Now that I’ve finished an early draft of my third novel, and sent it off to my beta readers, I’m thinking about the other tasks that I have to complete before publication. I’ve taken a look at the ‘To Do’ lists that I prepared for the previous two books and, to be honest, I could easily become overwhelmed by the sheer amount of work still to be done. There’s the front and back matter, cover design, editing, proofreading, listing with Nielsen and BDS (for libraries), formatting etc. etc. And that’s before I even think about marketing.
The job of an independent author isn’t just to write a novel, but it’s similar to managing a project. However, unlike business projects, which may involve huge teams of people, the independent author is responsible for the whole project from start to finish. Although it is possible to hire help for certain tasks, ultimately, the overall responsibility for delivery rests with the author.
I therefore thought it would be interesting to share a mock-up of a typical Indie author’s to do list. I hope that it might be helpful to others, especially new authors. I personally find a ‘To Do’ list invaluable because you can keep track of exactly where you are up to, and mark off your tasks as you complete them. I use grey highlighting to cover the areas that are completed, and use either bright highlighting or red italics to draw certain items to my attention. In this way I can tell at a glance what jobs still need to be tackled. By breaking tasks down in this way, and keeping track of them, the process will seem less daunting.
The following ‘To Do’ list includes only those tasks that have to be undertaken once you have produced your first draft of the book. Therefore, it refers to those activities that I would normally start organising once my book is with my beta readers. Here goes:
| Task | Done |
| Arrange cover design asap. N.B. Need both a Kindle and a print version. | |
| Front and back matter. |
|
| Write online press release. | |
| Allocate an ISBN number and register the book on Nielsen Title Editor website for the print version (takes 3 working days to show), (for the Kindle version Amazon allocate an ASIN number). | |
| Libraries – Register with BDS once book is on Nielsen database: http://www.bibliographicdata.co.uk/ before I publish. | |
| Write a series of blog posts related to the book, which I can publish at regular intervals until publication. | |
| Re-read ‘Slur’ and ‘A Gangster’s Grip’ to make sure there are no inconsistencies in the three books (as it’s a trilogy). | |
| Draw up a list of quotes from the book and from early reviews that I can add to Twitter. | |
| Do a newsletter for people on mailing list announcing the launch (once available for pre-order), telling them about the Goodreads Giveaway & any other launch promotions. | |
| Deal with feedback from beta readers once I receive it (deadline is 11th April). | |
| Edit using editing software. | |
| Arrange proof-reader in advance then do final proofread myself when he has completed it. | |
| Arrange eARCs to all reviewers. Try to give them at least three weeks before I launch. Arrange any interviews. | |
| Format for Kindle, upload, make available for pre-order and announce via newsletter. | |
| Format for CreateSpace – Refer to typesetting instructions under ‘A Gangster’s Grip’ folder. | |
| Upload to CreateSpace. Then approach bookshop with launch date (once I know when I will receive my print copies) & set up promo activities. N.B. Have to order a print proof first and check that before ordering my copies. | |
| Organise a Goodreads Giveaway as soon as the book is published (make sure that the Kindle and print versions are linked together before I do this). | |
| Send for personal copies from CreateSpace once the print version is available (this should cover friends, libraries and book shop signing). | |
| Organise book shop signing. Make sure I have all the promotional materials ready for the signing e.g. A4 display stands for book posters, and that I have sufficient stock of the two previous novels. | |
| Add the book to Booklinker to get the short form link. | |
| Change profiles on WordPress website (all relevant pages), Twitter, Amazon, Goodreads and Facebook to include the new book, and replace old author photos. N.B. Must include the Amazon link once it is available. | |
| Notify everyone about the launch – Twitter (pin launch tweet), schedule a new release tweet for next few days, FB, mailing list, blog, text friends if not active on FB etc. | |
| Organise any ads in relation to any launch or pre-launch promotions (see below). | |
| Once the book is available, possibly organise a book promotion in relation to one or both of the first two books in the trilogy. | |
| Make up a marketing list for any additional promotional activities that may prove fruitful e.g. book trailers, radio interviews etc. | |
| Do sales to libraries – Would have to approach re AGG at the same time as I haven’t done yet. |
Your own ‘To Do’ list might vary depending on, for example, whether you are producing a digital or a print version of your book, or both, as well as other factors. However, the above list will hopefully give you some ideas to consider.
——————-
Heather Burnside Author 
Wow! What a list. It would be easy to feel overwhelmed. Putting it all down in manageable steps which can be checked off is a great way of tackling it. What a sense of satisfaction will be felt as each box gets a big tick.
Thanks for your feedback, Norah. Thankfully I’m already starting to chip away at the list. I must admit, though, that I much prefer the actual writing to all the other pre-launch tasks. 🙂
That lot is going to keep you busy for a while Heather. It will be very satisfying once it’s all done and dusted. I will refer to this list when it’s my turn.
Thanks Guy. I’m hoping to make a start on the beta feedback next week although there are still a couple to come back. The comments from you and others have been invaluable and ideas for improvements are now starting to form. I’m glad you think the To Do list is useful. 🙂
Great list!! I am definitely using this Heather as I never (until now) have anything this organised 🙂 I shall be sharing at my workshops too.
I’m glad you think it’s useful, Georgia, and that you will be able to find it useful in your workshops too. I just hope that it doesn’t deter anybody who’s new to this writing malarkey. 🙂