Best Book Writing Software: From Draft to KDP

Book writing software covers five jobs, and the tools below split them differently:

• Drafting. Getting words down, with word counts and room for notes.
• Outlining. Moving chapters and scenes around, with research and characters in view.
• Editing help. Comments, tracked changes, spelling and grammar checks.
• Formatting. Turning the manuscript into an ebook file and a print-ready interior.
• Collaboration. Letting an editor, co-author or beta reader into the same file.

Our suggestion: pick the formatting tool first, since it makes the file you upload, then check that your drafting tool can feed it. Atticus, Vellum and Kindle Create all import Word files, so a writing app that saves DOCX keeps every option open.

Every route ends at the KDP upload page, so check what it takes before you pick software:

KDP’s page on supported ebook formats says most Word files convert well, though complex formatting may not, and that an EPUB must meet the Kindle Publishing Guidelines. PDF ebooks are accepted in nine languages only, English among them. MOBI is finished: KDP’s MOBI FAQ says MOBI uploads ended for reflowable ebooks on August 1, 2021 and for fixed-layout ebooks on March 18, 2025, and that EPUB 2 and EPUB 3 both work.

For print, the Paperback Submission Guidelines require a PDF when images or other elements run to the edge of the page (bleed); files in the other formats KDP converts to PDF itself. KDP’s page on saving your manuscript recommends uploading a PDF either way. KDP Jumpstart adds that a hardcover can share the paperback’s interior file but needs its own cover, and KDP offers Word templates sorted by trim size.

A first draft needs little more than a place to type, save and count words. Here is what each maker says about its tool.

KDP Help leans on Microsoft Word: its eBook Manuscript Formatting Guide walks through Word, and its paperback templates are Word files. Microsoft offers a free web version with a Microsoft account; the desktop apps for Windows and Mac come with Microsoft 365 Personal or Family, and there are mobile apps for iOS and Android.

Google Docs runs in the browser and in apps for iPhone, iPad and Android. Asked what it costs, Google says anyone with a Google Account can create in Docs, with some extras on paid Workspace plans. It works offline in Chrome or Edge with Google’s extension and exports DOCX, PDF and EPUB.

LibreOffice Writer is part of LibreOffice, an open-source suite its makers offer at no cost, for Windows, macOS and Linux. It saves Word files and exports PDF and EPUB.

Scrivener is built for long projects (more in the next section), while Reedsy Studio and Atticus are book writing apps that also format, so the draft and the finished files live in one place.

Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice, Scrivener and Atticus all save or export DOCX, so a draft can move later. Our suggestion: if you are undecided, start in the tool you already know.

Scrivener is designed around structure. Literature & Latte describes a corkboard where every section of a project is an index card, so moving a card moves the text, and an outliner with synopses, word counts and metadata. Research such as PDFs and web pages opens next to the chapter you are writing, and you can set word targets and check how much you wrote each day. If you plot scene by scene, these are the features to compare in any novel writing software.

Reedsy Studio uses Boards for notes, characters and research. On the core plan they are limited to card view; the paid Outlining add-on adds unlimited Boards, notes with attributes and writing templates, according to its pricing page.

In a word processor, structure comes from headings. KDP’s Word guide suggests Heading 1 for chapter titles, which later helps build the table of contents. Vellum’s import guide suggests the same style for each new chapter title, and Kindle Create suggests chapter titles automatically when it imports a Word file.

Word for the web checks spelling and grammar and handles comments. KDP’s advice is to proofread by hand as well, because such tools may not catch every error. Microsoft says a shared document opens in the browser, where you see co-authors’ changes as they happen; in the Word app, real-time co-authoring needs Microsoft 365, and without it changes show up only when the document is saved.

Google Docs lets you share a file with viewers, commenters or editors; commenters and editors can suggest edits for the owner to accept or reject, and suggestions become tracked changes when the file is converted to Word. Reedsy Studio offers real-time editing with tracked changes and comments, plus read-only previews for beta readers. Atticus has roles for a co-writer, an editor (tracked changes and comments) and a beta reader (comments); according to its help page, a collaborator who is not yet an Atticus user is invited to buy it. Scrivener supports comments and annotations.

Before upload, clean the file: KDP’s Word guide says to turn Track Changes off, and its print guidelines rule out comments, annotations and placeholder text.

If an AI tool writes text for you, KDP’s Content Guidelines require you to disclose it when you publish, even after heavy edits. Using AI to edit, check or brainstorm text you wrote yourself counts as AI-assisted and needs no disclosure. Our guide to book metadata with AI covers the same rule for titles and descriptions.

