Featured Leanpub Book
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Featured Leanpub Book
The Shelf
- Stijn Dejongh
The Corporate Sabotage Field Guide is a satirical field manual examining how organizations quietly undermine themselves from the inside. Framed like a classified dossier from the Office of Strategic Systemic Decay (OSSD), it catalogs familiar managerial practices — subtly weaponized to erode clarity, stall momentum, and sabotage culture under the guise of professionalism. Darkly humorous, uncomfortably accurate, and grounded in real systems behavior, it’s written for those who recognize that dysfunction often wears a lanyard.
- Gareth Holebrook
Capable people drift into failure through accumulated lapses in attention. By the time collapse becomes visible, erosion has been active for years. Ishi is the discipline that interrupts drift before collapse forces correction.
- Stefan Ellersdorfer
What makes a software engineer truly effective? Beyond writing code, effectiveness comes from ethics, sustainable practices, collaboration, and the courage to adapt. The Effective Software Engineer guides you from clean coding habits to organizational empowerment, bridging the gap between developers and leaders.
- Barry M O’Reilly
Residuality Theory is a new way to think about the design of software systems that explains why we experience design the way we do, why certain things seem to work only sporadically, and why certain architects get it right so often regardless of which tools they use. A new, scientific approach is defined that fuses Software Engineering, Complexity Science, and Philosophy to produce an entirely new way to think about how to design software. The result is a theoretical base that allows architecture to finally become its own discipline.
- Barry O’Reilly
An introduction to philosophy for software engineers and architects that will help them understand their design process. This book helps to answer the question “Why are we like this?”.
- Hani Al-Shater
What could a mighty billion-parameter reasoning machine learn from a camel trying to touch its ear with its tongue? From a cup of coffee? From deleting your entire codebase while you sleep? More than you’d think. And less than you’d hope. Today’s AI is brilliant structure without grounding—a hollow genius. We chase smarter models but ignore the architecture they need. This book is about building that missing layer: the trust chains and systems that turn raw intelligence into reliable autonomy. For builders ready to move beyond prompts.Watch agents solve unsolvable problems. Learn to think in trust chains. Start here.
- Alberto Souza
You’ll just need the Five Essential Elements of Learning Through five essential elements, you’ll gain the ability to learn anything deeply—no matter how complex the subject. These five pillars of effective learning will become lifelong tools, guiding you every time you set out to truly master new knowledge and retain it permanently. If you're ready to stop passively consuming information and start truly mastering it, this book is for you.
- Valery Manokhin
Mastering Modern Time Series Forecasting is your all-in-one guide to building real-world forecasting systems that work — from classical stats to deep learning and beyond. Whether you're modeling retail demand or energy loads, this book gives you the tools, intuition, and code to go from zero to production. You'll cover ARIMA, ML, deep nets, transformers, and even the rise of FTSMs (Foundational Time Series Models). Written by a practitioner who’s built forecasting solutions for multibillion-dollar businesses, this is the hands-on, honest guide every data scientist, analyst, or forecaster needs.
- Declan Moran
Modern networks like the Internet — explained as simply as possible — but no simpler.
- Owen Ou
Skip the black-box frameworks. Build a production-grade AI coding agent from scratch in pure Python—cloud or local, tested with pytest, under 700 lines.
- Jitin Kayyala
Write code that you can understand without holding the entire system in your head. This book shows you how Java's modern functional features—records, sealed types, lambdas, streams—combine into a powerful approach to design. You'll learn: • How to eliminate race conditions without synchronized blocks • How to write tests that test business logic, not mock frameworks • How to compose complex behaviors from simple, reusable functions • How to manage deeply nested immutable data without boilerplate • How to adopt functional patterns incrementally in existing codebases Written for working developers. Filled with production-ready code examples.
- Hillel Wayne
Logic is the most important branch of math to software engineering. Knowing logic opens up a vast world of development techniques, from everyday tricks of the trade to exotic tools for cracking impossible tasks. This book teaches the basics of logic and nine special logic-powered techniques: property testing, decision tables, constraint solving, and more. Over 50 exercises are provided to help readers master the material. No prior math background required!
Top Books
Your organization does all the right things. They practice chaos engineering, GameDays, and load testing. They conduct incident reviews and operational readiness reviews. Yet the same types of incidents keep recurring. This book examines why resilience practices so often fail to build resilience, revealing the organizational dynamics that systematically transform learning mechanisms into compliance theater and what you can do to navigate them consciously.
Unlock the power of geospatial data with Python! This hands-on guide is designed for beginners and intermediate users eager to explore spatial analysis and interactive mapping using open-source tools. You'll learn how to work with real-world data through practical examples and build skills in Python programming, vector and raster analysis, web mapping, and cloud computing. Whether you're a student, researcher, GIS professional, or data scientist, this book will equip you with the tools to tackle geospatial challenges with confidence. Color-print copies are available through Amazon.
