What I Wish I'd Known About Book Categories Before I Published

I picked my Amazon categories for my self-published book in about three minutes.

"Literature & Fiction > Women's Fiction" seemed like the obvious choice. My book focused on relationships, personal growth, and the emotional journey of its main character, so placing it under "Literature & Fiction > Contemporary Women" felt like a natural fit as well.

It was done, and I didn't think about it again.

Well, I'm thinking about those categories now that they killed any chance my book had of being discovered. As it turns out, I had a lot to learn about Amazon categories as I first time self-published author. 

What I Thought Categories Were

I thought the Amazon categories were just filing systems, just organisational tags, so the algorithm could categorise my book correctly. I viewed it like putting a book on the right shelf in a library.

I picked categories that accurately described my book. To me, that seemed logical, but I was completely wrong.

What Categories Actually Are

Amazon categories aren't just organisational; they're competitive battlegrounds and discovery mechanisms.

Battleground: You're competing for ranking within your categories. The higher you rank, the more visibility you get.

Discovery: Readers browse categories. They look at top-selling books in specific categories. If you're not ranking well, you're invisible.

When I picked massive, competitive categories like "Literature & Fiction," I was competing against:

• Colleen Hoover
• Taylor Jenkins Reid
• Kristin Hannah
• Candace Bushnell
• Ali Hazelwood 
• And every bestselling women's fiction author on Amazon (there is too many to name)

My book, with zero sales, was ranking around #847,392 in "Literature & Fiction." I can attest that no one scrolls through tens of thousands of titles to discover a brand-new novel.

The Category Ranking System

Amazon ranks books within each category they're in.

If you're #1 in your category, you get the "#1 Bestseller" badge. With this accolade, Amazon promotes you, which means readers find you. But if you're #200,000 in your category, you're invisible.

With that in mind, it turns out the goal isn't to pick the most accurate category for your book. The goal is to pick categories where you can actually rank in the top 100.

Because ranking top 100 in a category gives you:

• Visibility in that category's bestseller list
• "Bestseller" badge (if you hit #1)
• More organic discovery
• Better algorithm performance

I didn't know any of this. I picked categories where I had zero chance of ranking well, and with heavy competition, I wasn't in a position to beat anyone. 

The "#1 Bestseller" Trick

You've seen books with orange "#1 Bestseller" badges, right? That badge appears if you rank #1 in any category, even a tiny one.

So authors game the system by picking very specific, low-competition categories just to get that badge. Here's an example of it in action:

Instead of ranking #200,000 in "Business," rank #1 in "Business > Small Business > Home-Based Businesses > Artisan Crafts"

You get the "#1 Bestseller" badge, and readers see it and assume your book is popular.

Is this ethical? It's using the system as designed, and Amazon allows it, so it's up to you. I didn't even know this was possible when I published, so I can't say I've used this system.

My Amazon Category Mistakes

In hindsight, I've been able to analyse my mistakes and work out where I went wrong. I have no doubt others have made these same mistakes. 

Mistake #1: I picked categories that were too broad

"Literature & Fiction" has hundreds of thousands of books. To break into the top 100 in a category that large, I would have needed a significant number of sales in the first week just to be visible.

I got zero sales, so I didn't rank in any meaningful way, so I was never going to get anywhere with category-based sales. 

Mistake #2: I didn't research the competition

I never looked at which books were ranking in the top 100 in my categories. If I had, I would have seen they had hundreds of reviews and thousands of sales. 

I was competing against established bestsellers with my zero-review book. But I don't blame myself; I was fixated on my own book and didn't want to get bogged down in what everyone else was doing. 

Mistake #3: I only picked two categories

Amazon lets you choose two categories when you upload, but I've heard you can request up to ten categories by contacting support.

I didn't know this, nor have I tried it. But I'm kicking myself for limiting myself to two competitive categories when I could have been in ten strategic ones.

Mistake #4: I picked categories based on accuracy, not winnability

My novel was technically women's fiction, so I chose the broad, obvious categories that matched that label.

I should have chosen more specific subcategories where I actually had a chance to rank, even if they were slightly narrower than the most obvious fit.

How To Pick The Right Category For Your Book

There is some hope you will pick your ideal category the first time with good guessing and some research. But there's an equal chance you'll miss the mark and end up in category purgatory as I did. 

I have some guidelines to help you pick the best category for your book, guidelines I'm using for the book I'm currently writing. 

If you're writing fiction

Pick categories that match your specific sub-genre:

• Not just "Romance" but "Contemporary Romance > New Adult"
• Not just "Thriller" but "Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Psychological Thrillers"

Here's a simple rule: the more specific, the better.

If you're writing nonfiction

• Pick categories that match your readers' needs:
• Not just "Self-Help" but "Self-Help > Success > Time Management"
• Not just "Business" but "Business > Small Business > Marketing > Social Media"

Think about what problem you're solving and categorise accordingly.

For any type of book

• Research Amazon categories before you pick yours
• Choose 8–10 categories, not just 2
• Pick a mix of easy, medium, and stretch categories
• Check the competition in each to see how competitive it is
• Be strategic, not just accurate

How to Change Categories After Publishing

Don't panic if you don't get your categories spot on. You can change categories after you've published. You can always re-upload your book with new categories, or email KDP support to ask them to help you change the categories. 

The Biggest Lesson

Categories are not about accurately describing your book. They're about strategically positioning your book where readers can find it. 

Here I thought I was being honest by picking broad, accurate categories, when in reality I was actually being naive.

Successful self-publishers game the category system. They pick the most strategic categories that give them the best chance of ranking and being discovered.

That's not dishonest. It's smart marketing.

What We Need To Remember: Your Amazon Book Categories Matter

You can have a great book, great cover, and great description. But if you're ranked #300,000 in your categories, nobody will ever find you.

Categories are your book's discoverability engine. Pick them strategically, and not randomly. 

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I write about the emotional and practical reality of being a writer - drafting, doubt, discipline, and publishing while still figuring it out.

Mostly for people who write because they have to, need to, want to | https://linktr.ee/ellenfranceswrites