I didn’t set out to be a children’s book author. I also don’t plan on only writing children’s books. However, at this moment, I am the proud author (and illustrator) of five children’s stories, with a graphic novel on the way! Children’s stories are not just about entertaining…they often carry truths that grow with us.
In the future, I hope to share with the world my adult novels that I’ve written, though they are now in various stages of done: one ready for next spring, another that just has 45,000 words written, and several more in between these stages. It was convenient, though, to start writing children’s books because I needed a break from the long novel and I had experience with children through my day job.
Initially I wanted to write one book, about a cat, and share some sort of lesson. After I got this first book self-published, I still pictured another cat in my head. I had to tell that story, too! After publishing my fourth Cat Chronicles book this week, I can honestly say that it was a mixed blessing. It has never been so challenging to come up with a story and to keep things consistent…Work was busy…I had to make “grown up” decisions…I wrote a lot of drivel that had to be deleted and changed several pages at the end of the story. But when the green light came through for publication, I realized that every day, I am still excited about creating: both drawing and writing!
Today I’d like to share with you the steps of my process, which I passed to an aspiring author just a few weeks ago. I certainly don’t have all the answers! But if you are looking for that first nudge, I hope this can be it!
Steps for Creating a Kid’s Book
By Hannah Marie. (2026)
- Write everything on a piece of paper for brainstorming.
- Choose, which ideas will work for your story.
- If you only have one idea, write it down. Then turn that into three more ideas, and keep expanding each one until you have a brainstorming page.
- It doesn’t have to all make sense at this stage.
- Turn your ideas into sentences. I like to put them on the paper like a poem – even though my books don’t rhyme, it helps me to keep track of the pages.
- If illustrating, sometimes I sketch out initial ideas (very sketchy)
- Edit the individual phrases and rearrange.
- Make sure the entire story flows like you want: look more at the story as a whole. Include all of the pictures at this point.
- Format to the correct size and bleed. This can be done by getting a template that shows boundaries. Try starting with phrases like:
- “ template for KDP, two pages, [whatever size of book]”
- “ two page template, with bleed, [size] for KDP”
- Now it’s time to put together your story. On each page, you will need to leave room for the words. Sometimes these will be at the bottom, or you might want to move them around to coincide with the pictures. Double check that they are the same size and font, if that is the look you want
- To format your own PDF for the KDP requires, know that page 1 will always start on the right (and all odd numbers). I usually make sure page one (and maybe 2 – 3, depending on your preference) is blank. then go through your manuscript and put each side of your template – even two page spread – on its own page. The KDP version cannot format the two page spread, but the template helps line up the words and any pictures that cross two pages.
- For the PDF, be sure to include:
- First page blank (or first 3)
- Page 2: also by me (other books)
- Page 3: title page.
- Page for: publication info (check any similar kids book, but I also like to include a summary because I don’t put it on the back of my smaller books)
- Page 5: dedication.
- Page 6 – 43 (or however long your book is) the book itself
- For the cover on KDP, you will need to get a template because the size is a little bigger. Try searching for:
- “ cover for KDP book, front and back, [# of pages], [size]”
- “ KDP template for book cover, number of pages, size”
- The cover will need to be uploaded on the KDP website: https://kdp.amazon.com/
- Note—this will have three tabs of steps: Details, Content, Pricing
- I have not included all of the details here, but it is very self explanatory. *Since you are publishing this yourself, put yourself (or your author/business name) as the publisher
- On the second tab: You will need to download the cover in JPEG or PNG format (like a photo, upload the entire two pages and spine without the template background)
- KDP might offer an ISBN (the bar code on the back), but if you’d eventually like to sell on other platforms (similar upload process as above) you can get groups of ISBN numbers at Bowker https://www.myidentifiers.com
- One ISBN for $150
- 10 for $250 (and you can always do more for mass production)
- Once tabs 1 and 2 are complete, and everything is uploaded (it takes a while!) KDP will let you preview it. You can go through each page and approve on the final page, it will give you a suggested price point based on the printing cost. Double check the last column, because your royalties (the money Amazon will send to you two months after you sell a book online) are determined by how much you’re willing to sell your book for.
- You must push “submit for publication,” even if you are just checking the format of your book. Otherwise, it will stay in draft mode.
- Option: you can order an author draft, or preview book before publishing, but this takes a while to be delivered (sometimes up to a couple weeks). I don’t often do this, but it is great if you’re concerned with the formatting and to see if everything is lined up before you complete the publishing process, especially if you’re not rushed.
- Amazon will send back an alert to your email somewhere between 1-3 business days (usually) to ask about corrections and you will need to update and submit another version of your PDF in the second tab. Keep the cover unless it requests a change. This alert might happen several times; they are pretty picky. However, if you used the template, it helps a lot. You will also get an alert when your book is published and ready to order.
- Bonus: once your book publishes, you can order author copies at the print price (plus shipping for each book if you don’t have business Amazon Prime) and resell it yourself for a little better return.
Happy writing! 📚
Hannah Marie.
