragraph formatting
• The first line of every paragraph is automatically indented. This behavior can be changed using the text-indent style on the <p> tag. For example:
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o <p style=”text-indent:0"> - no indentation of the first line
o <p style=”text-indent:10%"> - positive indent, 10% of the width of the page
o <p style=”text-indent:5em"> - positive indent, 5 em
o <p style=”text-indent:-10pt"> - negative indent, 10 pt
o <p style=”text-indent:-10"> - negative indent, 10 pixels
• The space before each paragraph can be changed using the “margin-top”
style on tag <p>.
• Background color can be set on text. Please note that background color may not be supported on all devices. Borders cannot be added to paragraphs.
Text guideline #4: UNICODE and supported characters
The Kindle format supports UNICODE. UNICODE characters listed in the “Appendix B: Supported Characters” section of this document exist on all Kindle devices. Do not use characters outside of the listed ranges. KindleGen will list, at the end of every compilation, all UNICODE ranges used in your publication. Use the list to check for unsupported characters.
Unsupported characters can sometimes be represented in different ways. For example, superscript-i can be represented by the Unicode code point U+2071 or using HTML <sup>i</sup>. For this particular example, Kindle supports only the latter representation.
Text guideline #5: other encodings
The source of a Kindle book can be encoded in many different ways. All encodings are supported provided that
• the encoding of your HTML files is clearly stated in the HTML, and
• the computer on which you are compiling the sources supports the encoding and knows how to convert it to UNICODE.
We recommend that you specify the encoding of your HTML files in the HTML itself using the <meta> tag in the <head> section.
<html>
<head>
…
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=iso-
8859-1">
…
Text guideline #6: spaces and control characters
• The only supported spaces are the normal space, the non-breakable space ( ) and the zero-width non-joiner (‌). Use of any other space can break selection, dictionary lookup, and line-wrap algorithms.
• “Unicode Format Characters” should NOT be used, as they may also cause problems.
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Text guideline #7: the monospaced font
Kindle uses a default font for content; it also supports a monospaced font.
The monospaced font is used to render content in the following tags: <pre>,
<code>, <samp>, <kbd>, <tt>, <font face=”courier”>, <font face=”monospace”>.
All tags listed above, with the exception of <pre>, do not change the text alignment. If the content in these tags should be left-aligned, you must wrap the previous tags in a <div align="left"> block.
Text guideline #8: CSS
The Kindle platform currently offers a very basic support for Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). If you do not obtain the desired behavior using CSS, try using inline HTML tags instead. Please make sure you preview your Kindle book before publishing it, to verify that your use of CSS elements displays the way you intended for it to display.
Text guideline #9: no page numbers
Kindle books are reflowable and can be viewed with different font sizes, so page numbers do not apply.
There should not be any reference to page numbers in the book. Cross-references should not have page numbers, nor should there be any plain text index with page numbers.
Cover Image Guidelines
Cover image guideline #1: marketing cover image is mandatory
Kindle books must have a marketing cover image provided for use on the website detail page. The preferred format for the cover is a JPEG image of 600 x 800 pixels. Covers with less than 500 pixels on the smaller side are ingested, but will not be displayed on the website. No error message is given at time of upload if the image size is too small. If your cover is smaller than the required size, do not stretch it, as this does not add any quality.
The content of your cover image should not
• infringe other publisher’s or artist’s copyrights on the same cover.
• mention pricing or other temporary promotional offers.
Cover image guideline #2: internal content cover image is mandatory
Kindle books must also have an internal cover image provided for use within the book content. Amazon QA will fail the book if the cover is too small, so a large cover must be obtained. Covers are defined in the .OPF using the following tags:
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<metadata>
...
<meta name="cover"
...
</metadata>
...
<manifest>
...
content="my-cover-image" />
<item href="MyCoverImage.jpg" id="my-cover-image" media- type="image/jpeg" />
...
</manifest>
The use of name=”cover” in the metadata element name is mandatory.
This syntax is not part of the IDPF standard, because the standard does not provide for cover images. It has, however, been designed with help from the IDPF and will validate in an IDPF validator.
Cover image guideline #3: the internal cover must not appear twice
Cover images must not be added to the content in any other way, otherwise they will appear twice in the book.
One exception is provided for—if you want to have an HTML cover page for compatibility with software from other vendors, in addition to the proper logical cover, add the following tags in your .OPF (underlined elements are mandatory):
<spine> <itemref idref="my-html-cover" linear="no" /> </spine>
...
<manifest> <item id="my-html-cover" href="cover.xml" media-
type="application/xhtml+xml" /> </manifest>
...
<guide> <reference type="cover" href="cover.xml" /> <guide>
title="Cover Image"
Table of Contents Guidelines
TOC guideline #1: the logical TOC (NCX) is mandatory
The logical table of contents is very important for our mutual customers’ reading experience, as it allows a reader to easily navigate between chapters. All Kindle books should have both logical and HTML TOCs. Users expect to see an HTML TOC
when paging through a book from the beginning, while the logical table of contents is an additional way for users to navigate books.
Logical tables of contents are generated using a Navigational Control file for XML application (NCX). You create an NCX to expose the hierarchical structure of a Kindle book to allow the user to navigate through it.
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In NCX-enabled books, users can see where they are in their reading: The part, chapter, or section is exposed. This progress indicator also shows relative progress through the book.
Logical tables of contents are part of the IDPF 2.0 specification and are described here: http://www.niso.org/workrooms/daisy/Z39-86-2005.html#NCX.
Here is an example NCX:
<navMap>
