AuthorImprints and Amazon Publishing Timelines

We have two guides to help clients understand book publishing timelines when working with AuthorImprints, as well as information about Amazon's publishing timelines.

  1. Our six-track at a glance timeline illustrates 21 key publishing steps.
  2. Our matrix of major publishing tasks includes corresponding completion times in number of business days.
  3. Amazon publishing timelines include information for Kindle eBooks, paperbacks, audiobooks, and more.

At a glance timeline

  1. The publishing process can be as short as 30-days.
  2. The steps noted here may not apply to all books, and the length of time associated with completing them is approximate.
  3. Marketing and editing are managed separately and are included in a separate timeline.

Note: Author requirements influence the pace and timing of each step. Some tasks are completed concurrently with others.

(Click image to enlarge.)

AuthorImprints Book Launch Timelines-Production and Distribution At a Glance

Matrix of major publishing tasks

The following timelines are intended to be illustrative. Your book agreement may specify other arrangements. This chart also does not reflect two important time factors:

  1. How long it will take you to review the materials we send you.
  2. Processing times required by key vendors, specifically Amazon and IngramSpark.

Service or TaskApproximate time in # of business days
EditingTiming provided with free quote
Publishing imprint name selection and setup1-3 days
Cover design7 days for concepts; 3-5 days for successive rounds
Interior book design7-10 days
Interior book design proofing (PDF)5-7 days
Printed proofs order and mailing5-10 days depending on shipping speed
Metadata research and optimization2-3 days
eBook programming7-10 days
Final review and remaining file changes3-5 days
ISBN final assignment1-3 days
Distribution setup1-3 days
On sale in online stores1-7 days following submission of files
I’m pleased to recommend AuthorImprints based on our great experience using their services for our recently published title Virtual Selling. Our book project was completed with precision and skill under David’s expert guidance, and we were able to publish very rapidly (which was important to us) by partnering with David for planning and execution of all the necessary details. David is easy to work with and he translates complex decisions into easy-to-follow information. He knows the industry, has resources readily available, and he helps authors to understand the important focal points that matter for project success. Overall, we are very excited with the outcome and with David’s help throughout the process.
Dave Shaby, Chief Operating Officer, RAIN Group; Co-Author, Virtual Selling
Dave Shaby
Chief Operating Officer, RAIN Group; Co-Author, Virtual Selling

Amazon publishing timelines

Amazon needs time to process your book files—a multi-step, automated process—before your book appears in one of the Amazon stores. For example:

  • Will any of the text on the cover be cutoff when it is printed?
  • Is anything blocking or overlapping on the barcode?
  • Is any of the content in the book freely available on other websites?
  • Do you have the rights to publish this book?

There are other automated checks if you want to make changes after the book is published. For example, changes to metadata such as price, categories, keywords, and descriptions, have their own timelines.

At last count, Amazon publishes 57 different processes with processing times.

Click here to see the full list. Amazon's processing time is in addition to AuthorImprint timelines.

(All service providers have similar timeframes.)