Phelan_Varrent/notes/book2-kindle-publish-checklist.md

Kindle Publishing Checklist — Book 2

Generated from export_kindle.py. Review and complete before uploading.

EPUB: kindle/exports/book2-kindle.epub

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Front & Back Matter

• Copyright page — kindle/templates/copyright-page.md
• Dedication — kindle/templates/front-matter.md (family dedication)
• "Also by the Author" page — kindle/templates/also-by.md lists The Floundry Affair

Metadata

• Confirm pen name / author name — Phillip Tarrant
• Confirm book title and subtitle — The Drenwick Drainings: A Phelan Varrant Novel, Book Two (title uniqueness verified 2026-04-15)
• Write book description / blurb (for KDP listing) — see below
• Choose KDP categories (2 allowed) — Fantasy > Humorous; Fantasy > Mystery & Detective
• Select 7 keywords for KDP search — see below
• Set price (consider KU 70% royalty tier: $2.99–$9.99)

Book Description

People are turning up drained. Not dead — diminished. Lives siphoned out a little at a time, the victims left aged and hollow, the Arcane Compact suspiciously uninterested in asking why.

Phelan Varrant finds the flaws in unbreakable magic. That's the job.

He would rather be at home. He has a house to build, a woman he can't quite believe puts up with him, and a training routine he is losing on purpose. What he has instead is a pattern.

Someone in Thorngate has been very patient. Someone in Thorngate is about to find out that Phelan does things other people can't — and that he is, against his own better judgment, running out of reasons to stay reasonable.

The Locksmith is back. The case gets personal. And this time, saving the weapon matters more than breaking it.

KDP compliance: No comparable titles/authors named. Sells on voice, Flaw Sight premise, personal stakes. See CLAUDE.md Section 14.

KDP Keywords

1. sarcastic mage protagonist
2. magic system fantasy series
3. first person fantasy adventure
4. guild fantasy mystery
5. dark humor fantasy novel
6. curse breaker antihero
7. fantasy detective investigation

KDP Compliance Checks

• No keywords contain other authors' names or series titles
• Book description does not name comparable titles or authors
• Cover art is visually distinct from major comparable series (graphic-novel inked style, skeletal drained figure + extraction crystal — no resemblance to comparable series covers)
• Title/subtitle cannot be confused with existing published works (web search 2026-04-15: no collisions)
• Review against Amazon's content guidelines: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G200952510 (reviewed 2026-04-15 — compliant; ToC/typography verification deferred to Kindle Previewer)

Cover Image

• Cover image ready — images/book2-cover.jpg (generated via Stable Diffusion, Ultimate 4x upscale)
• Cover concept finalized — skeletal drained victim kneeling + Mallory focusing crystal with extraction thread, graphic-novel ink style, cold blue + sickly amber palette
• Verify final dimensions meet KDP minimum (1600×2560px, 1.6:1 portrait) — confirm post-upscale size
• Add title + author typography overlay in Photoshop/GIMP — title "The Drenwick Drainings" top-left or bottom strip, subtitle "A Phelan Varrant Novel - Book 2" smaller caps, author "Phillip Tarrant"
• Cover passes KDP image quality checks (DPI ≥ 300, RGB color, JPEG/TIFF)
• Cover is visually distinct from well-known series in the genre (different pose, palette, composition)
• Run export_kindle.py --cover images/book2-cover.jpg to embed cover in EPUB

Quality Checks

• Open EPUB in Kindle Previewer — check rendering on multiple devices
• Verify Table of Contents links work (dedication + "Also by" entries present)
• Verify chapter breaks (each chapter starts on new page)
• Verify scene breaks (* * *) are centered and styled
• Check smart quotes, em dashes, ellipses throughout
• Check first paragraphs are not indented after headings/scene breaks
• Proofread front and back matter
• Confirm no [CONTINUITY FLAG] markers remain in text (verified multiple passes)

Upload

• Log in to KDP (kdp.amazon.com)
• Create new Kindle eBook
• Upload EPUB manuscript
• Upload cover image
• Fill in metadata (title, description, categories, keywords)
• Set pricing and royalty
• Enroll in Kindle Unlimited (KDP Select)
• Preview and publish