kdp-publisher

帮助代理创建、格式化儿童书籍和活动书籍并将其发布到 Amazon KDP。涵盖从故事提示到 PDF 组装、封面创建和上传指导的完整流程。触发 KDP 出版、儿童图书创作、活动图书生成、图书格式化、亚马逊自助出版和图书封面设计。

## 概述（中文）

帮助代理创建、格式化儿童书籍和活动书籍并将其发布到 Amazon KDP。涵盖从故事提示到 PDF 组装、封面创建和上传指导的完整流程。触发 KDP 出版、儿童图书创作、活动图书生成、图书格式化、亚马逊自助出版和图书封面设计。

## 原文

# kdp-publisher

Helps agents create, format, and publish children's books and activity books to Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). Covers the full pipeline from story generation through KDP upload.

## Triggers

Load this skill when the user mentions:
- KDP, Kindle Direct Publishing, Amazon self-publishing
- Children's book creation, picture book, storybook
- Activity book, coloring book, workbook, puzzle book
- Book formatting, PDF for print, cover design, book cover wrap
- KDP upload, manuscript upload, interior PDF

---

## Supported Book Types

| Type | Trim Size | Interior | Notes |
|------|-----------|----------|-------|
| Children's picture book | 8.5×8.5" | Full color | Illustration + text spreads |
| Activity book | 8.5×11" | Color or B&W | I Spy, dot-to-dot, etc. |
| Coloring book | 8.5×11" | B&W | Thick clean lines, no shading |
| Math workbook | 8.5×11" | B&W | Practice problems + answer key |
| Puzzle book | 8.5×11" | B&W | Word search, sudoku, crossword |

---

## Core Workflow

```
prompt → story generation → illustration → interior PDF → cover PDF → metadata → KDP upload
```

### Step 1 — Generate story and plan

Use `scripts/generate-book.py` for picture books. For workbooks/puzzles, use a puzzle generator tool (BookBolt, custom scripts).

```bash
python3 scripts/generate-book.py "a curious octopus who learns to share" \
  --type picture-book \
  --age-group 3-5 \
  --style watercolor \
  --output-dir output/
```

**Story requirements:**
- Title ≤ 60 characters
- 12 spreads → 24 story pages → ~28 pages total (title + dedication + The End + author bio)
- Ages 3-5: 10-20 words per spread, simple/repetitive sentences
- Ages 5-8: 20-40 words per spread, clear story arc
- Always include moral/lesson, dedication, back-cover description, 7 keywords

### Step 2 — Generate illustrations

**Critical image rules:**
- ALWAYS add "no text, no words, no letters, no writing" to every image prompt
- Define character reference (colors, features, accessories) before generating spread #1
- Reference first image style in all subsequent prompts: "match the watercolor style of page 1"
- Use 1:1 aspect ratio for 8.5×8.5 picture books; use 3:4 for 8.5×11 activity books
- Minimum 300 DPI for print — Imagen 1024px = ~3.4" at 300 DPI, which is fine for a scaled-up 8.5×8.5 page
- Inspect every image for AI text artifacts before embedding in PDF

### Step 3 — Assemble interior PDF

See `references/kdp-specs.md` for exact dimensions.

**8.5×8.5 No Bleed (picture books):**
- Page size: 612×612 pt
- Content area: 576×576 pt (0.25" margins on all sides)
- Images MUST fit within the content area — do not let image touch trim edge on a no-bleed file
- Layout: odd pages = illustration, even pages = text (or full-spread alternate)

**Text rules:**
- Embed fonts (ReportLab: register TTFont before use)
- Font size ≥ 14pt for ages 3-5; use centered text, generous leading
- No text inside AI images — overlay programmatically after generation

### Step 4 — Create cover

Use `scripts/create-cover.py` for the full wrap PDF (front + spine + back + bleed):

```bash
python3 scripts/create-cover.py \
  --title "The Curious Octopus" \
  --author "Your Name" \
  --pages 28 \
  --paper white \
  --front-image output/curious-octopus/images/cover.png \
  --back-text "Follow Otto the octopus as he discovers the joy of sharing..." \
  --output output/curious-octopus/cover.pdf
```

**Spine width formulas (KDP standard):**
- White paper B&W: pages × 0.002252 inches
- Cream paper B&W: pages × 0.0025 inches
- White paper color: pages × 0.002347 inches

