How to Use ChatGPT in Every Stage of Publishing

A Practical Guide for Independent Authors

ChatGPT has become one of the most powerful tools available to independent authors. It can help you brainstorm ideas, organize your writing, improve clarity, check formatting logic, design book covers, and even support your marketing strategy.
This module will show you exactly where ChatGPT fits into the full publishing process, how to use it responsibly, and the prompts that will get the best results.

Section 1 — ChatGPT’s Role Across the Publishing Lifecycle

Below is a breakdown of how ChatGPT can assist at each stage of “So You Want to Publish a Book”:

1. Topic, Customer Research & Title

ChatGPT can help you:

  • Brainstorm book ideas

  • Validate demand and identify gaps in the market

  • Summarize the target audience

  • Create potential titles, subtitles, and back-cover themes

  • Mimic Amazon keyword behaviour to refine topic selection

Recommended Prompts

Topic Brainstorming

“Generate 15 book ideas based on the following interests: [insert topics]. For each idea, provide the target audience, current market demand, and what gap the book fills.”

Customer Research

“Describe the ideal reader for a book on [insert topic]. Include their pain points, desires, and keywords they would search on Amazon.”

Title Creation

“Create 20 title–subtitle combinations for a nonfiction book about [insert topic], using strong keywords and benefit-driven language.”

2. Writing the Book

ChatGPT can help you:

  • Create detailed book outlines

  • Expand or shorten sections

  • Rewrite for tone, clarity, reading level

  • Provide examples, analogies, stories

  • Maintain consistency of voice across chapters

  • Generate exercises, case studies, templates, or checklists

Recommended Prompts

Outline Development

“Create a detailed outline for a nonfiction book about [insert topic]. Include chapters, subtopics, learning objectives, and suggested exercises.”

Drafting Assistance

“Expand the following paragraph to make it clearer and more engaging while maintaining my voice: [paste text].”

Rewrite for Clarity

“Rewrite the following text at a Grade 8 reading level while keeping a professional tone: [paste text].”

Add Examples or Stories

“Provide three short real-world examples that illustrate the following concept: [insert concept].”

3. Editing & Proofreading

ChatGPT does not replace a professional editor, but it can dramatically improve clarity before you hire one.

ChatGPT can help you:

  • Identify unclear or repetitive writing

  • Suggest structural improvements

  • Provide line-by-line editing for clarity and flow

  • Improve tone consistency

  • Identify grammatical issues

  • Prepare your manuscript before a paid editor

Recommended Prompts

Developmental Editing

“Evaluate the following chapter for clarity, organization, and logical flow. Suggest improvements. [paste chapter]”

Line Editing

“Improve the clarity, flow, and readability of the following paragraph without changing its meaning: [paste text].”

Repetition Check

“Review the text and identify any sentences, paragraphs, or ideas that appear repetitive: [paste text].”

Voice Consistency

“Rewrite this section to match a friendly, conversational tone suitable for a self-help book: [paste text].”

4. Formatting

ChatGPT cannot format a book directly, but it can provide style guides, layout logic, structure suggestions, formatting checklists, and troubleshooting tips.

ChatGPT can help you:

  • Choose book trim sizes

  • Provide recommended font styles, spacing, and interior layouts

  • Create consistent heading structures and chapter templates

  • Generate lists, tables, diagrams, and workbook formatting

  • Troubleshoot formatting issues before uploading to KDP or IngramSpark

Recommended Prompts

Formatting Decisions

“Provide formatting recommendations for a 6×9 nonfiction book on [insert topic], including fonts, line spacing, margins, headers, and chapter layout.”

Workbook Layouts

“Create a clean workbook page layout including instructions, prompts, and space for reader responses on the topic of [insert topic].”

Formatting Troubleshooting

“Explain how to fix common formatting issues in Word or Google Docs before uploading to KDP.”

5. Book Cover Design

ChatGPT is not a graphic tool, but it excels at concept creation and design planning.

ChatGPT can help you:

  • Brainstorm visual concepts

  • Create mood boards and style directions

  • Suggest colors, typography, and layout patterns

  • Write instructions for a designer (or a DALL·E prompt)

  • Rewrite your back-cover blurb

Recommended Prompts

Cover Concepts

“Generate 10 book cover concepts for a nonfiction book titled ‘[insert Title].’ Include colors, fonts, layout ideas, and imagery.”

DALL·E Prompt Writing

“Create a DALL·E prompt for a clean, professional, blueprint-style cover for a book on [insert topic].”

Back-Cover Blurb

“Write a compelling back-cover blurb (150 words) for a nonfiction book about [insert topic] that includes benefits, transformation, and credibility.”

6. Publishing & Marketing

ChatGPT is exceptionally useful in the publishing/marketing phase.

ChatGPT can help you:

  • Write Amazon listings

  • Generate backend keywords

  • Suggest categories

  • Create ads (SP/SB/SD)

  • Write author bios

  • Generate email sequences

  • Write social media posts

  • Create A+ content text

  • Build marketing plans

Recommended Prompts

Amazon Listing

“Write a compelling Amazon listing for a nonfiction book titled [insert Title], including a keyword-rich subtitle, bullet points, and a 200-word description.”

Backend Keywords

“Generate 7 backend keyword sets (≤50 characters each) for a book on [insert topic].”

Category Recommendations

“Suggest 10 Amazon categories and subcategories that would help this book rank competitively: [book topic/title].”

Marketing Plan

“Create a 30-day marketing plan for launching a nonfiction book [insert title] using both social media and non-social media channels.”

Advertising

“Create 10 Amazon Sponsored Product ad keyword lists categorized by broad, phrase, and exact match for a book on [insert topic].”

Section 2 — What ChatGPT Cannot Replace

Important for everyone to know:

❌ A human developmental editor
❌ A professional copyeditor for final pass
❌ A graphic designer for advanced covers
❌ A legal expert for copyright or contracts
❌ A human sensitivity reader for certain genres

ChatGPT is a tool—but the author is still the creative mind.

Section 3 — Best Practices for Using ChatGPT Effectively

1. Provide context

More context = better output.

2. Paste examples of your writing

Helps ChatGPT match your tone.

3. Make requests specific

Avoid vague prompts like “fix this.” Ask ChatGPT for the best prompt for a situation.

4. Ask ChatGPT to iterate

You can request:

  • Shorter

  • More professional

  • More conversational

  • More scientific

  • More emotional

5. Always fact-check

Especially for scientific topics or references.