Amazon Shorts

Program Information

Amazon Shorts features previously unpublished short-form literature for sale exclusively at Amazon.com. Fiction and nonfiction pieces on a wide variety of topics are available in a digital format only for just $0.49. This is a great way for authors to maintain a more direct and frequent communication with their readers as well as promote their backlist.

*Please note that Amazon Shorts is currently not accepting any new submissions to the program. A program update is below.

Three months ago, we had let you, our valued content partners, know of the efforts we were undertaking to streamline how we brought your work to 70+ million Amazon customers. As mentioned at that time, the result of this work will allow us to work better and faster with authors and our publishing partners, and provide greater service and new offerings.

These efforts were slated to run through the end of May. As work progressed, we realized there was a fantastic opportunity to expand the scope of the program, and to put into place innovations to the program that will ensure that Shorts remains a premiere space for exclusive short content, from today’s bestselling authors and tomorrow’s literary stars.

By combining efforts with the Amazon’s Author Services team, we will launch features enabling you to upload even more exclusive content. Other innovations include building better ways to showcase your book catalog and expand your presence on Amazon, creating a singular home for you, the author, to better reach and interact with readers.

As we expand the work on the program, we will continue to hold off on new submissions. Amazon Shorts and the Author Services Team will provide more information when we have completed the work. As always, you can check back here periodically about when we might resume accepting submissions. Know that in the meantime, your work will remain live and buyable in our storefront. If you would like to alert us to a specific issue with your Short, please contact us at amazon-shorts@amazon.com.

Thank you, as always, for your patience and understanding as we work together to make Shorts a better program for you and for our customers.

Author benefits of participation in Amazon Shorts:

· Access a powerful marketing tool to promote an author's backlist in a new and meaningful way
· Create an author profile page with biography,photo, and complete backlist
· Maintain author's visibility between published projects
· Establish a more direct and frequent communication with readers
· Introduce readers to unfamiliar writers
· Provide a new outlet to sell short fiction and nonfiction

Publisher benefits of participation in Amazon Shorts:

· Leverage robust serial rights opportunities with Shorts that excerpt from books--both pre-publication (boost pre-orders by timing Shorts with book launch publicity events) and post-publication (drive continued sales and support visibility past a title's marketing window and face-out shelf life)
· Exploit Amazon Shorts to directly reach a uniquely targeted community of readers already predisposed to buying your literature from Amazon.com
· Make interaction between author and reader visible through Amazon Connect, allowing tangible ways of improving success in satisfying customers’ tastes

Amazon Shorts on the site:

· Customers get instant reading gratification from favorite authors.
· Readers can easily sample new writers without investing much time or money.
· Shorts are available to customers via PDF, HTML, plain-text e-mail, and they are stored in customers' Digital Lockers forever. Shorts can be read immediately on-screen or printed out to be read later.
· Amazon Shorts will be promoted on the Books home page, presented as part of book search results, and recommended to book buyers.
· Full personalization features--customer ratings, reviews, recommendations--will be included.

Attention publishers, agents, editors, and authors: At this time, Amazon Shorts is not accepting new submissions to the program. Please check our FAQ periodically for when we reopen the program submissions. For any other questions regarding the program, please contact amazon-shorts@amazon.com.

Author FAQ

What types of material can I list as an Amazon Short?

Any previously unpublished short-form work (2,000 - 10,000 words, fiction or nonfiction) you've created that your readers would find interesting. In practice, we've observed that the most popular and commercially effective Shorts are those that are based on what you, as an author, are best known for. An Amazon Short could be a single short story within the genre you write, an update or backstory on a well-loved character, a compelling essay on the area of your published expertise or commentary on your work, or any additional material that enriches your works already available to readers on Amazon.com.

What if I want to contribute more than one piece?

Once you are accepted into the Amazon Shorts program, you are free to contribute as many pieces as you wish. We are especially interested in getting new material from you on a regular basis. Please allow a turnaround time of approximately three weeks from the time you deliver the material to the time you can expect it to appear on the site.

Can I sell my material elsewhere? Can I publish it later? Will I continue to own the rights to it?

Authors retain the rights to their material. However, we do require that all Shorts be exclusive to Amazon.com for a minimum of six months.

Can anyone submit an Amazon Short?

While we have been accepting work from a diverse group of authors, at this time we are not accepting any new submissions--please check back periodically for when we do reopen the program for submissions. In order to be eligible for participation you must be a published author with at least one book currently for sale on Amazon.com. For any other questions regarding eligibility for this program, please contact us at amazon-shorts@amazon.com.

Does this material get reviewed by customers just as books do?

Absolutely. The digital content listed in Amazon Shorts is just like other media products that Amazon.com sells to customers and is subject to the same privileges and conditions that are afforded to books, CDs, and other media products.

Can authors promote their Shorts on their own Web sites?

Yes. Authors who have their own Web sites are encouraged to join the Amazon.com Associates Program. Through this program, you can use your own Web site to drive traffic to your Amazon Shorts as well as any books you have for sale on Amazon.com. This is especially worthwhile for writers who have active or well-frequented Web sites.