Module 4 · Publishing Setup Without the Confusion
Metadata and your book listing
What you'll understand: Understand the listing fields you supply and what they are used for.
Metadata is the information about your book that isn't inside your book. It's what you supply so a retail platform can understand, categorise and present your book. Authors often treat it as paperwork; it's worth more care than that, though no metadata guarantees discoverability or sales.
- Title and subtitle
- For non-fiction especially, the subtitle carries the search terms. It must match the printed cover exactly.
- Description
- The sales copy on the listing page. Written to make a browsing reader want the book — not a summary of the plot.
- Categories
- The sections your book is listed under. Accurate, specific categories describe the book more precisely than very broad ones. Category options and rules are set by the platform.
- Keywords
- Search phrases a reader might type. Think in phrases rather than single words, and follow the platform's keyword guidelines.
- Pricing
- For print, printing cost sets a floor. Compare against genuinely comparable books rather than the ones you admire most.
Why this matters
Your listing is how most readers encounter the book before they open it. Accurate, considered metadata helps the platform present it correctly — it doesn't guarantee sales, but careless metadata makes the book harder to understand.
What to do with this information
Draft your description, then list ten specific phrases a reader might search to find a book like yours.
Quick check
No score, no pass mark — just a way to check the idea landed.
Which approach to categories describes a book most usefully?
Add to my publishing plan
Anything you record here appears in your Publishing Action Plan.
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