The Publishing Timeline is an ongoing series in which I share marketing and publicity recommendations within the framework of a timetable to help authors plan their book campaigns.
One of the most frequent and consistent inquiries I get from authors is, “What should I be doing right now?” This series sets out to answer that question, breaking things done month by month, leading right up to pub day.
This page will serve as a hub for the series, which is still in-progress. I will be making adjustments and adding elements as I go along — the feedback and comments I get from readers, not to mention the process of simply putting these guidelines down on paper, have led to additional insights and ideas, improving the overall month-by-month recommendations.
Please note that there are lots of caveats and nuance to this information — every publisher has different deadlines and schedules, and a book campaign is very fluid due to the many issues (problems big and small) and opportunities (again, big and small) that arise — all of this will impact “what you should be doing and when.”
What will always remain consistent is the importance of establishing a strong plan and getting an early start on everything that you can. The more developed your plan, and the sooner you get started on things, the more agile, dynamic, creative, and impactful your book campaign will be. And bonus — you will have more fun and connect with more people along the way.
TIMETABLE GUIDEPOSTS
— Key Dates to Know that Are Specific to Your Book as You Develop Your Campaign
— Pub Date as the Center of Your Space-Time Continuum
— Campaign Pressure Points
— Good Pressure Points to Have in the Run-Up to Your Book Launch
1 YEAR+ BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
Setting the Stage for Your Book Campaign
Fill Out Your Author Questionnaire
— The Importance of the Author Questionnaire
— The Inquiries of the Author Questionnaire
Trade Show / Conference / Festival Calendaring with Your Pub Date as the Anchor
Familiarize Yourself with the Costs of a Book Campaign and Start Thinking Through and Establishing Your Campaign Budget:
— The Costs of a Book Campaign, Part 1: Standard Elements
— The Costs of a Book Campaign, Part 2: Higher Ticket Items
— The Costs of a Book Campaign, Part 3: Strategies to Navigate the Spends
— The Costs of a Book Campaign, Part 4: Delving Into the Publisher Marketing Spend
— The Costs of a Book Campaign, Part 5: The Paid Ad Promotion I Recommend
11-12 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
Embracing the Wide-Openness of the Early Days of Your Book Campaign
Establish and Start Developing Your Book’s Marketing & Publicity Plan:
— A Marketing & Publicity Plan Template
— Marketing & Publicity Plan Context: Industry-Focused Elements
— The Calm of a Campaign Plan Doc; The Chaos of the Plan-In-Action
— Behind-the-Scenes Pre-Pub Campaign Efforts
10 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
When the Book Becomes “Real” — Gearing Up for Your Cover Reveal and Live Product Pages
7-9 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
Transitioning from Planning to Pre-Pub Campaign Actioning
The Cover Reveal — Kicking the Tires of Your Campaign Momentum Machine
Get the All-Important Buy Links on Your Author Website
Commence with Your Pre-Order Campaign
— The Never-Ending Pre-Order Asks
— How Publishers Incentivize Pre-Orders
— The Pre-Order Ask Dilemma
— Pre-Order Campaigns Are a Tell on How a Book Is Going to Perform
The Blurb Ask Effort Begins
— Practical Information on the Blurb-Ask Effort
— Blurb Role Model
6 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
The Campaign Midpoint Leap (Meaning, the book publicity campaign officially commences, and sales reps are actively selling-in the book).
Commence with the Indie Next Campaign:
— How the Indie Next List Works
— How Publishers Build Indie Next Campaigns
— How Authors Can Get Indie Booksellers to Support Their Books
— The Hunt for the Quality in the Quantity
Commence with your LibraryReads Campaign
Determining Who Gets a Galley Review Copy of Your Book (Print galleys/ARCs are a finite resource.)
Making the Most of Your Digital Galley (Digital galleys, usually via NetGalley, are not a finite resource.)
4-5 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
Fire up a Goodreads and/or Storygraph Giveaway
Printed Promotional Materials
— The Art of the Bookplate
— The Practical Tote
3 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
— The Campaign Comes Into Focus and the Stress Meter Ticks Higher
1-2 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR BOOK PUBLISHES
The Final Stretch of the Pre-Pub Journey
Your Final Pre-Pub Author Platform Tune-Up
PUB DAY
Pub Day Is Your Day to Fully Own and Call the Shots On
AFTER THE ACTIVE CAMPAIGN PERIOD IS OVER
Post-Active Campaign Efforts and Opportunities, Part 1
Post-Active Campaign Efforts and Opportunities, Part 2