Skip the black-box frameworks. Build a production-grade AI coding agent from scratch in pure Python—cloud or local, tested with pytest, under 700 lines.
Unlock the power of DuckDB for modern geospatial analytics. This hands-on guide helps GIS professionals master efficient spatial data management, transforming massive real-world datasets into powerful insights using SQL, Python, and DuckDB’s spatial extension. Full-color print edition is available on Amazon.
The book covers every topic in the latest CISSP exam syllabus, organized in a format that makes it easy to drill down on specific exam domains and concepts at-a-glance, making it an essential exam resource for anyone who aims to prepare for the exam without wasting time or money.
- OpenIntro StatisticsIncludes 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th EditionsOpenIntro, Christopher Barr, Mine Cetinkaya-Rundel, and David Diez
A complete foundation for Statistics, also serving as a foundation for Data Science. Leanpub revenue supports OpenIntro (US-based nonprofit) so we can provide free desk copies to teachers interested in using OpenIntro Statistics in the classroom and expand the project to support free textbooks in other subjects. More resources: openintro.org.
Learn SysML v2 with the ultimate guide for all skill levels in MBSE. Authored by insiders, it's your key to unlocking the full potential of system modeling and a passport to mastering your MBSE.
- Super Study Guide: Transformers & Large Language ModelsAfshine Amidi and Shervine Amidi
A clear, illustrated guide to large language models, covering key concepts and practical applications. Ideal for projects, interviews, or personal learning.
- First Principles in Scrum: Implementing Scrum and Agile PracticesJeff Sutherland, Ph.D.
First Principles in Scrum: The Definitive Guide to Agile Mastery First Principles in Scrum explores the deep foundations of Scrum and Agile, authored by Jeff Sutherland—Co-Creator of Scrum and a signatory of the Agile Manifesto. With a new chapter added every sprint, it now is the largest Agile resource ever compiled. Drawing on his background as a senior research scientist trained in radiation physics, Sutherland explains how principles from physics, biology, and neuroscience shape Scrum’s effectiveness. He also delves into the future of Agile, demonstrating how AI, when integrated with Scrum@Scale, can drive exponential productivity—projected to make teams 30-100 times more productive by 2030 . Whether you’re a CEO, manager, or practitioner, this series is essential reading. It’s a roadmap to mastering agility in a rapidly changing world, offering insights into how the iterative cycles of Agile mirror the adaptability of complex systems while embracing AI as a transformative force.
Featured Leanpub Bundle
Master Software Requirements
Get these amazing books to master the Software Requirements gathering and definition for a super price!
The following 2 books are included in this bundle...
Top Bundles
- Residues and The Philosophy of Software ArchitectureBarry O’Reilly
This bundle includes the books “Residues: Time, Change and Uncertainty in Software Architecture” and “The Architect’s Paradox: Uncertainty and the Philosophy of Software Architecture” by Barry M O’Reilly. The books complement each other, with Residues giving a practical description of how to apply residuality theory and The Architect’s Paradox...
- Big Kotlin packMarcin MoskałaNo Description Available
- Modern Thymeleaf BundleWim Deblauwe
? Exclusive Offer: Master Spring Boot & Thymeleaf Like a Pro! Dive into the world of modern web development with our special bundle, featuring two essential guides: Taming Thymeleaf and Modern frontends with htmx. ? Why This Bundle?Comprehensive Learning: Start with Taming Thymeleaf to build a solid foundation in Spring Boot and Thymeleaf,...
- Modern C++ CollectionRainer Grimm
Get All about Modern C++C++ Standard Library, including C++23Concurrency with Modern C++, including C++23C++20Each book has about 200 complete code examples. Updates are included. When I update one of the books, you immediately get the updated bundle. You can expect significant updates to each new C++ standard (C++23, C++26, .. ) and also...
- Mastering ContainersNigel Poulton
Docker and Kubernetes are taking the world by storm! These books will get you up-to-speed fast! Docker Deep Dive is over 400 pages long, and covers all objectives on the Docker Certified Associate exam.The Kubernetes Book includes everything you need to get up and running with Kubernetes!
- arc42 completePeter Hruschka, Wolfgang Reimesch, Ivan Kostov, Gernot Starke, Michael Simons, Stefan Zörner, Ralf D. Müller, and Hendrik LöschNo Description Available
- IT Strategy BundleGregor Hohpe
Architects prefer decision models and patterns over buzzwords. Get two books from the Architect Elevator IT Strategy series for the price of one!
- The Tester's LibraryGerald M. Weinberg
The Tester's Library consists of eight five-star books that every software tester should read and re-read. As bound books, this collection would cost over $200. Even as e-books, their price would exceed $80, but in this bundle, their cost is only $49.99. Here are the books, and why they should be in your library: Perfect Software and Other...
