A Release Plan for the Schedule Dependent
The release of a book is nowhere near the end of an author’s journey, but it does feel good once you’re there.
There are a lot of steps to writing a book, to include outlining (if that’s your thing), writing the 1st draft, editing, sending to beta readers, editing some more, etc. If you’re an Indie author, you may lack the support necessary to format the text so it looks good on a Kindle or in print. Finally, there may be no one who will take you through all the steps it takes to release a book into the wild, to include ARCs, review sites, gathering blurbs, social media posts, and more.
That’s where this post comes in. I’ve screwed this part up so many times in the past, that with the release of Out of Due Season: The First Transit and every subsequent novel, I decided I would take all that information that’s out there and devise a plan that might work with my schedule.
It was not easy, and I know I’ve screwed things up in places again, but at least I feel I might be closer to a workable formula.
This whole adventure started with a list I found somewhere on the Internet. I’m not sure where because I didn’t save it, but thank you whoever started me down this path. The original list I saw looked something like this:
- Announce Book, Synopsis, Webpage
- Announce Release Date
- Finalize Cover (less blurbs)
- Reveal Book Cover on SM
- Create Book on Goodreads
- Set up Blog Tour
- Contact Bookstores
- POST: 1st book excerpt
- POST: 2nd book excerpt
- Start 5 Day 99c promo for previous book
- POST: 3rd book excerpt
- Release Day
- Remind Early Readers to leave review
When I saw that list, I knew there were things missing. For example: WHEN?!?
Eventually, I figured out the best time to do every step by working backward from whatever release date I set. The date had to be far enough away to make sure that beta reading comments, cover creation, ARC reviews and edits could come back in time for me to make last minute changes.
I also knew there were some things that were left out. For example, when do you format the hardback/paperback and when do you submit it to IngramSpark or put a draft on Amazon so you can review a copy before it’s released? When do you submit requests for NetGalley or set up ARC forms? When do you request beta readers and how long do you give them before hounding them relentlessly for comments? When do you put up a preorder page so you can run Amazon ads?
It was a work in progress, but after filling in the blanks and giving myself about 5 months, I finally came up with a decent plan that worked–at least–for my latest novel. I have many more to come, but this was my trial run, so to speak. I might compress some things or move the dates around, but for the most part, I think it’s worth a try. It’s much better than jumping the gun on some rather important pieces of the process.
A few things to note:
- I always pick a Tuesday for a Release Day. This is traditionally when new books are released by the big guys, and places like Bookbub focus their promotions on that day.
- You can always change dates. You see I have about 5 months from the start of this plan until the release, but if you need longer, take longer.
- My assumption is that the book is done and through its first few personal edits. In other words, it’s ready for Beta Readers by the 5-month point.
- When you’re reaching out to create a cover, you’ll need to give your artist enough time to get it done prior to the Cover Reveal.
- There are a few steps not listed here when dealing with a series: setting up the preorder for the following book, running a sale of the previous book prior to the new book’s release, etc. Feel free to add what you’d like.
- The following list assumes you’re publishing a hardback through IngramSpark. If you’re using Amazon for the hardback, you’ll need to adjust for that. Also, if you’re not planning on a hardback, that’s something you can just ignore.
- There is no consideration for an audiobook here. I haven’t gotten that far yet, but my guess is that you’d want to ensure your edits are done at least two months prior to release and immediately set upon audiobook creation at that point.
- A downloadable Excel spreadsheet is located below the table.
- If I missed anything, please leave a comment and let me know. Also, if you would move things around, let me know that as well.
Here is my revised list:
Thing to Do | Days from Release |
---|---|
Post Beta Reader Form | 147 |
Contact Beta Readers | 140 |
Announce Book, Synopsis, Webpage | 110 |
Beta Comments Due | 95 |
Create Book Page for Press Kit | 94 |
Update List of Reviewers | 88 |
Create cover (or hire someone) | 85 |
Announce Release Date | 76 |
Hire editor | 75 |
Build list of blurb people | 74 |
Send out blurb requests | 73 |
Create hardback cover & interior | 69 |
Post ARC Form/Make requests | 67 |
Set up HB on IngramSpark | 64 |
Finalize Cover (less blurbs) | 60 |
Create Book on Goodreads | 59 |
Reveal Book Cover on SM | 58 |
Preorder Amazon w/ cover | 57 |
Set up ads on Amazon, FB | 56 |
BookBub New Release Sub | 55 |
Order HB for Proof | 54 |
Set up Blog Tour | 53 |
Netgalley Request | 46 |
Finalize Author Press Kit | 37 |
Set up Goodreads Giveaway | 36 |
Contact Bookstores | 31 |
POST: 1st book excerpt | 24 |
POST: 2nd book excerpt | 12 |
Setup SM posts for 4-8 weeks post release | 10 |
POST: 3rd book excerpt | 3 |
Post Paperback to Amazon | 2 |
Set up FB ads to run for 1 week | 1 |
Release Day | 0 |
Remind Early Readers to leave review | -1 |
Return Price | -7 |