Publishing WIDE

Going wide means selling your books everywhere readers buy them—not just Amazon. This hub guide explains the strategy, the trade-offs, and exactly how to get started.

Going wide is a philosophy as much as a logistics decision. This deep-dive explores the strategy, timing, mindset, and long-game thinking that separates authors who succeed going wide from those who give up too soon.

Leaving KDP Select to publish wide is one of the most significant decisions an indie author makes. This guide walks you through every step—from auditing your enrollment windows to setting up your wide accounts to making the switch without disrupting your income.

Draft2Digital lets wide authors distribute to dozens of retailers, library platforms, and subscription services through a single account. This guide covers how D2D works, what it costs, where it distributes, and how to use it as part of a professional wide strategy.

Smashwords built the foundation that wide publishing stands on. This article covers the platform's history, its founder's philosophy, what the Draft2Digital merger changed, and what wide authors need to understand about the current state of the Smashwords ecosystem.

IngramSpark is the print distribution powerhouse that connects indie authors to over 40,000 bookstores, retailers, and libraries worldwide. This guide covers setup, pricing, distribution settings, and how to use IngramSpark as a core component of a professional wide publishing strategy.

PublishDrive distributes to 50+ channels including subscription giants like Storytel and Bookmate, serialized fiction platforms like Dreame, and academic services like Perlego—markets Draft2Digital's network doesn't fully cover. This guide explains what PublishDrive does, how it works, and when wide authors should use it.

Bookshop.org was built to support independent bookstores by routing online book sales to local shops rather than Amazon. In 2026, its partnership with Draft2Digital made self-published ebooks available on the platform for the first time—giving wide authors a presence in one of publishing's most culturally significant marketplaces.

BookBaby is a full-service self-publishing platform with ebook and print distribution, professional design and editing services, and a direct retail bookstore. This guide gives indie authors an honest look at what BookBaby offers, what it costs, and when it makes sense as part of a wide publishing strategy.