- Books on problem-solving using Agile, Lean, Complexity, and moreTom.perry@acm.org, Jamie Flinchbaugh, Luca Minudel, Jeremy Berriault The Evolutionary Agilist™, Paul Rayner, and Ben Linders
Six great books on problem-solving. Learn how to deal with impediments using agile practices, do A3 problem-solving with lean thinking, apply complexity science, finding root causes, and do event storming. All in one buy for a largely reduced price! Books included Agile teams need to be able to handle impediments. The book Problem? What Problem?...
The Leanpub Podcast featured episode
Interviews with Leanpub authors and special guests
The Leanpub Podcast
Hosted by Leanpub co-founder Len Epp
In The Leanpub Podcast, Leanpub co-founder Len Epp interviews authors and special guests about their lives & careers, their areas of expertise and the issues of the moment, and their experiences as writers. Every episode is deeply researched and covers areas that are equally of human interest, general interest, and professional interest.
Sal Kimmich, Author of Code, Chips and Control: The Security Posture of Digital Isolation
Episode: #328Runtime: 01:04:41Released: 12/09/2025
Sal Kimmich - In this episode of the Leanpub Podcast, Sal Kimmich explains how modern computer chip supply-chain threats, insecure defaults, and fragmented trust models shape today’s cybersecurity posture. They discuss digital isolation, open-source governance, and practical strategies for building resilient, verifiable systems.
Featured Leanpub Course
Top Courses
- Stratospheric - From Zero to Production with Spring Boot and AWSHands-on online course to learn all you need to know to get a Spring Boot application into production with AWS.Philip Riecks, Björn Wilmsmann, and Tom Hombergs
Hands-on online course to learn all you need to know to get a Spring Boot application into production with AWS. Visit our landing page for a tour of the contents. Make sure to get familiar with all available bundle options before enrolling.
- The Hundred-Page Language Models CourseAndriy Burkov
Master language models through mathematics, illustrations, and code―and build your own from scratch! This course includes nearly three hours of exclusive video interviews with the author, covering questions related to each of the six lessons included in the course.
- Patterns of Application Development Using AIObie Fernandez
Unlock the power of AI in your applications with this groundbreaking course on AI-driven application architecture. Discover practical patterns and principles for building intelligent, adaptive, and user-centric software systems that harness the potential of large language models. This course includes exclusive video interviews with the author.
This is a fast-paced, practical, and visual guide to the strange new world of Generative AI. It is like an extended version of Henrik's viral video with the same name.
- Microservices MasterclassDavid Farley and CourseAI
Microservices are a great approach for building software at scale. But although the ideas at the root of microservices may sound simple, this is not a simple approach. There are several big traps along the way, and it's important to avoid them...
- Machine Learning Made Simple8 Pillar Machine Learning Algorithms in PythonChristian Mayer and Lukas Rieger
This course gives you an intuitive understanding of the eight most important machine learning algorithms. It helps you get started using them in your own projects NOW -- in a single line of Python code. After finishing this course, you'll be able to select, understand, and implement the top 8 machine learning algorithms in your own projects.
- Dirty Data Dojo: Cleaning Data (Excel & Python)Learn to Clean Your Dirty Data in Minutes, not MonthsLee Baker
Data cleaning is a serious business – you’ll typically spend 80% of your analysis time cleaning data! In this course you’ll learn how to clean your data in a fraction of the time. The steps you’ll learn are very simple to follow, but are extremely effective, so you’ll know that you’re getting the best start possible, saving you weeks of misery!
- Python Programming Bootcamp for ScientistsA Python course for people without programming backgroundGábor Szabó
This course was primarily designed for Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Life Sciences, or Psychology students and researchers, who have no programming background, but would like to take their first steps in creating tools to help with data analysis and their research in general.
- Complete Guide to Modern JavaScriptLearn everything from the basics of `JavaScript` to the new ES2022 features. Practice with more than 60 quizzes and dive into the basis of `TypeScript`.Alberto Montalesi
Whether you are a complete beginner or you have some knowledge in `JavaScript`, this course will guide you from the basics of the language to all the new features introduced until 2022. At the end of each chapter test your knowledge with quizzes.
Publish Early, Publish Often
Become a Leanpub author
Leanpub makes it easy to create, publish, and sell ebooks or online courses while earning industry-leading royalties. With 80% royalties on purchases of $7.99 or more (or 80% minus a small $0.50 fee for purchases under $7.99), your work earns what it deserves. For example, a $10 sale brings you $8, and selling 5,000 copies at $20 could mean $80,000 in your pocket!
Leanpub has already paid out $15,219,598.96 to authors. Whether you write in Markdown or upload PDF/EPUB files, Leanpub’s intuitive publishing tools simplify the process. Use our in-browser editor or sync with GitHub or Dropbox and publish your ebook with a single click. Plus, you decide when to release—during the writing process or upon completion.
