Start Project Brief
Christmas 2026 · Amazon KDP

To be on Amazon for Christmas, your book starts by 20 September.

Not our deadline — Amazon's. Illustration takes four to five weeks, then KDP has to review the files, print a proof, and ship it to you before the book can go live. Counted backwards from Black Friday, the last safe day to start is Sunday 20 September. The full arithmetic is below — check it yourself.

--
Days
--
Hours
--
Mins
--
Secs
11 of 12 slots left 1 booked

Twelve is what we can illustrate properly between now and the end of October. When they are gone the page says so — we would rather turn work away in September than miss a printing date in November.

See your character first

Nobody should book a book they have not seen drawn. Describe one character and you will have a hand-drawn sketch of it back within 48 hours — free, no card. Slots are reserved after you have seen it and approved a quote.

No payment, no card. Six fields, about a minute.
Already know what you want? Build a quote instead.

Your character is in the queue

The sketch lands in your inbox within 48 hours (business days) — check spam if it is quiet. Reply to it and we will hold a Christmas slot for you while you decide.

The arithmetic

Where 20 September comes from

Every date below is either a production step or something Amazon controls. Nothing here is padded to make the deadline sound closer than it is. If you want to check the printing and shipping side yourself, it is all in KDP's own help pages.

20 Sept
Booking closes

Last day to reserve a Christmas slot. After this the November print window cannot be met.

21 Sept – 25 Oct
Illustration

Character sheets first, then interior pages. Four to five weeks for a 32-page book, revision rounds included.

26 – 31 Oct
Cover, formatting, ePub

Wraparound cover built to your exact spine width, KDP interior formatting, and the Kindle edition.

31 Oct
Print-ready files with you

Everything delivered. This is the date the guarantee is measured against.

1 – 3 Nov
KDP review

Amazon's own review of your uploaded files. Usually 24–72 hours.

4 – 13 Nov
Proof copy

Printed and posted to you. You hold the physical book, check it, approve it.

~15 Nov
Live on Amazon

Twelve days of being live and indexed before Black Friday.

27 Nov
Black Friday

Peak of US holiday shopping. Your book is already up, already searchable.

~18 Dec
Amazon's Christmas cutoff

Last standard-shipping day for guaranteed Christmas delivery.

Working out your own spine width or trim size while you decide? The cover calculator and the trim size guide are free and need no account.

Included in every slot

Three things that come wrapped in

The per-page illustration rate has not changed for this campaign — it is the same $20–35 a page it always is, and you can verify that in ten seconds. What is different is that the three things a Christmas launch also needs come with it.

Included
Wraparound cover design

Front, spine and back as one print file, built to your exact spine width for your final page count. Plus the eBook front.

$30  included

Included
KDP interior formatting

Bleed, margins and gutter set to KDP's spec so the file passes review first time instead of bouncing in November.

$30  included

Included
Kindle / ePub edition

A Kindle version built alongside the paperback. It costs nothing extra to sell both, and it catches the tablet crowd on Christmas morning.

$20  included

Files with you by Saturday 31 October, or 20% back

If your print-ready files are not delivered by 31 October, we refund 20% of what you have paid. Automatically — you will not have to chase it or argue for it. On a 32-page book that is roughly $160 back.

We are putting that in writing because a deadline campaign without a delivery promise is just pressure. And it is exactly why the slot count is twelve and not open-ended: the promise only means something if we can actually keep it.

No small print

Straight answers

Why 20 September specifically? That feels early.
It is not our deadline — it is Amazon's, worked backwards. A 32-page book takes four to five weeks to illustrate. Cover and formatting add a week. Then KDP reviews the files, prints a proof, and ships it to you, which is another two weeks before the book can go live. Add it up from 20 September and you land in mid-November, about twelve days before Black Friday. Start later and you are either skipping the proof copy or launching after the shopping has already happened.
What if I miss the 20 September cutoff?
Then we should not pretend a Christmas paperback is still possible — we would rather tell you that than take the booking and disappoint you in November. Two things still work: a Kindle edition, which needs no printing or shipping and can go live in December for the tablets kids unwrap on Christmas morning; or we start in October and launch properly in January, which is a genuinely good window because gift cards get spent and parents are looking for new books. Email and say which you want.
What exactly is included free?
Wraparound cover design ($30), KDP interior formatting to print-ready spec ($30), and Kindle/ePub conversion ($20) — $80 in total, included at no extra cost on any Christmas slot. The illustration itself is charged at the normal rate on /price-quote. We have not raised the per-page price for this campaign; you can check it yourself.
What happens if you deliver late?
If your print-ready files are not with you by 31 October, we refund 20% of what you have paid, automatically — you do not have to ask or argue. That is also why there are only twelve slots. We would rather turn work away in September than miss a date in November.
Do I need a finished manuscript to book?
A finished or near-final manuscript, yes. Illustration cannot start from an outline, because page count drives both the schedule and the spine width. If your draft is close, send it anyway and we will tell you honestly whether it can be locked in time.
Can I see your work on my character before I commit?
Yes, and you should. Send one character description through the form on this page and you will get a hand-drawn sketch of it back within 48 hours — free, no card, no obligation. Do this before you book anything, with us or with anyone else. Reserving a slot only happens after you have seen the sketch and approved a quote.
How many pages is a typical Christmas book?
Most are 24 or 32 pages. At the standard rate a 32-page book runs roughly $640 to $1,120 depending on the illustration style you choose, and with this campaign the cover, formatting and Kindle edition come with it. Build your own number on the pricing page — there is no form to fill in first.

35 days to decide, 48 hours to see the work

The sketch is free and it commits you to nothing. Do it before you book anything — with us or with anyone else. If the style is not right for your story you have lost an afternoon, not a Christmas.

Get a free character sketch → or see 12 finished books first