Hello writers!

There seems to be a lack of information out there about how the new Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform works compared to the ‘old’ Createspace. We will need to publish a few more titles to get a better estimate for how most titles take to upload, but in the meantime, we can share what we encountered with our first title launched on the KDP site (since migrating over from Createspace).

Here is the play-by-play on how long it took for Mama Needs A Drink to be available on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca:

Book title: Mama Needs A Drink (cute, right?!)
Genre: Literature & Fiction / Humour & Satire / Humorous

Sunday, 6am PST: Approved final proof and clicked publish
We received the standard messaging saying, “Your book will be available for purchase within 72 hours.”

Monday, 7am PST: Available for purchase on Amazon.com/Amazon.ca
We were able to buy copies! Then….

Monday, 9am PST: “We’re sorry, there are currently no All Listings for Mama Needs a Drink”
The book remained available on Amazon.com, but not Amazon.ca. Considerations if we broke the Canadian internet with all the orders ensued.

Monday, 9am PST: Author contacts KDP to find out “WTF?”

Monday, 5pm PST: Mama Needs a Drink receives a bestselling ranking on Amazon.ca and Amazon.com. But still, we can’t purchase it on Amazon.ca. Weird.

Tuesday, 7am PST: Mama Needs a Drink shows up as #1 in the Mover and Shakers category on Amazon.ca. Though, still not available for purchase.

Tuesday, 12:30pm PST: The author’s KDP account says she’s only sold three copies. We can confirm this is not the case. (We guestimate she has sold upwards of 150 by this report.)

Tuesday, 4:30pm PST: Amazon responds to the author explaining that books may take up to 30 days from the publishing date to become available on Amazon.ca.

Wednesday, 12:00pm PST: Mama Needs a Drink is available for purchase on Amazon.ca Though the numbers showing on the backend of KDP are very inaccurate.

Wednesday, 10:45pm PST: Mama Needs A Drink is listed as the #1 Bestseller on Amazon.ca in the Humourous category! KDP also confirmed that purchases are not recorded until the books are shipped. So there will be a delay in documenting how many books have been purchased.

Unfortunately, we can’t offer you an explanation for what happened during this book launch, but we hope by sharing the details of what we experienced, it helps you understand what the timing can look like with the new KDP upload to Amazon.com and Amazon.ca!

Please comment below if you have any insight or similar experiences in the comment section below!


If you need help publishing your book Canada (and the US), please get in touch! Whether you need to find an editor who is affordable, are looking for book marketing strategies after launch, or need someone to review your KDP upload to help it become a bestseller, get in touch!