Learn MoreAs an academic, I like Leanpub because it lets me write and get my ideas out there quickly. Leanpub is simply the best place for publishing my books.
Roger D. Peng
Associate Professor of Biostatistics at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Featured Leanpub Track
A Simple Path to Python Success
Python is the fastest-growing major programming language on the planet. This practical course set will teach you Python in a hands-on, highly practical way that guarantees your success. All you need to go from zero to completing your own Python projects in a relaxed, student-centric, and fun environment. Create yourself a new skill that'll bring...
This track includes the following 7 courses...
Top Tracks
- AI MasterclassHenrik Kniberg, Obie Fernandez, and Andriy Burkov
About the Track: AI Masterclass Artificial Intelligence is reshaping the way we live, work, and build technology. The AI Masterclass Track brings together three powerful courses from world-class experts to give you a comprehensive, practical, and hands-on education in the age of AI. Whether you want to understand the big picture, apply AI...
- 14 C# Courses BundleEngineerSpock
Taking this bundle, you'll get a comprehensive set of courses that cover almost the whole surface of the .NET framework.The big topics that are covered:WPFMVVMSpecFlow and SeleniumLINQMultithreading and Parallel ProgrammingC# in Depth: Puzzles and GotchasAlgorithms and Data Structures in C#VS and R#and engineering practices:Unit Testing with...
- Kotlin for developersMarcin Moskała
This is the complete track to learn about essential Kotlin features and get ready for working in Kotlin in daily basis. It starts from essentials, and on the way reaches advanced topics like efficient collection processing or DSL creation.
- 7 Course-Bundle: Shut Up and Code Python + PyCharm + Coding Interview + Machine Learning + One-Liners + Regex + LambdasChristian Mayer, Lukas Rieger, and Shubham Sayon
"Shut up and code." Laughter in the audience. The hacker had just plugged in his notebook and started sharing his screen to present his super-smart Python script. "Shut up and code" The letters written in a white literal coding font on black background was the hackers' home screen background mantra. At the time, I was a first-year computer...
- Real World PythonLukas Rieger and Christian Mayer
Learn Python the Practical Way - In this course you learn all the basics of the Python programming language. It contains exercises, explanatory videos, an example solution and a quiz. This will enable you to apply your skills to a wide range of real world problems.A collection of more Python exercises - Exercises with solutions to continue...
- A Simple Path to Python SuccessChristian Mayer, Lukas Rieger, and Shubham Sayon
Python is the fastest-growing major programming language on the planet. This practical course set will teach you Python in a hands-on, highly practical way that guarantees your success. All you need to go from zero to completing your own Python projects in a relaxed, student-centric, and fun environment. Create yourself a new skill that'll bring...
- Design and Architecture Fundamentals in C#EngineerSpock
Taking this course bundle, you'll learn:SOLID principles (SRP, OCP, ISP, LSP, DIP) in-depthMeta principles: DRY, KISS, YAGNI, SoC, CQS, Law of Demeter, PoLADependency Injection in Depth: IoC or DI containers, best practices, and anti-patternsFunctional Programming in C#: purity and side effects, functional C# features, immutability,...
- Game Studio Starter Kit (6 Game Collection)Stephen Gose
This is the perfect Game Studio starter kit for launching your online dream business. This kit contains 6 tutorials books to help you create 9 different online game mechanics. You could have all 9 games ready in a day for each game. Start your Game Studio today.
- WPF + MVVMEngineerSpock
Learn both WPF and MVVM to build fully functional UI-applications with the modern UI-building framework, Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF).MVVM will help you to build WPF apps in a correct way from the software design perspective.
Leanpub Reader Memberships
A Reader Membership gets you hundreds of free books, and credits to spend on the rest...
With about 2000 books which are Free With Membership and credits for the rest, the real question is: How many credits do you want?
Light Reader
A Light Reader Membership includes access to all of Leanpub's books which are free with membership, and includes 1 book credit every 2 months for premium books. The book credits are delivered every other monthly payment, starting with the second payment.
$14.99/ month
- Get 1 book credit (a $25 value) every 2 months ($12.50/month in value) to spend on Leanpub books
- Get free access to about 2000 books on Leanpub that are Free With Membership
- Includes hundreds of books about computer programming, data science, software architecture, and more
- The book credit alone is worth almost the entire membership fee, so you get access to the about 2000 books on Leanpub that are Free With Membership for less than the typical price of a coffee!
- Support Leanpub authors and Leanpub
Popular
Standard Reader
A Standard Reader Membership includes access to all of Leanpub's books which are free with membership, and includes 1 book credit every month for premium books. The book credits are delivered every monthly payment.
$24.99/ month
- Get 1 book credit (a $25 value) every month to spend on Leanpub books, which is more than the cost of the membership!
- Get free access to about 2000 books on Leanpub that are Free With Membership
- Includes hundreds of books about computer programming, data science, software architecture, and more
- Support Leanpub authors and Leanpub
Pro Reader
A Pro Reader Membership includes access to all of Leanpub's books which are free with membership, and includes 2 book credits every month for premium books. The book credits are delivered every monthly payment.
