Kindle Vella - A Perspective

An Update on Kindle Vella 

by Bailey R. Hansen

I had been thinking about publishing on Kindle Vella before the 2022 Lakefly Writers Conference, but the "Venturing into Vella" presentation by Kendra Griffin cemented my decision to give it a go! Below are some highlights of the platform:

Kindle Vella is Amazon's new (July 2021) serial story platform. Instead of a traditional book, where you buy all of it in one go (and, as authors, you need to have the entire book written before sending it out into the world), Kindle Vella allows readers to buy one episode at a time, and authors to evolve their story as they write it. Think about it like a weekly TV show or story told in multiple sections in a magazine (or Wattpad or Archive of Our Own, if you are already reading serialized fiction online). 

Authors can post episodes of between 600-5000 words (1,500-2000 words were
recommended in the Lakefly presentation) at any interval they would like. The first three episodes are free for readers (though you do need an Amazon account to read past the first episode), and after that readers use tokens to unlock future installments, at a rate of 1 token per 100 words. Each reader also receives 200 free tokens to get them started on the platform. Authors receive 50% of what readers use to buy those tokens. For more information about pricing and royalties, check out the KDP Page introducing it. 

Other neat features of Kindle Vella include:

•     Readers can give "favs" to their favorite stories to help attract other readers and also follow them for automated updates.
•     Authors can leave notes at the end of every episode to build community and even include things like polls to get readers engaged.
•     Once you are done telling the story on Kindle Vella you CAN republish all those episodes in book form (though you CANNOT publish something on Kindle Vella that was previously published elsewhere). 
•     Like classic authors Dumas and Dickens, you get paid by the word!

Based on my experience with Kindle Vella, it is VERY easy to post, but be aware that advertising and getting people to read your work is going to take a little extra legwork.

The best stories for Kindle Vella are ones that can be posted episodically, and romance, action, and steamier content is generally the most popular. I posted my first installment of Starbound (an LGBT alien space romance with...probably not enough romance) in May 2022 and then took a 3-month break, which was a terrible idea. Ideally, authors post several times per week and on a regular posting schedule so that readers can know when to expect (and read) new installments. I re-started posting in September and have been sticking to a weekly posting schedule since (though I may take a break for Nanowrimo in November...we shall see). 

As far as process goes, I have been working on updating an old, mostly complete manuscript one tiny chapter at a time. This is the same general review and editing process that I've used for several years now with Writers Club, it seems to work very well for my brain, and will hopefully be enjoyable for readers. At least once they know the story exists.

One thing I have yet to do (and definitely need to, based on the analytics available) is advertising. I've wanted to make sure that I could keep up the weekly posting schedule before telling anyone about Starbound, but that also means that absolutely no one knows about it. And I do mean no one. Unlike free episodic reading platforms I've played with in the past, there have been no random people checking out even the first few episodes. I don't know if that's the algorithm, my summary/graphics, or the fact that I posted once and then crapped out for three months. Most probably a combination. If you want to make my week, go ahead and check out Starbound here.

And, if you have questions about my experience with Kindle Vella (limited as it is) please feel free to reach out!