Jeff Bezos founded Amazon in 1995 as a bookstore, with the goal to offer the earth's biggest selection of books. In fact, that’s where our name came from. We wanted our selection to be vast and wide—like the Amazon River.
Amazon started with books and they remain core to what we do.

Page overview

Publishing critically-acclaimed authors

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Publishing critically-acclaimed authors
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Aspiring authors become published authors
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Supporting authors
Publishing critically-acclaimed authors

Amazon Publishing is a leading publisher of trade fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books. Our mission is to empower outstanding storytellers and connect them with readers worldwide. Our teams in Seattle, New York, Grand Haven, London, Luxembourg, Paris, Madrid, Milan, and Munich publish emerging, bestselling, and critically acclaimed authors in digital, print, and audio formats. With Amazon’s drive for innovation and passion for books, we merge technology and art to support our authors and help their stories change the world. Learn more.

Jane Lotter's daughter, Tess, reads from her book, The Bette Davis Club. Behind her is a large window in front of greenery.Jane's daughter, Tessa, reads from her book.
Aspiring authors become published authors

For authors around the world, sharing their story with readers is a lifelong dream. In 2007, Amazon launched Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) to make it easier for authors to fulfill that dream. KDP offers a free, easy, and fast way to self-publish eBooks and paperbacks. With KDP, the power of publishing is accessible to authors worldwide, allowing a more robust and diverse set of voices to share stories with a wider audience than ever before. Learn more.

A stack of novels by Amazon author Barbara Freethy sits on a blue tablecloth. A blue coffee cup is in the background. Barbara Freethy novels. (JORDAN STEAD / Amazon)Photo by JORDAN STEAD / Amazon
Supporting authors

With the goal of helping writers tell their stories and find their readers, the Amazon Literary Partnership supports nonprofit literary organizations that share our obsession with empowering writers to create, publish, learn, teach, experiment, and thrive.

The Center for Fiction's virtual reading with ten poets featured in New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set (Saba) (Akashic Books) and conversation between editors Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani, moderated by Tjawangwa Dema. The event was presented in partnership with Poets House on September 8, 2020. Credit: The Center for Fiction via Zoom.