$47.99/ month
- Get 2 book credits (a $50 value) every month to spend on Leanpub books
- The book credits alone are worth more than the membership fee!
- Get free access to about 2000 books on Leanpub that are Free With Membership
- Includes hundreds of books about computer programming, data science, software architecture, and more
- Support Leanpub authors and Leanpub
Max Reader
Best Value
A Max Reader Membership includes access to all of Leanpub's books which are free with membership, and includes 2 book credits every month for premium books, as well as 1 course credit every 4 months for premium courses. The book credits are delivered every monthly payment. The course credits are delivered every 4th monthly payment.
$79/ month
- Get 2 book credits (a $50 value) every month to spend on Leanpub books
- Get 1 course credit (a $125 value) every 4 months ($31.25/month in value) to spend on Leanpub courses
- You get $81.25 in credit value per month, which is more than you pay!
- Get free access to about 2000 books on Leanpub that are Free With Membership
- Includes hundreds of books about computer programming, data science, software architecture, and more
- Support Leanpub authors and Leanpub
Save money, support authors and support Leanpub with your Reader Membership.
Get access to hundreds of books that are free with your Reader Membership, and get credits to use toward purchasing the rest.
Get free access to about 2000 books on Leanpub that are free with membership. This includes hundreds of books about computer programming, data science, software architecture, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions about Reader Memberships and Credits
This is the FAQ for Leanpub Reader Memberships. If you're looking to learn more about Author Memberships, please see the Author Memberships page.
If you can't find what you're looking for below, chances are the answer is in our amazing Help Center which has hundreds of carefully-written articles and a number of lovingly-created videos answering the questions we've been asked over the years. Or, email our support team and one of us will get back to you.
Do I need a Reader Membership to buy books or courses on Leanpub?
No! You can always buy Leanpub books or courses with money, without having a Reader Membership.
What are Leanpub Memberships?
Every Leanpub user can read and write on Leanpub. You can buy books and courses, build your Leanpub library, take courses, and even create your own books or courses. You can create books by writing in your browser or by uploading your own files, and you can create courses by writing in your browser. Leanpub also offers optional paid Memberships that give you additional capabilities. Author Memberships provide premium publishing and writing features. Reader Memberships provide access to about 2,000 “Free With Membership” books, plus book and course credits you can use toward purchasing any Leanpub books or courses.
What is a Reader Membership?
A Reader Membership is a paid subscription that gives you access to about 2,000 Free With Membership books, plus book and course credits you can use to purchase Leanpub books and courses. Membership is optional: you can read and buy books on Leanpub without subscribing.
Does Leanpub have a free Reader Membership?
No. Every Leanpub user can read and buy books, but a Reader Membership is always a paid subscription that provides additional reading benefits. If you have not paid for a Reader Membership, you simply do not have one. A Reader Membership is always a paid subscription.
What are the benefits of the different levels of Reader Membership?
All Reader Memberships give you access to about 2000 books that are Free With Membership. Our Light, Standard, Pro, and Max Reader Memberships all come with book credits, with higher levels including more credits. Our Pro and Max Reader Memberships also come with course credits. Our Legacy Reader Membership (no longer offered for sale) does not include credits, only access to the Free With Membership books. All Reader Memberships allow you to purchase additional book and course credits.
Can I buy Book Credits or Course Credits without a Reader Membership?
No. You need a Reader Membership to buy Book Credits or Course Credits. You can always buy Leanpub books or courses with money without having a Reader Membership. Any Reader Membership—including the currently offered Light, Standard, Pro, and Max plans, as well as the no-longer-offered Legacy Reader Membership—lets you purchase additional credits.
Do Leanpub Users Have an Author Membership or Reader Membership by Default?
Leanpub users do not have an Author Membership or a Reader Membership by default. Membership always refers to a paid subscription that adds extra benefits on top of what every Leanpub user can already do. This approach keeps things simple: all users can read, buy, and write on Leanpub, and Memberships are optional paid upgrades that unlock more value. If you don’t have a Membership, you still have full access to the standard reading and writing capabilities of Leanpub. If you choose to subscribe, you get a clear set of extra features tied to your Membership type.
Are reader and author memberships different?
Every Leanpub user can have two memberships: a Reader Membership and an Author Membership. This FAQ explains the Reader Memberships; there is an author FAQ in the Author Memberships section. A Reader Membership affects your features as a Leanpub reader, and the Author Membership affects your features as a Leanpub author.
Why would I subscribe to a Reader Membership?
A Reader Membership gives you access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership, along with book credits you can use to buy Leanpub books and course credits you can use to buy Leanpub courses. Your membership also helps support Leanpub authors through our Royalty Pool, and it gives you the convenience of buying books and courses instantly with credits. Different Reader Membership levels include different amounts of book and course credits.
