When self-publishing at Kindle Direct Publishing , one of the key screens that you’ll start from and return to is the Bookshelf.

The Bookshelf essentially is a digital listing of all of the books you’ve uploaded to KindleDP and are selling on Amazon. You’ll be able to choose if you want to look at your ebook, paperback or hardcover and then access pages where you can make specific changes to them.

First, though, you need to upload a book. To do that, click the big yellow oval (Okay, it’s more a rectangle with rounded edges.) that says “Create.”

A new screen pops up, asking you which kind of book you’d like to create. Hit the one for “Paperback.”

This takes you to the first of three screens, specifically the “Paperback Details” page. Later in the process, should you need to come back to this page, you can access it via your Bookshelf.

For a moment, let’s do that, just so you’re familiar with the Bookshelf and how it operates. Go back to your Bookshelf by clicking that word on your screen’s top just left of center.

You’ll notice that your bookshelf now has a white box on it. As you complete the various parts of the upload, the box will fill in with the book’s title, a picture of the front cover, the book’s price, and so on.

On the right side of the box is a section called “PAPEPRBACK ACTIONS.” The three dots to the right of it will pull up a menu that allows you to do a number of things with your book. The first three in the menu are used in the uploading. The others allow you to order copies, to run promotions and advertisements, and to affect how your book appears on Amazon.com, such as linking or unlinking your paperback and ebook.

To upload your book, click “Edit Print Book Details.”

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My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editor who runs Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of writers both new and published. I also offer a variety of self-publishing services. During the past decade, I’ve helped more than 300 novelists and nonfiction authors obtain their publishing dreams at reasonable prices. I’m also the author of the 7 Minutes a Day… writing guidebooks, four nonfiction hiking guidebook series, and the literary novel Windmill. Several of my short stories in the literary and science fiction genres also have been published.