Want to Publish Erotica on Amazon? Here’s How I Did It

Photo by Dainis Graveris on Unsplash

In May of 2020, I had an idea that I might want to publish fiction on Amazon in the future. It seemed like something I could do “one day,” but once I started writing, I realized that things moved pretty quickly. I had no idea that by the end of the month, I would be able to publish several erotic short stories (and that I’d be able to make some money doing it).

Admittedly, I’m not drawing in the kind of money that many other authors claim to. Publishing erotic fiction on Amazon is not a way to get rich quick, but it is a way to make some money if you are willing to put in some work. Plus, writing erotic fiction allows you to build up a catalog of work, which can provide some passive income with time.

Learn the Game

Learning to publish successful fiction is a game. You have to play a little. You can play with your pen names, cover art, and your niche each time you publish something new. Wait and see what happens with each adjustment. You’ll need to be a little patient, but ultimately you should begin to see a change in your numbers when you hit the marks.

Research . . . a Lot

I did a lot of research before even writing a story. You can spend days reading through the helpful threads on r/eroticauthors, and you’ll find plenty of tutorials and tips on YouTube.

Read . . . a Lot

You should also spend some time reading erotica, particularly in the niches you want to explore. You need to know what kinds of marks you need to hit to meet reader expectations. You might find that the expectations for the reverse harem niche are different from the hucow niche, for example.

Choose Your Niche

Once you’ve done some reading, it’s time to choose a niche for your first story. You can write whatever you want, but the hard truth is that successful stories usually appeal to a specific kink or fantasy. This is where perusing the bestselling books in erotica will come in.

Get Busy

Start writing. I usually start with a brief outline, just a general overview of what I want to write. I aim for at least 6,000 words for a short story. I recommend keeping your…