**Cover dimensions (8.5×8.5, white color, 28 pages):**
- Spine width: 28 × 0.002347 = 0.0657"
- Total cover width: 8.5 + 0.0657 + 8.5 + 0.25" bleed = 17.316"
- Total cover height: 8.5 + 0.25" bleed = 8.75"

**Cover design rules:**
- Put title + author text as a PDF overlay — never bake text into the AI cover image
- Leave bottom-right 2"×1.5" of back cover clear for ISBN barcode
- Spine text is optional for books < 100 pages (too narrow to read)
- KDP will overlay its own barcode on the back cover — leave space

### Step 5 — Write metadata

**Description rules:**
- Write from the finished story, NOT from the prompt or outline
- Use character names exactly as they appear in the final text
- 2-3 sentences: hook + plot + moral/appeal
- Include age range in description text ("Perfect for ages 3-6")
- Do not keyword-stuff; Amazon indexes naturally

**KDP metadata fields:**
- Title + subtitle (subtitle is optional but good for search)
- Author: pen name
- 7 backend keywords (use all 7 slots; 50 chars each; use phrases not single words)
- 2 categories (research BSR before choosing)
- Language, publication date
- AI-generated content disclosure: required if text or images are AI-generated

### Step 6 — Validate before upload

```bash
python3 scripts/validate-book.py \
  --interior output/curious-octopus/interior.pdf \
  --cover output/curious-octopus/cover.pdf \
  --metadata output/curious-octopus/metadata.json
```

Checks: page count, trim dimensions, image resolution, no-text-in-images, description/story consistency.

### Step 7 — Upload to KDP

**Browser automation rules (critical):**
- Do NOT use Playwright `type` on KDP form fields — focus shifts and input breaks
- Use JavaScript `evaluate` with element IDs:
  ```js
  document.getElementById('data-print-book-title').value = 'The Curious Octopus';
  document.getElementById('data-print-book-title').dispatchEvent(new Event('input', {bubbles:true}));
  ```
- File uploads require CDP `DOM.setFileInputFiles` + change event (Playwright upload action doesn't work):
  ```js
  // After DOM.setFileInputFiles:
  document.querySelector('input[type=file]').dispatchEvent(new Event('change', {bubbles:true}));
  ```
- Wait for `#data-print-book-interior-processing-status` to show COMPLETED before proceeding
- Reload KDP page before each upload session — stale form state causes silent failures

**Category selection:**
- Use the cascade-select dropdowns in the category modal
- After selecting all levels, JS-click the placement checkbox (don't Playwright-click)

---

## Activity Books & Workbooks

For non-narrative books, skip the story generation step. Instead:

1. Plan content structure (sections, problem counts, difficulty levels)
2. Generate content programmatically or with a puzzle generator
3. Layout with ReportLab or a worksheet template
4. Apply the same cover + metadata workflow

**Math workbook rules:**
- Do NOT add answer lines below equations — kids write directly below the problem line
- Use ≥ 14pt font for problem numbers; ≥ 20pt for the math itself
- Include answer key as last section
- 8.5×11", 1" margins, B&W interior

**Coloring book rules:**
- Image prompts: "simple black and white coloring page, thick lines, no shading, age-appropriate"
- Do not use grayscale images — must be pure black line art on white background
- Leave blank back sides of pages to prevent marker bleed-through

---

## Pricing Quick Reference

| Book Type | Paperback Price | Expected Royalty/Sale |
|-----------|----------------|-----------------------|
| Kids picture book | $12.99 | ~$5.00 |
| Activity book (color) | $8.99-$10.99 | ~$3.10-$4.50 |
| Math/puzzle workbook | $9.99-$12.99 | ~$4.30-$6.00 |
| Coloring book | $7.99-$9.99 | ~$3.30-$4.50 |

Use 70% royalty tier: price must be $2.99-$9.99 for ebooks. Paperbacks always use 60% tier.

---

## Amazon Ads Quick-Start

See `references/ads-quickstart.md` for full setup. Summary:
- Start with Automatic Targeting, $5/day
- After 2 weeks, harvest converting search terms → Manual Exact Match campaign
- Target ACoS: 30-45%
- Kill keywords: 8+ clicks, 0 sales → reduce bid to $0.02
- Scale: increase bids 20% on keywords with ACoS < 20%

---

## Key Lessons

These were learned through production and would not be obvious from KDP documentation:

1.