Self-Publishing Checklists and Worksheets

To help you through the self-publishing process, Jane Friedman created the following worksheets.

Title Information Sheet

Download (.docx)

This simple one-page Word template details all the book information that you’ll be repeatedly asked for when dealing with retailers, distributors, Bowker, and so on. Before you begin the process of uploading your book files at various services, fill in this document with all the key information about your book, so you can quickly copy and paste accurate and consistent information everywhere it’s needed.

Publishing Production Schedule

Download (.xlsx)

If you’ll be overseeing your own book production and managing freelance help, then this schedule will help you set appropriate deadlines for key project milestones, working back from your target publication date.

Book Launch Marketing Checklist

Download (.xlsx)

This is a starting spreadsheet for you to plan and schedule critical tasks related to your book launch. Every book is obviously different, however, and each author will have different needs related to his or her launch—as well as different starting resources—so don’t consider this checklist exhaustive or customized for you. To help you make it appropriate for your book, this checklist prompts you to undertake a few very important initial steps.

• First, you should research and hire a publicist if you want to work with one, since they will help you develop this checklist.
• If you’re not working with a publicist, then you’ll want to go through the 15-Tab Book Marketing Checklist by author Jenny Blake, which will help you brainstorm all the tasks you might want to undertake. (You won’t be able to undertake them all, but it will help you think through every possible facet of your launch.)
• Finally, use the Author Questionnaire (.doc) to help you brainstorm all the potential ways you might market and promote your book, as a way to finish customizing your book marketing checklist.