What books are free with a Reader Membership?
There are about 2000 books which are Free With Membership. You can search them by going to the Store in the top menu, choosing the Books submenu, and changing the filter from Bestsellers Last Week to Free With Membership.
Are there any books which are free without a Reader Membership?
Yes! You can search them by going to the Store in the top menu, choosing the Books submenu, and changing the filter from Bestsellers Last Week to Free For Everyone. Any reader, including those without a Reader Membership, can read these books for free.
How do I search both Free For Everyone and Free With Membership books?
You can search for all free books by going to the Store in the top menu, choosing the Books submenu, and changing the filter from Bestsellers Last Week to Free Minimum Price. This search includes books which are Free With Membership or Free For Everyone.
How does my paid Reader Membership support Leanpub authors?
Most of the cost of the paid Reader Memberships goes toward paying for the credits that you get. Leanpub authors earn excellent royalties from those credit purchases, as you'll see below. However, we also pay into a Royalty Pool to support the authors of the books you get which are Free With Membership. We've paid thousands of dollars of Royalty Pool earnings already, and we're just getting started. The amount that is paid into the Royalty Pool is $2.50/month for a paid Monthly Reader Membership, and $9.50/year for a paid Annual Reader Membership. This amount is the same regardless of which Reader Membership you subscribe to. (This matches the amounts that the Legacy Reader Memberships contribute to the Royalty Pool.)
Why get a Reader Membership?
A Reader Membership gives you book credits and course credits, typically at a discount to their a la carte price. These credits can be used toward buying any book or course on Leanpub, sometimes at a discount to the cash price. Also, it's easier to pay with credits than with money: just click a button! You also get free access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership. Your paid Reader Membership helps support Leanpub authors through the Royalty Pool, as explained above. Finally, your paid Reader Membership helps us build a better Leanpub for our authors and our readers!
What are book credits and course credits?
One or more book credits can be used to purchase ANY Leanpub book, and one or more course credits can be used to purchase ANY Leanpub course. Every Leanpub book and course has a price in credits listed on its store page. When you use credits to purchase a book or course, you do not pay anything extra. (You pay any taxes on credits when buying the credits themselves.) Most Leanpub books cost either 1 or 2 book credits, and most Leanpub courses cost 1 course credit.
Why are book credits and course credits different?
There are two reasons: (1) books are typically much cheaper than courses, and (2) book credits and course credits need to be taxed differently in the EU and UK. More about taxes below.
How can I get book credits or course credits?
You can get credits when your Light, Standard, Pro, or Max Reader Membership subscription renews, either monthly or annually. You can also buy additional credits at any time from the Buy Credits page.
Why buy extra book credits or course credits?
We have different levels of paid Reader Memberships that we currently sell, which come with different numbers of book credits and course credits. However, if you need extra credits, you can buy them easily on the Buy Credits page. This way, you can get the credits you need without changing your membership level, and have the convenience of shopping with credits instead of money. These credits are just like the book or course credits you get with your paid Reader Membership, and can be used toward buying any book or course on Leanpub.
Can I use my royalties to buy book credits or course credits?
Yes, as long as you have a Reader Membership! Just add the credits to the shopping cart on the Buy Credits page, and at checkout choose to pay with your Leanpub royalties, credit card or PayPal.
Can I use my royalties to pay for a Reader Membership?
No. Since all Reader Memberships we currently sell include credits, we no longer offer a Lifetime option for any of these Reader Memberships. So, because of this, you cannot use royalties. Making royalty purchases work for subscription payments would be too complex to justify doing.
What is a Legacy Reader Membership? What happened to the old Reader Membership?
We used to sell just one type of Reader Membership. We are now calling this the Legacy Reader Membership. The Legacy Reader Membership used to cost $4.99 per month, $19 per year, or $99 lifetime. (These memberships paid $2.50, $9.50 or $49.50 into the Royalty Pool, respectively.) The Legacy Reader Membership provided free access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership, and did not come with any credits for premium books or courses. The Legacy Reader Membership is no longer available for sale. We discontinued the Legacy Reader Membership when we introduced the new paid Reader Memberships with credits.
I have a Legacy Reader Membership. What happens to it?
If you currently have a Legacy Reader Membership, nothing changes. Your price does not increase, and the membership benefits do not change. This is true if you have a Monthly, Annual or Lifetime Legacy Reader Membership. Your membership continues to give you free access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership. It does not come with any credits for premium books or courses, of course, because those credits were never part of that membership.
If I upgrade to one of the other Reader Memberships, what happens to my Legacy Reader Membership?
If you upgrade from a Monthly or Annual Legacy Reader Membership, you cannot downgrade back to the Legacy Reader Membership. If you upgrade from a Lifetime Legacy Reader Membership, you will automatically downgrade back to the Lifetime Legacy Reader Membership if your upgraded Reader Membership expires or if you cancel it.
