Go Get Your Audience!

So, let’s say you’ve finished your book. You’ve gone through professional editing, copyright, and formatting (which I’ll dive into in a later post). What comes next? Uploading to KDP or another platform, bien sûr! However, there is a sneaky challenge in this step for new authors. I’m talking about metadata, categories, and genres. I used to think these were all the same thing—but they definitely are not!

Metadata

Think of metadata as everything about your book, except the book itself. This includes your title, your ISBN, and everything in between. Check out this KDP post for the nitty-gritty details. Just think of your masterpiece as a newborn that needs to be properly introduced to its new world (the audience!).

Genre vs. Category

As you might guess, Genre is the “big umbrella” for your book: Fiction, Non-Fiction, Poetry, etc.

Category is where we get specific. For example, under Fiction, you’ll find Romance or Science Fiction. If you go even deeper—say, into Children’s Fiction—you’ll find sub-categories like Animals, Transportation, or Flowers. It can get complicated and a little confusing for us authors! Sometimes we write in a world of imagination that doesn’t feel like it fits into these “frames,” but these systems exist to help retailers put your book on the right shelf.

BISAC: The Magic Code

Yet another number, another code, and another headache… maybe? Don’t worry, I’ll help you navigate it. First rule: it is FREE! Don’t let anyone try to sell you a BISAC number.

So, what is it? The BISAC Subject Codes List is the industry standard for book categorization in the US and Canada. It’s a specific code (like FIC000000 for Fiction) that tells the supply chain exactly where your book belongs.

How to Find Your BISAC Subject Code

First, you need to determine the main subject of your book. I’ll use my book, The Adventures of Patti and Barci: The City of Cats, as an example:

• Main Subject: Fiction.
• The Specifics: Children’s books actually have their own main subject called Juvenile Fiction.
• The Deep Dive: Under Juvenile Fiction, I looked for Animals, then specifically Pets.
• The Result: My BISAC code is JUV002190.

Take your time finding your BISAC code here. It is vital for getting your work in front of the right readers!

Author Tip: KDP allows you to choose three categories to help your book be discovered. For my book, I used:

1. Juvenile Fiction > Animals > Pets
2. Juvenile Fiction > Animals > Humor
3. Juvenile Fiction > Animals > Travel

A Lot to Process

This post was a bit technical—I probably should have mentioned that in the intro! In any case, I hope this helps you clear the “metadata hurdle.” If you need more guidance, leave a comment or email me at author@anechypadron.com.

Au Revoir!

Remember when I said “don’t repeat my mistakes”? In my next post, I’ll be talking about launching dates and publishing strategy.

‘Till next week,

Anechy Padron

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