Here’s a list of some of the top publishing services, platforms, tools and membership organizations for authors:
ACX – Audiobook Creation Exchange is a marketplace that allows authors, publishers and other rights holders to connect with audiobook producers to create and distribute audiobooks. ACX is owned by Amazon and distributes audiobooks to leading retailers, including Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. It also provides access to thousands of audiobook producers, actors and studios, who can be hired for a fee or through a royalty-sharing partnership.
ALLi – The Alliance of Independent Authors is a professional nonprofit membership organization for self-published authors, providing guidance, advice and a range of resources within a welcoming community of authors and advisors.
Apple Books – A retail app that lets readers purchase eBooks and audiobooks. Indie authors are required to go through a vetting process — directly or through a partner such as Draft2Digital — to have their titles included in the Apple Bookstore.
Atticus – Atticus is a versatile writing and formatting software that combines writing and formatting tools for ebooks and print books in one platform. It works on Windows and Mac.
Audible – A leading audiobook and spoken word entertainment service that offers a vast selection of audiobooks, podcasts and original audio content. It operates as a subscription-based platform, allowing users to listen to a wide array of titles across genres and categories. While Audible dominates the audiobook retail space and ACX is a major audiobook production studio, the Big Five publishers all produce audiobooks and there are a handful of independent audiobook platforms.
Audiobooks.com – This subscription service offers a large library of 500,000+ audiobooks and podcasts and gives authors another way to reach audiobook lovers.
Author’s Republic – This platform offers non-exclusive distribution to major retailers and libraries with transparent royalty rates, making it a solid choice for indie authors.
Author Solutions – A company that offers a range of services for indie authors, including self-publishing imprints, editing, formatting, distribution and marketing.
Authors Guild – America’s oldest and largest professional organization for writers, providing advocacy on issues of free expression and copyright protection. Its 9,000 members receive legal advice, guidance on publishing contracts, insurance and help with licensing and royalties.
Barnes & Noble – The largest retail bookseller in the United States, operating about 600 bookstores and enabling indie authors to sell ebooks from their online store. Also, Barnes & Noble Press is a self-publishing service that allows authors to publish ebooks and print books directly through Barnes & Noble’s platform.
BingeBooks – A book discovery site built by authors for readers. Developed by the Authors A.I. team, BingeBooks invites any published author in the world to showcase their books and grow their reader base — at no charge.
BookBub – A free service designed to help readers discover new books through personalized recommendations and deals. It primarily operates by sending daily newsletters featuring handpicked selections of discounted or free ebooks across various genres.
BookFunnel – An outstanding indie author service that specializes in professional and efficient ebook and audio distribution. The platform provides ARCs (advance reader copies) and reader magnets, mailing list development, direct sales, creative tools that save indie authors time and money and much more.
BookBaby – A self-publishing platform that offers a suite of services to assist authors in publishing ebooks, print books and audiobooks — including AI narration with humans who proof the recordings to ensure quality.
Bookshop.org – A Brooklyn-based B Corporation that runs an online bookstore that aims to support independent bookstores and promote local book sales. Authors can list their books for sale on Bookshop.org by working with a publisher that has a partnership with the platform or by using a self-publishing service that facilitates distribution to the platform. Authors can also create their own storefronts where they can feature their books alongside other recommended titles.
Bookvault – A print-on-demand platform that allows authors to publish, print and sell their books without the need to manage inventory or make up-front investments.
ChatGPT – From San Francisco-based Open AI, ChatGPT is the world’s most popular large language model. It offers a range of features and capabilities that can benefit fiction authors, including plot structuring, research assistance, world-building assistance, idea generation and (if desired) generating text for chapters. Be aware, however, that there is strong resistance by some readers and publishing houses to using any form of generative AI to write the text of a book.
Chirp – Part of BookBub, Chirp focuses on discounted audiobooks and provides an effective marketing channel for authors looking to promote their titles at reduced prices.
Claude – Similar to ChatGPT, Claude is an LLM from San Francisco-based Anthropic favored by fiction authors for its sophisticated understanding of literary conventions and a more advanced writing style. It offers a range of features and capabilities that can benefit fiction authors, including plot structuring, research assistance, world-building assistance, idea generation and (if desired) generating text for chapters. Be aware, however, that there is strong resistance by some readers and publishing houses to using any form of generative AI to write the text of a book.
DeepL – Known for its high-quality translations, DeepL uses advanced neural network technology to provide contextually accurate translations that often capture the nuances of the original text better than other services. It supports multiple languages and is favored for its user-friendly interface and ability to handle longer texts effectively.
Draft2Digital – A self-publishing platform that helps authors create and distribute their books to major retailers. It’s a popular choice for authors who decide to “go wide.”
Gemini – An advanced generative AI model developed by Google, designed to be multimodal, meaning it can understand and process various types of data, including text, images, audio and video. Authors use Gemini to organize their manuscripts, proofread and provide research assistance. Authors can also use Gemini to generate ideas, outlines, or even draft sections of their manuscripts.
Google Play Books – A retail platform that lets authors sell their books and audiobooks and reach Android users by leveraging Google’s vast ecosystem for visibility.
