How to convert a PDF file to your Kindle

Recently, a friend of mine sent me a preview of a book I was about to publish and asked me to read it. She was delighted, but unfortunately, the copy she sent was formatted as a PDF file. And as many of us know, reading a PDF on a smartphone or even an e-book reader is a recipe for eyestrain.

I spent three frustrating days squinting at my screen until someone reminded me that you can send a PDF file to your Amazon account, and it will convert it to Amazon’s .Mobi format, making the document much easier to read on a phone or an On.

It worked like a charm. There are some quirks in the resulting document (no indentation to indicate paragraphs and the occasional weird symbol), but it’s much Easier to read. If you ever run into the same problem, here is how to convert a PDF file so it can be easily read with a Kindle or Kindle application.

First, you need to establish two information points: you need your special Kindle email address (to which you will send the file), and you must ensure that the personal email address from which you will send the file is verified by Amazon.

On your laptop or desktop:

• Go to the Preferences tab on the Manage your Amazon content and devices page
• Scroll down and click on “Personal Document Settings”
• Scroll down to “Email Settings Send to Kindle”. This will show you the email addresses for any Kindle-enabled device you have.

• On the same page, scroll down to “Approved Personal Document Email List”. This will show you all the email addresses you can send from. If you don’t see your current email address, you can add a new one using a link at the bottom of the list.

You can also find your Kindle email address on your Kindle mobile app:

• Go to the main page and tap “More” in the lower right corner
• Select “Application Settings”
• Your Kindle address will be in “Send to Kindle Email Address”

Once established, it’s easy to send a PDF document to your Kindle or to a device with a Kindle app:

• Create an email (using your approved email account) and attach your PDF file
• Type “Convert” in the subject line
• Direct it to the Kindle address of the device you want to send it to. (If you have more than one Kindle device, please note that each will have a different address.)

It may take a couple of minutes for the file to appear on your Kindle or Kindle-enabled device, but soon, you should have a Kindle version of your PDF file that you can bookmark, annotate, change font and font size, etc. Even with the technical issues that will inevitably appear (most conversions are not perfect), you will end up with a much more readable document.