What is Back Matter in an Ebook — and Why Does It Matter?
Back matter is the section at the end of your ebook after the story ends. Here's what it should include, why retailer links need to be different per store, and how to manage it.
Back matter is everything that appears at the end of your ebook after the main content ends.
For a novel, that’s after the final chapter. For a non-fiction book, it’s after the last section. It’s the part of your book that most readers see immediately after they finish — a moment of high engagement that most indie authors underuse.
What back matter typically includes
Also By / Other Books By the Author A list of your other published titles, usually with links to buy them. This is the most important piece of back matter for driving catalogue sales. A reader who just finished your book and enjoyed it is the most likely person to buy your next one — the “Also By” section is your most direct cross-promotion tool.
A note from the author A personal message thanking the reader, asking for a review, or sharing something about the book’s background. Keeps the connection personal after the story ends.
A request for a review Reviews drive discoverability on every retail platform. A direct, friendly ask in back matter — “If you enjoyed this book, a quick review on [store] makes a real difference” — is standard practice for indie authors and measurably increases review rates.
Preview of the next book The first chapter or a teaser of your next release. Particularly effective if the next book is in the same series. Readers who finish one book and immediately get pulled into the opening of the next are more likely to buy it.
Social links and newsletter signup Where to find you, and how to hear about new releases. A newsletter link backed by a reader magnet (free bonus content) is the most effective.
Acknowledgements and author bio Standard publishing conventions that readers expect.
Why back matter links need to be retailer-specific
Here’s where it gets more complicated for authors publishing on multiple platforms.
When you publish wide — on Amazon, Kobo, Apple Books, Google Play, and Nook — your “Also By” links in back matter need to point to the right store for each version of your book.
A reader on Kobo should see Kobo links. A reader on Apple Books should see Apple Books links. A reader who bought through Amazon should see Amazon links.
Why does this matter technically?
KDP (Amazon’s publishing platform) will reject or flag an EPUB that contains links to competitor stores — Kobo, Apple, Google — in the back matter. Amazon treats competitor store links in a KDP submission as a policy violation.
Apple Books and Kobo can also reject a book, or ask you to remove links, when it points readers to a competing store.
This means you can’t have one set of back matter links across all your retailer versions. Each retailer needs its own version of your back matter, with only links to that retailer’s store.
How most authors handle this poorly:
- Maintaining six completely separate EPUB files, manually editing back matter for each
- Using only generic “buy on Amazon” links everywhere and missing non-Amazon sales
- Uploading the same file everywhere and hoping the retailer doesn’t notice the competitor links
How to handle it properly: Use a formatting tool that exports platform-specific variants automatically. You write your back matter once — with all your store links — and the export process strips the wrong links for each retailer. Your Kindle export gets Amazon-only links. Your Kobo export gets Kobo-only links. No manual editing per file.
What universal links are (and when to use them)
Services like Books2Read, Booklinker, and StoryOrigin let you create a single “universal” link that detects where a reader is browsing and redirects them to the appropriate store.
Universal links simplify back matter because you can use one link for each book rather than one link per store. A reader on Kobo gets taken to the Kobo store. A reader on Amazon gets taken to the Amazon store.
The tradeoff: Universal links add a redirect step, and some retailer policies look askance at links that redirect rather than linking directly to the store. KDP in particular has tightened rules around back matter links, and universal link services have varying track records of staying within policy.
The practical guidance: Universal links are fine for author website links and newsletter CTAs. For retailer-specific EPUB exports, direct platform links are safer and cleaner. A tool that handles platform-specific exports handles this automatically.
How much of your book should be back matter?
A common question from new authors is how much back matter is appropriate.
The honest answer: as much as is useful, none of what isn’t.
For a novel, a tight back matter section — “Also By” list, a brief author note, a review request, and a newsletter link — might be 3–4 pages. A chapter preview adds another 5–10 pages. This is standard and readers expect it.
What readers don’t like: excessive padding, repetitive content, long promotional copy that feels more like an advertisement than a genuine reader note. Keep the tone personal and the content useful.
For non-fiction, back matter often includes acknowledgements, a bibliography or resources section, and author bio alongside the standard “Also By” and review request. The length is more variable.
Back matter as a publishing habit
The most successful indie authors treat back matter as an ongoing maintenance task, not a set-and-forget element of the book.
Every new release means updating the “Also By” section across your entire backlist. Every change in retail distribution (going wide, coming off KFU, adding a new platform) means updating retailer links. Every newsletter migration or social platform change means updating contact links.
This is the reality of building a publishing catalogue — the work doesn’t end when the book is formatted. Building a workflow that makes back matter updates efficient (rather than dreading them) is one of the practical habits that separates authors who manage their catalogue well from those whose older books quietly stagnate.
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