How do my Leanpub credit card, PayPal or royalty purchases support Leanpub authors?
For credit card, PayPal or royalty purchases, we pay 80% royalties on books and courses priced at $7.99 and up. Below $7.99, we pay 80% minus 50 cents. So, Leanpub authors earn $3.50 from a $5 sale, $8 from a $10 sale, $16 from a $20 sale, and $24 from a $30 sale. You'd be surprised how many people buy $20 and $30 ebooks! Similarly, on a $129 course sale, the author earns $103.20. That adds up fast. Leanpub was founded by authors, and exists to serve our authors.
How are the credit prices of books and courses calculated?
To calculate the credit price, by default we divide the the minimum price of a book by $25, or the minimum price of a course by $125, and round up. So, a $19 minimum price book costs 1 credit, and a $39 minimum price book costs 2 credits. Similarly, a $99 minimum price course costs 1 credit, and a $249 minimum price course costs 2 credits. Now, this is just the default: authors can choose to price their books and courses at a discount when purchased with credits, so your credits may go even further! (For example, an author might choose to price a $29 or $39 book at 1 book credit, or a $129 or $149 course at 1 course credit.)
How do taxes like VAT work for book credits and course credits?
Book credits are taxed like Leanpub ebooks, and course credits are taxed like Leanpub courses. For our EU and UK customers, this means that if your country has a discounted rate for ebooks, then the book credits will have this same discounted rate. This is correct because a book credit can only be used to purchase a Leanpub ebook, so it is a single-purpose voucher whose VAT rate can be calculated at the time of purchase. Similarly, a course credit can only be used to purchase a Leanpub course, so it is also a single-purpose voucher that gets the standard non-discounted VAT rate that applies to Leanpub courses. For example, in the UK, ebooks are taxed at 0% VAT, while online courses are taxed at 20% VAT. This is the main reason why we have separate book credits and course credits.
Do I still support authors with book credits or course credits?
Yes! When you use credits to purchase a book or course, the author still earns great royalties. Typically the author earns the same amount of royalties as a minimum nonzero price purchase with a credit card or PayPal. The exact details are shown later on this page. So, you continue to provide excellent support to Leanpub authors when you use book or course credits to make a purchase.
How do author royalties work for purchases using book credits or course credits?
The short answer is that the author typically earns the same royalties they would earn on a minimum nonzero price purchase. The longer answer is that the royalty rate is determined by comparing the credit cash price to the minimum nonzero price, as explained in the questions below.
What is the credit cash price?
The credit cash price is determined by calculating the cash equivalent of the credit price. The credit price is the number of book or course credits needed to purchase the book or course. To calculate the credit cash price, the credit price is multiplied by $25 for each book credit and by $125 for each course credit, regardless of their actual purchase cost. (With Leanpub Reader Memberships, book and course credits are typically acquired at a discount.) For example, if a book has a 2 book credit price, the credit cash price is $50 (as 2 book credits x $25 per book credit = $50). Similarly, if a course has a 1 course credit price, the credit cash price is $125 (as 1 course credit x $125 per course credit = $125). The credit cash price is then compared to the minimum nonzero price to determine author royalties, as explained in the cases below.
What is the minimum nonzero price?
The minimum nonzero price is set by the author, and is the minimum non-free price that a reader can pay for a book or course. Leanpub books and courses can also be available for free, either Free With Membership or Free For Everyone. However, even in these cases, there is also a minimum non-free price which the author sets, and which any reader can pay to buy the book or course. This price is the minimum nonzero price. The minimum nonzero price is the smallest amount of money above $0 that a reader can pay for the book or course. The minimum nonzero price affects how author royalties work for purchases using credits, as discussed below.
What are the author royalties for purchases where the credit cash price is lower than the minimum nonzero price?
If a reader is using credits to buy a book or course, and the credit cash price is lower than the minimum nonzero price, the author earns 80% royalties on the credit cash price. So, in this case, the author earns $20 per book credit used (as $20 is 80% of the $25 book credit cash price), or $100 per course credit used (as $100 is 80% of the $125 course credit cash price). For example, if a book has a $29 minimum nonzero price and a 1 book credit price, the author earns $20 (which is 80% of $25) when a reader purchases the book with 1 book credit. Similarly, if a course has a $129 minimum nonzero price and a 1 course credit price, the author earns $100 (which is 80% of $125) when a reader purchases the course with 1 course credit. For us, this is the ideal scenario: the reader gets a slight discount, and the author still earns excellent royalties!
What are the author royalties for purchases where the credit cash price is greater than or equal to the minimum nonzero price?
