Publishing Checklist

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Introduction

Contrary to what many people think, publishing a book is not something that happens overnight. Self-publishing indeed allows you to publish a book faster than traditional publishing would, but it is impossible for you to write something from scratch today, publish it tomorrow and sell hundreds of copies the day after.

So, let’s break down the general step-by-step on the pre-publishing side.

Write and Edit

Every great history starts with a lot of words! Well, it starts with a lot of ideas, but you get what I am saying… Every great idea comes to life with a lot of words. How does that sound?

When you decide to write a book, prioritize the content. Even though you feel anxious to start working on other aspects, such as the format and design, without a manuscript, you do not have anything to work from. Small steps add up to big results!

Once you feel confident about what you wrote, start editing. Hire a professional to proofread what you wrote, ask a fellow writer to give his or her honest opinion about your writing, talk to your self-publishing team, and ask for their help! It may take some time to get everything on track, but do not rush it! Without writing and editing, you cannot publish your book, so take the time to get that masterpiece ready, okay?

Metadata, Formatting, and Design

Use metadata to decide the rest of the content of your book. Just as a brief explanation, book metadata is all data that someone can use to describe your book. Some common examples are the title, price, ISBN, author bio, and publication date or edition. It is any relevant information someone can use to find your book or information that goes along with the book besides the story itself. The better your metadata is, the easier will be for readers to find it.

After that, focus on formatting your manuscript. And what does formatting a book mean? It means font (including size and color), word count, page number, page color, paragraph breaks, and more. Anything that has to do with the appearance of the inside part of the book (and here I am referring to the story itself). In the end, manuscript format means the proper format your book should have before publishing.

Last but not least, focus on the design, especially on the cover page. Define a style and stick with it. Some covers have images, others illustrations, others not much at all. Make sure the style you choose matches your story. The “perfect” cover should give readers a feel for what they will read or at least evoke some type of emotion or thought.

Marketing and Publishing and Marketing

These are the last steps when publishing a book and yes, I did not mistype the title. You will have to promote your book before and after you publish it. The type of content you will use will be different, but both will have the objective to sell your book.

Before, you will promote your book to create a fuzz around it, to pique interest, and to arouse curiosity. After, you will promote it based on reviews and other strategies. If you want some "Book Promotion 101" tips for social media, check this blog post I wrote.