Kindle Create is Amazon’s own free desktop application, for Windows 10 or later and macOS 10.15 or later. It turns a DOC or DOCX file into a reflowable ebook with one of four themes, detects chapters, builds the table of contents and exports a KPF file, which KDP recommends over the app’s EPUB export. Amazon says the same manuscript file can also become a paperback or hardcover, and KDP’s print guide for Kindle Create says it resizes the book for any trim size and adds page numbers, with headers and footers you can set.

Amazon lists the limits itself: tables, lists and footnotes cannot be edited, image captions are not supported, and covers are out of scope. KDP says Kindle Create is not supported for paperbacks with tables, footnotes or images that bleed, and Amazon recommends importing only a finished manuscript. Back up the project folder, because Amazon does not keep copies of the KCB file you need for updates.

Vellum runs only on Mac (macOS 13 or newer). It imports .docx files and generates ebooks for Kindle, Kobo and Apple Books (an EPUB for Kindle by default), plus a PDF/X-1a print file for a paperback or hardcover in 24 trim sizes and large print, with margins, page numbers and headers set for you. You can build and preview for free and pay once when you want to generate files: Vellum Ebooks, or Vellum Press to add print.

Atticus pairs a writing editor with formatting. Its site lists Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebook, because it is a progressive web app that runs in a browser, online or offline, with cloud backup. It imports DOCX, has 17 templates and a theme builder, and exports EPUB, PDF and DOCX; one file can produce both the ebook and the print PDF, for a one-time price.

Reedsy Studio is not a downloadable app: Reedsy’s FAQ says you use it in a browser, signed in to your Reedsy account, and there is no dedicated mobile app, though it works in mobile browsers. It imports DOCX or ODT files, exports an EPUB in one click and typesets a print-ready PDF in your trim size and template. Its core writing and formatting features are free.

Scrivener formats through Compile. Literature & Latte says it produces PDF files ready for self-publishing, Epub and Kindle ebooks and Word files, and KDP’s MOBI FAQ points Scrivener users to its EPUB 3 and EPUB 2 options. Licences are perpetual and per platform, with a 30-day free trial.

With Word, Google Docs or LibreOffice, upload the DOCX directly for an ebook. For a paperback, start from KDP’s template and save a PDF; KDP’s guide to converting a Word file to PDF covers the settings, including PDF/X-1a and embedded fonts.

Then preview. KDP recommends Kindle Previewer, a free desktop app for Windows 10 and macOS 12 or later that opens EPUB, KPF and Word files (Word for English-language books only). Kindle Create, Vellum and Atticus have built-in previews too.

The table sums up what each maker’s own site says. “Jobs” lists what the tool is built for, not a rating.

Prices are in US dollars; Scrivener’s store shows local prices, and these are its US ones. Plans and prices change, so check the official site before you buy. Software is only one line in the budget; our guide to what it costs to self-publish a book covers the rest.

These are our suggestions, not rules, and each one ends in a file KDP accepts:

• Spending nothing. Draft in Google Docs, LibreOffice or Word for the web, mark chapters with headings, and format the DOCX in Kindle Create for the ebook and a text-heavy paperback with a simple layout.
• Plotting a novel or a series. Write and restructure in Scrivener, then take a Word file into Vellum on a Mac or Atticus on any computer with a browser, or compile from Scrivener itself.
• Working with an editor. Keep one shared manuscript in Google Docs, Reedsy Studio or Atticus, so comments and changes stay in one place.

For print books, KDP says it checks manuscript and cover files by hand after you submit. Its review checklist and formatting pages flag the same problems:

• Matching details. The title, author name and edition in the file match what you enter in KDP.
• No leftovers. Template text, placeholders, comments and tracked changes are gone.
• Print basics. Fonts embedded, images at 300 DPI or more, text at 7 points or larger.
• No cover in the ebook file. KDP adds the cover you upload.
• A preview and a proof. Kindle Previewer for the ebook, a proof copy for print.

Three tools on this site help here: the word count to page count calculator estimates your printed page count by trim size, the KDP cover calculator turns that page count into full cover and spine dimensions, and the copyright page generator writes your copyright page. For the book description, see our guide to what a blurb is.

Once the book is live, the writing software has done its job. The questions become what each book earns and what its ads cost, and the answers sit in two places: the KDP reports show royalties, while ad spend lives in your Amazon Ads account. SelfPub Go puts your Amazon Ads campaigns next to your KDP royalties, book by book, and its royalty analytics reads the KDP report you already download.

Tool details and prices in this guide come from each tool’s official site, and KDP rules from KDP Help, as of the date at the top of the page. If something here no longer matches, the linked pages are the source to trust.