Publishing
Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP): Amazon's Self-Publishing Platform
{{Kindle Direct Publishing}} (KDP) is Amazon's self-service ebook and print publishing platform, launched in 2007. Authors keep 35 or 70 percent royalties depending on price and conditions, and can opt into the exclusive {{KDP Select}} program to reach {{Kindle Unlimited}}.
Kindle Unlimited: Amazon's Ebook Subscription and the Pages-Read Royalty Model
{{Kindle Unlimited}} (KU) is Amazon's all-you-can-read ebook subscription, launched in July 2014. Authors reach it only by enrolling in the exclusive {{KDP Select}} program, and are paid from a monthly global fund based on the number of pages readers actually read.
KDP Select Exclusivity: What Enrolling Locks You Out Of
Enrolling an ebook in Amazon's {{KDP Select}} program grants Amazon exclusive digital distribution rights for a 90-day, auto-renewing term. The author cannot sell or give away the digital edition anywhere else, including their own website, while it is enrolled. Print, audio, and video formats are unaffected, and the exclusivity is per-title, not per-author.
Web Fiction "Stubbing": How Serial Authors Comply With KDP Select Exclusivity
\"Stubbing\" is the web-fiction practice of removing most chapters of a serialized story from a free platform like {{RoyalRoad}} so the work can be enrolled in {{Kindle Unlimited}}, which requires digital exclusivity. Authors typically leave a small sample (around 10 percent) plus a note pointing readers to the paid edition.
RoyalRoad: The Serialized Web Fiction Platform for LitRPG and Progression Fantasy
{{RoyalRoad}} is a free web-fiction platform where authors serialize original novels chapter by chapter, especially in the LitRPG and progression-fantasy genres. It is reader-supported via ads and an optional ad-free premium membership, and is a major incubator for stories later self-published on Amazon.