If you’re publishing books under more than one pen name, setting up Amazon Author Central for the second one can feel surprisingly confusing.
When I published my first book under a new pen name, I couldn’t find much information explaining what would happen when I tried to add it to Author Central. My biggest concern was that the book would automatically be attached to my existing author profile, mixing the two pen names together.
Fortunately, that’s not what happens.
If you’re worried about claiming a book under a second pen name, here’s how the process works and what to expect.
Why Authors Worry About Adding a Second Pen Name
Amazon Author Central is linked to your Amazon account rather than a specific pen name. Because of this, many authors assume that any new book they add will automatically appear under their existing author profile.
This can be a concern if:
- You write in different genres.
- You want to keep your pen names separate.
- You use one name for fiction and another for non-fiction.
- You simply want separate author pages for branding purposes.
The good news is that Amazon has a process in place to prevent books from being automatically linked to the wrong author profile.
Before You Start
Your book must already be published on Amazon before you can claim it in Author Central.
Before adding the book, visit its Amazon product page and check the author name displayed beneath the title.
If the correct pen name is showing on the listing, Amazon already recognises that author name. This can provide some reassurance before you begin the claiming process.
How to Add a Book Under a Second Pen Name
- Sign in to your existing Amazon Author Central account.
- Go to the Books tab.
- Select Add a Book.
- Search for your book by title, ASIN or ISBN.
- Select the correct book and begin the claim process.
At this point, many authors worry that clicking “Add” will automatically place the book under their existing pen name.
That isn’t what happened in my experience.
What Happens When You Claim the Book
When I added my book, Amazon didn’t automatically attach it to my existing author profile.
Instead, a pop-up appeared asking me to confirm which author profile the book belonged to.
This was the information I struggled to find beforehand.
Because the book had been published under a different pen name, Amazon recognised this and asked me to choose the appropriate author profile. If you’re using a brand-new pen name, Amazon gives you the option to create a new author profile for that name.
This means you can review everything before confirming.
Before proceeding, check that:
- The author name matches the pen name shown on your book.
- The book details are correct.
- You are selecting or creating the intended author profile.
Taking a moment to review these details can help avoid mistakes and give you peace of mind.
Managing Multiple Pen Names
Once the book has been claimed, you’ll be able to manage multiple author profiles from the same Author Central account.
Each author profile can have its own:
- Biography
- Author photo
- Editorial reviews
- Book list
- Author page URL
Although they’re managed from the same account, readers will see separate author pages for each pen name.
Do Readers See Your Other Pen Names?
In most cases, no.
Having multiple author profiles under one Author Central account does not automatically tell readers that the pen names belong to the same person.
Each pen name has its own author page, allowing you to keep your branding separate if you choose.
The Process Is Simpler Than It Looks
Setting up a second pen name in Amazon Author Central turned out to be much easier than I expected.
The part that worried me most was whether claiming the book would automatically place it under my existing pen name. Because there isn’t much clear information available, I hesitated before adding the book.
However, Amazon presented a pop-up asking me to confirm which author profile the book belonged to, giving me the opportunity to create or select the correct pen name before anything was linked.
If you’ve published a book under a new pen name and are nervous about adding it to Author Central, take your time, read the prompts carefully, and check the author name before confirming.
In my experience, Amazon did not automatically merge the book with my existing pen name, and the process was far more straightforward than I had expected.
Creating Books for Your New Pen Name?
If you’re planning to publish more books under your new pen name, having the right tools can save a lot of time.
Book Bolt to help with keyword research, niche research and creating book interiors for Amazon KDP. Whether you’re publishing notebooks, journals, planners or other low-content books, it can make the process much quicker and easier.
You can learn more about Book Bolt here and see whether it’s a good fit for your publishing goals.
