Am the only one in an unending spiral of to-dos?

[C.L.]

This is my thought process/googling spiral just today, and there have been many days like it:

I can't publish my book yet.

You see, it needs front matter. So I need an ISBN.

To get an ISBN I need a publisher name and address.

I got a name and made a logo, but I don't want to use my home address.

So I need to go out and rent a PO box for my publishing company which is really just me so that weirdos don't know where I live.

My publishing company should probably also have a website and email address, especially when I mail out ARC copies for pre-publication review.

What are some good places to mail galleys to, anyway?

*insert hours of googling and reading submission guidelines*

Hmm. Yeah, I'm going to need a full cover letter from the "publisher" with contact info. So I really need to get that PO box, and a website, and an email.

*log into host gator*

Hmm. Okay, I can buy a domain for my publishing company but I can't host it on my current plan. It says that for $XX I can upgrade my package to "unlimited domains". This means I'll be able to host that second domain for my publishing company, right? And get email? God I hope so, or that's money down the drain.

Also, some of these submission guidelines say I need distribution on Ingram to be considered. Createspace distributes to ingram, right?

*more googling*

Frig. So createspace distributes to Ingram but it's listed on Ingram sites as published by Createspace, not by my publishing company. The whole point of getting my own ISBN is so that I can look more legit, so I can't have createspace plastered all over Barnes and Noble.

Hmm. Apparently it is recommended to upload via IngramSpark AND Createspace. Then I can use my own publishing company name and my indie status will be masked.

Right. Okay.

So.

My current to do list now includes getting a PO box, setting up a website, acquiring an email address, a list of pre-publication review houses with links to their submission guidelines and arranged in order of how many months prior to publication they need their review, oh, and I need to figure out a way to make little stickers that say "ARC NOT FOR RESALE".

I'm exhausted and I feel like I've accomplished nothing. I'm just getting more and more daunted.

Am I nuts?

[Anna]

To answer your question - no you are not the only one. Definitely not. I've got a list too and I get to the point where I'm too frightened to look at it.

And then there's the 'to do' list covering the rest of life. As fast as I clear a couple of jobs off the list, others need to be added.

Then there's the interruptions while working on the 'to do' lists.

Sometimes sleep is regarded as an interruption and that's dangerous!

[Zoltán]

This looks like an interesting topic. I'll put it in my todo list and get back when I manage... ;)

Honestly. The only reason I'd switch to traditional publishing if given the chance, is to hand over a considerable portion of my todo list.

[[deleted user]]

Welcome to the self publisher's rat race.

[Jane]

More like a hamster in a wheel.

Just break it down into manageable chunks. Then it don't seem so big

[Ken]

C. wrote: "This is my thought process/googling spiral just today, and there have been many days like it:

I can't publish my book yet.

You see, it needs front matter. So I need an ISBN.

To get an ISBN I ne..."

if it's any consolation, it gets easier with each book you publish :)

[April]

C. wrote: "This is my thought process/googling spiral just today, and there have been many days like it:

I can't publish my book yet.

You see, it needs front matter. So I need an ISBN.

To get an ISBN I ne..."

Hi, C. Welcome to the world of self-employment. :)

But the truth is, you don't need most of this to publish your first book. Depending on how/where you sell your book, you don't need to buy an ISBN number for an ebook. If you're just publishing on Amazon (so you can take advantage of Kindle Unlimited), for starters, you can let them give you a book ID number. If you release in paperback, CreateSpace can give you an ISBN number. A lot of writers wait until they have several books out before taking these steps. You can start without it.

[Pam]

TL wrote: "Being an author IS a never ending spiral.
Welcome aboard the crazy train. ;-)

I still can't get an audio book, as the US tax man has rejected my application x4!! I sort of gave up at that point. ..."

Although I haven't yet tried it myself because it said you had to have a book ready to publish, they changed the rules so now you should be able to use either your NIC or UTR (unique taxpayer reference, which you get if registered self employed). At least, that's supposed to be the case on tax forms you submit to AZ etc. from the UK.

[Pam]

C. wrote: "This is my thought process/googling spiral just today, and there have been many days like it:

I can't publish my book yet.

You see, it needs front matter. So I need an ISBN.

To get an ISBN I ne..."

I have a lot of these issues myself, although I set up the website a few years back and got a hosting package that included email addresses. The number is limited on my current package so I may have to go up to the next one in expense at some point, but it is manageable for now. Definitely check with the hosting company you pick that the package includes email addresses as some will try to charge you extra.

I have struggled with the email list because of the home address thing, and have looked into companies that give you an actual proper address rather than an obvious PO Box as from what I read that could put people off.

Agreed that there are huge numbers of things to manage but as others say it is a case of breaking it down into manageable chunks. As I'm fully engaged on editing the first book which is a mammoth task, I've parked most of the rest for now, because the company UK people have to get ISBNs from needs a kind of publishing schedule and certainly a firm date for the first which I can't yet give.

For what it's worth I believe that if you are printing identical books through CreateSpace and IngramSpark you only require one ISBN for that as it is the same edition, you are just using different printing companies. Amazon ebooks don't require ISBN but the other formats do e.g. EPUB, PDF, hardback, paperback which all have to have their own, according to what I've read on the UK supplier (Nielsen).

[C.L.]

Luckily I am Canadian so ISBNs are free. I just need to jump the hoops!

[Heidi]

C. I feel your pain! I have a list of to-dos in order and I plot out time each day to work on several for X amount of time, also around my day-job.

Take it day by day and don't let it overwhelm you!

[P.D.]

You will make mistakes along the way. And it does get easier. I still have a long checklist to be followed for each book as I write and publish it, but it is easier now than it was when I started ramping up to publish that first book!

[Sam (Rescue Dog Mom, Writer, Hugger)]

C. ((( More Hugs ))),
I'm several steps behind you and cannot even look at my to-do list or I will freeze up in overload gridlock mode. I just keep working on my novel, all the while fully aware of the sh*tstorm that awaits me. 8 0

[C.L.]

Bird by bird, right?
Today I got the domain for my publishing company and an email address. Next step - physical address. Then I can finish my effing front matter.

[Eva]

An indie author's list is never-ending, that's for sure, depending on where you are in the process of publication. The key is to simplify as much as you can, so others before me have given very good advice pertaining to the ISBN number.

For me, my spiraling concerns are getting everything up and running to market and promote pre-pub, and when my upcoming novel is released.

[T.L.]

Actually, writing a to do list is quite good.
When you see it in b&w it's often not as bad as it is in your head.
Then you get the satisfaction of crossing stuff off.
:-)

[C.L.]

Eva wrote: "An indie author's list is never-ending, that's for sure, depending on where you are in the process of publication. The key is to simplify as much as you can, so others before me have given very goo..."

Yup, this is where I am, too. I'm going through submission guidelines and writing down who needs it three months before publication, 1 month before publication, or after publication, with links to their submission guidelines. Gives me a time line of sorts.

Which ones are you submitting to pre-pub? I think I'm going to submit to Library Journal, Foreword, Booklist, and I'll upload to Net Galley via Indie Reader, because they have $150 plan that gets you three months on Net Galley, which is more in my price range.

The Mid West Book Review has some great articles on how to submit and get noticed.

I also want to submit to local newspapers, but I can't find submission guidelines for them so not sure how...