Grammarly – An AI-powered writing assistant that helps authors improve their writing by catching errors, enhancing clarity and providing suggestions for style and tone.
Hoopla Digital – A digital media service that allows library patrons to access a wide range of content, including eBooks, audiobooks, movies and more.
IBPA – The Independent Book Publishing Association connects its 3,500 members to the publishing industry and provides a voice for their concerns. Upon joining, members receive full access to IBPA’s discussion forums, a subscription to IBPA Independent — a bimonthly magazine filled with practical advice — targeted annual conferences, vendors discounts, free webinars and more.
IngramSpark – A self-publishing platform that enables authors to publish and distribute their books in both high-quality print and digital formats. Plus, they provide access to Ingram Book Group’s global distribution network for print and ebooks, including print-on-demand facilities around the world and access to bookstores, libraries and online platforms.
KDP – Kindle Direct Publishing is Amazon’s self-publishing platform that allows authors to publish and distribute ebooks and paperback books directly to a global audience. KDP enables authors to upload their manuscripts, set prices and sell their works on Amazon without the need for a traditional publishing house.
Kindle Countdown Deal – A promotional tool offered by Amazon’s KDP platform that allows authors to temporarily discount their ebooks while still earning a 70% royalty rate.
Kindle Create – A free tool from Amazon specifically for formatting ebooks for Kindle.
Kindle Unlimited – A subscription service offered by Amazon that provides members with access to a vast library of over 4 million ebooks, audiobooks and more. Subscribers can borrow up to 20 titles at a time.
Kindlepreneur – A free online platform that helps aspiring and established authors improve their craft, sell more ebooks and build writing careers. One of its main focuses is on teaching authors how to use keywords strategically to improve Amazon and Google search rankings for their titles. The site also contains a vast library of useful articles, interviews, blog posts, podcasts and online courses covering all areas of independent publishing.
Kobo Writing Life – A free self-publishing portal that lets authors and publishers create, edit and upload ebooks and audiobooks to Kobo, a large Canada-based ebook retailer. With Kobo Writing Life, you own your rights, set your prices, run your own promotions and make the work available to millions of readers in more than 200 countries.
Lantern Audio – Catering to indie authors, Lantern Audio provides comprehensive audiobook production and distribution services while allowing authors to retain a significant portion of royalties.
Llama – Llama (Large Language Model Meta AI) is a family of advanced generative AI models developed by Meta (formerly Facebook). Authors can use Llama to proofread manuscripts, provide research assistance and provide help with plot structure and outlines. It can also generate ideas, character backstories or even entire chapters of text based on prompts. Be aware, however, that there is strong resistance by some readers and publishing houses to using any form of generative AI to write the text of a book.
LLM – A large language model, a type of artificial intelligence used by ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Llama and other AI services.
Lulu.com – A self-publishing platform that allows authors to create, publish and distribute their books in various formats, including print on demand and ebooks.
Midjourney – A generative AI program that creates images based on natural language prompts provided by users. Some indie authors are using Midjourney to create book covers without needing graphic design skills.
Mistral – A Europe-based large language model that has fewer restrictions than the large LLMs and is thus favored by authors who include explicit content or violent scenes in their works.
NAIWE – The National Association of Independent Writers & Editors helps members learn how to create multiple streams of writing income.
NWU – The National Writers Union focuses on protecting the rights of writers in various genres, offering support in negotiations and contracts.
OverDrive – The platform mainly serves libraries, allowing authors to distribute their audiobooks to public libraries and reach listeners who borrow titles through library systems.
Podium Audio – An audiobook publishing company that focuses on producing high-quality audio versions of various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, and romance. They work with both established and emerging authors to bring their works to audio format.
Pro Writing Aid – A popular editing software designed to help fiction authors check their grammar and style and to improve their story through AI prompts.
Publish Drive – An online self-publishing platform that enables authors and publishers to distribute their ebooks, print books and audiobooks globally. For indie authors who go wide, it provides tools for formatting, publishing and marketing books across a vast network of retailers and libraries.
Reedsy – A comprehensive online platform designed to help authors in the self-publishing process. It offers services that include a free book formatting tool and a directory of professional editors, cover designers and marketing experts.
Scribd – A leading subscription service with over 1 million active users, Scribd allows authors to distribute their audiobooks alongside a vast library of other content.
Scrivener – A powerful suite of writing tools that many authors use to write, edit and organize their books.
Smashwords – A platform for self-publishing ebooks. Authors and independent publishers upload their manuscripts as digital files, which are converted into multiple ebook formats for various devices.
Spotify – A digital music streaming service that has expanded its offerings to include spoken word content, allowing authors to reach new audiences through audiobook versions of their works and book-related podcasts. In 2021 Spotify purchased Findaway Voices, a major audiobook distributor.
Tantor Media – Specializing in audiobook production, Tantor Media works with authors to produce high-quality recordings and distribute them across various platforms.
Vellum – A specialized book formatting software that enables indie authors to create professional-quality ebooks and print books with ease. It’s Mac-only.
Wattpad – A popular online platform for reading and publishing original written fiction, allowing users to connect with writers and readers globally.