If a reader is using credits to buy a book or course, and the credit cash price is greater than or equal to the minimum nonzero price of that book or course, the purchase is treated as a minimum nonzero price purchase. For example, if a book has a $19 minimum nonzero price and a 1 book credit price, the author earns $15.20 (which is 80% of $19) when a reader purchases the book with 1 book credit. Or, if a book has a $39 minimum nonzero price and a 2 book credit price, the author earns $31.20 (which is 80% of $39) when a reader purchases the book with 2 book credits. Similarly, if a course has a $99 minimum nonzero price and a 1 course credit price, the author earns $79.20 (which is 80% of $99) when a reader purchases the course with 1 course credit. Or, if a course has a $249 minimum nonzero price and a 2 course credit price, the author earns $199.20 (which is 80% of $249) when a reader purchases the course with 2 course credits. Finally, if a book has a $5 minimum nonzero price and a 1 book credit price, the author earns $3.50 (which is 80% of $5 minus 50 cents) when a reader purchases the book with 1 book credit. (In this case, however, the reader typically would be better off just using money to make the $5 purchase, of course, so we don't expect this to be a common use case!) In all of these cases, the author earns the same royalties as they would on a minimum nonzero price purchase.
I have more questions, what should I do?
Click on the Help menu above to go to our amazing Help Center. We put way more thought and effort into it than you would typically expect. Check it out, and if you can't find the answer, email us at hello@leanpub.com!
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We're authors too, and we built Leanpub to be the platform we would love to use. It turns out, we weren't alone...
As an academic, I like Leanpub because it lets me write and get my ideas out there quickly. Leanpub is simply the best place for publishing my books.
Roger D. PengAssociate Professor of Biostatistics at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public HealthLeanpub's book-creation tools allowed me to focus on creating the types of books I wanted to write instead of worrying how to create my own book publishing toolchain. I have never regretted using Leanpub to publish my ebooks.
Chris HartjesThe Grumpy ProgrammerLeanpub takes the pain out of publishing. They provide the tools, you provide the books and then magic happens.
Ryan BiggAuthor, Multitenancy with RailsI love using Leanpub because I can write my book using simple Markdown notation. Leanpub let's me focus on my content and they handle the rest.
Taylor OtwellCreator Of LaravelLeanpub is a game changer for independent authors, removing the hassles associated with formatting, book production, and electronic sales, freeing up the time to do what we do best: write.
W. Jason GilmoreAuthor, Easy Laravel 5Leanpub helped me achieve my goal of publishing a book. Its simple, easy to use interface got my book up and making money within weeks, I love Leanpub!
Samantha LaingGrowing AgileLeanpub helped me gauge interest in my book, get payments early on when it was only a few chapters, and has got me a bunch of sales just from people browsing around the site.
Phil SturgeonAuthor, Build APIs You Won't HateLeanpub helps me see my books as I write them. Even better, I can find readers early, to read my books and offer suggestions. I can pivot, if I see the need.
Johanna RothmanAuthor of 8 Leanpub books and counting…Leanpub made it simple for me to run with my book idea and build my reputation in the Ruby community. I went from first draft to first sale in days, not months or years.
Aaron SumnerAuthor, Everyday Rails Testing with RSpecFour years ago, I joined Leanpub to just give it a try. Today, over 28,000 book sales later, I cannot help but say that I'm the biggest Leanpub fan on this planet!
Manuel KiesslingAuthor, The Node Beginner BookLeanpub makes publishing your own book super easy. The fact that you can release updates continually helps with the mindset of getting a minimum version out ASAP and then iterating to improve.
Karen GreavesGrowing AgileI earn more royalties from my books on Leanpub than I do with well established publishers or through Amazon (which I publish on thanks to Leanpub's mobi conversion).
Paul BradshawPaul runs the MA in Online Journalism at Birmingham City UniversityLeanpub allows me focus on content, takes care everything else and offers an amazing author royalty. It’s a fantastic platform for writing and publishing books.
Simon BrownAuthor, Software Architecture for DevelopersI love that Leanpub makes writing and publishing a beautiful book so simple. I no longer spin my wheels with layouts and formats - Leanpub gets out of the way when it's time to write, and then automates everything when it's time to publish.
Daniel RootAuthor, Trello DojoWith Leanpub, the first person who purchased my book for $9.99 almost two years ago (and only received a preface, and two short intro chapters) has had access to almost every bit of knowledge I've gained in those two years, and *that's* the value.
Jeff GeerlingAuthor, Ansible for DevOpsSimple and lean, forces me to focus on writing and marketing, and pays excellent royalties.
Reg "Raganwald" BraithwaiteAuthor, JavaScript Allongé, the "Six" EditionLeanpub forces you to focus on writing and gives you immediate feedback. Allowing Leanpub to take care of the curation and delivery helped me focus on shipping my book.
Paul RedmondAuthor of Writing APIs With LumenWhile most eBook exporter apps today can generate PDF files and many support ePub, there's one tool we recommend above all after trying 8 of the most popular: Leanpub.
Matthew GuayContent Marketer at Zapier