How to Use This Book Launch Checklist
The checklist runs in five phases, from six months before launch day to three months after it. Each task comes with a one-line reason and, where a BookBird tool or guide does the job, a link to it. Tick a task when it is done. The bars and counts update as you go, and your ticks are saved in this browser, so you can close the page and pick up where you left off.
Three controls sit above the list:
- Launch Date. Enter the day the book goes on sale and every phase shows its calendar dates. The phase that contains today is marked, and a phase whose dates have passed shows how many of its tasks are still open.
- Copy my checklist. Copies the whole list as plain text, with [x] for done and [ ] for open, ready to paste into a note, a document or an email to your editor.
- Reset. Clears every tick and the date. It takes two clicks; the first one only asks.
Progress is stored in this browser only. Another device or a private window starts empty, and clearing your browser data clears the list, so copy it now and then if you want a backup. Nothing you tick is sent anywhere.
Not every task fits every book. An ebook-only novella can skip the paperback tasks, and an author who stays exclusive to Amazon can skip the accounts for other stores. Tick what you skip, so the bars show the work that is really left.
The Order That Saves Rework
Most of the 63 tasks can move around. A few cannot, because each one feeds the next, and doing them out of order means paying for the same work twice.
Text, then trim size, then page count, then cover
A paperback cover is one flat image: back cover, spine and front cover side by side. The spine width comes from the page count and the paper, and the page count comes from the final text set in the final trim size. The KDP Cover Calculator shows how tightly they are linked. A 200-page 6" x 9" paperback on white paper has a 0.450-inch spine; the same book at 224 pages has a 0.504-inch spine and a wider full cover. A late chapter, a bigger font or a switch to cream paper changes the spine, and the designer has to redo the wrap.
That is why the checklist commissions the front cover early but leaves the full wrap until the interior is laid out. Settle the trim size before formatting starts. The Words to Pages Calculator shows what the same word count becomes in each size, and the guide to typography for self-published books covers the type settings that move the page count.
Title and ISBN before the files are final
The title and author name appear on the cover, the title page, the copyright page and the KDP listing. The ISBN appears on the copyright page and, as a barcode, on the back cover. Change any of them after the files are done and you change several files at once.
The ISBN choice also decides where the book can be printed. KDP's help page on getting an ISBN says its free ISBNs can only be used on KDP, so an author who also wants to print the paperback through IngramSpark needs an ISBN of their own. The comparison of IngramSpark and Amazon KDP helps with that call.
KDP Select or wide before the pre-order
KDP Select asks for the ebook to be exclusive to Amazon for each 90-day term. Decide before you open pre-orders on other stores or send the ebook to an aggregator such as Draft2Digital, because a book already on sale at another store has to come down from it before it can be enrolled. The KDP Select guide covers what the exclusivity buys you.
Metadata can run alongside
The description, keywords, categories and price do not depend on the files, so they can be written while the book is with the editor. They are also the tasks most often rushed on upload day. KDP allows a description of up to 4,000 characters, seven keywords and up to three categories, and each deserves an evening of its own. The Keyword Organizer and the Category Finder help with the last two, and the guide to pricing a book with the price.
Your Book Launch Timeline, Phase by Phase
6 to 3 months before launch
This phase finishes the book and makes the decisions everything else depends on: the editor's dates, the title, the author name, formats, trim size, ISBNs and the KDP Select question. The phase is long because editing and cover design wait on other people's calendars. Starting it four months out still works if the editor and designer can fit you in.
12 to 5 weeks before launch
Production and setup. The interior is formatted and proofread, the cover wrap is finished, the ebook file is built and the KDP listing takes shape. This is also the time to line up readers: advance readers, a launch team, and a newsletter signup link in the back matter, which has to be in the files before they are final.
The last 4 weeks
Files go up, a printed proof comes back and advance copies go out. Order the proof as early in this phase as you can. It has to be printed and shipped to you, and if the cover color or the margins are wrong, the fix needs another round.
Launch week
Publish, then check the live page the way a reader would see it. KDP says a print book's detail page can take up to 72 hours to show on Amazon.com, so send the launch email once the page is live, not the moment you press Publish. Then claim the book in Author Central, submit your A+ Content and send advance readers the link.
The first 90 days
Launch week is the start. The 90 days after it are for watching what sells, running a promotion, tuning ads, fixing the typos readers find, and deciding whether to stay in KDP Select, which renews automatically unless you switch auto-renew off. The Sales Calculator turns a Best Sellers Rank into an estimate of copies a day, so you can see whether a promotion moved anything, and the Royalty Calculator shows what each copy earns.
What to Do If You Are Running Late
Enter your launch date and look at the phases that show open tasks. Then sort what is left into three groups:
- Cannot be skipped. Editing and proofreading, the proof copy of a print book, the right cover size and a final file that is really final. Readers see all of these.
- Can wait until after launch. A+ Content, Author Central, ads, a press release, the audiobook, extra formats and other stores. A book can go on sale without them and gain them later.
- Can move. The launch date itself, as long as you have not announced it.
If the ebook is on pre-order, move the date early rather than miss it. KDP's help page on ebook pre-orders asks for the final manuscript at least 72 hours before the release date and says a missed deadline cancels the pre-order, cancels the orders customers placed and can cost you pre-orders for any book for a year.
The other way out is a launch in stages. The ebook can go on sale first and the paperback can follow once the proof is right, since KDP lets you add a print edition to a book that is already live. The launch email can wait for the paperback, or you can send one for each format.
Book Launch Checklist FAQ
How far ahead should I start planning a book launch?
This checklist starts six months before launch day, which leaves room for an editor's schedule, beta readers and a cover designer. A book that is already edited and has a cover in progress can run on a shorter plan: start at the second phase and settle the first phase's decisions in your first week.
Do I need an ISBN to publish on Amazon KDP?
Not for a Kindle ebook. Paperbacks and hardcovers need one each, and KDP offers a free ISBN for each print format. That free ISBN can only be used to publish on KDP, so if the same edition will also be printed through another service, buy your own. In the United States, ISBNs are sold by Bowker. The ISBN Barcode Generator turns the number into a barcode for a back cover.
Should I put my book on pre-order?
A pre-order gives you a link to share before launch day and collects orders in advance. On KDP it is available for ebooks only; paperbacks and hardcovers can get a scheduled release date instead. It also brings a hard deadline, because the final file must be submitted at least 72 hours before release. If the manuscript is not finished yet, wait until it is before you open one.
How many categories and keywords can I choose on KDP?
Up to three categories and seven keywords for each book, according to KDP's help pages on categories and keywords. Use the keyword slots for phrases readers type into Amazon search. Words that already appear in your title add little there.
Should I enroll in KDP Select at launch?
Enroll if you are happy to sell the ebook only on Amazon for at least 90 days. In return, the ebook joins Kindle Unlimited, where you are paid for pages read, and you can run a Kindle Countdown Deal or up to five free days in each 90-day term. The paperback is not part of the deal and can be sold anywhere. Enrollment renews automatically unless you switch it off. The KENP Calculator estimates what page reads pay.
How do I get reviews for a new book?
Send advance copies to readers of your genre before launch, ask at the end of the book, and ask your newsletter. Amazon's community guidelines make an exception for books: a free advance copy is allowed as long as you do not require a review in return or try to influence it. Paying for reviews, trading reviews with other authors and asking only for positive ones all break the rules.
