Make 2025 the Year You Finish Your Novel—And Publish It

Many people have trouble reaching the end of their first novel. That's understandable. It’s a big undertaking however you look at it.

I believe that how you approach the project matters. If you want to finish a novel—and publish it—you must first get in the right mindset.
 
In general, you must decide that without a doubt you want to write a novel. You also must believe that you can reach the end.
 
Are you sure you want to put all of your energy, creativity, and time into writing a book? If so, the next thing you must do is give yourself permission to write the book. By that I mean, allow yourself the blocks of time (and energy, creativity, and effort) that will be necessary to put those 60, 90, or 120,000 words to paper.
 
This will require you to say No to other things you’ve been doing in your life. Usually social things. Maybe even vacations. Probably hours of sleep. You will need time to write the book, and the time has to come from somewhere.
 
So learn to say No. Or learn to live with less sleep. After that, it’s about staying focused and maintaining momentum.
 
You will need a writing and publishing calendar to keep your editorial and marketing path on course throughout the year.
 
Like all forms of art, writing isn’t an activity most of us can keep a tight grip on. Moments of good writing come and go. You may write every day because that’s your habit and comfort zone, but the quality moments, those intense blasts of creativity that ebb and flow throughout the year, will happen naturally and can’t be forced.
 
We don’t know when we’ll have a good day of writing and when we won’t be able to see the story’s way forward. Hence the reason we try to show up every day—or on whatever schedule works for your life. We show up and we give it our best shot. That’s all we can do.
 
Showing up on a regular basis creates momentum. Even if you can’t sit down to write, you can think about your plot and characters every day. That's showing up. That's keeping your head in the game.
 
And yet, we also need some structure to nudge us down the track and propel us forward. I find that a map of the writing/editorial process and how it will likely/possibly unfold is necessary and useful when your goal is to finish and publish a book.
 
If you don’t have a road map, it will be difficult to plan the launch of the book—i.e., the marketing of your new release.

THE GUIDANCE YOU NEED
Here is a list to help map the course. You’ll see that I suggest certain blocks of time for each phase in the process, but if you know that you need, for instance, three months to revise your manuscript, of course that’s the amount of time you’ll block out.
 
+ Finish the first draft. Enter the mindset of when you will finish vs. if you will finish. If you’re not sure how long it will take, keep track of the time it takes to write to the midpoint of your story, and then give yourself that much time (or a bit more) for writing the rest.
 
Block out the weeks on your calendar. Don’t worry about guesstimating correctly. Your schedule can be flexible, especially at this early stage in the process.
 
+ After revising your first draft, send it to an Alpha Reader. This is the first reader. Make sure they know they will be reading a very early draft and that perfection is not the goal. Fleshing out the story and characters, and creating believability, understanding, and flow are the goals.

Block out the two to four weeks it will take them to provide feedback, and then add two weeks for revision.
 
+ Send the new version of your manuscript (ms) to two or more Beta Readers. Give them two to four weeks to read and provide feedback. Then add a week or two for revision.
 
+ Repeat the step above with two new beta readers. While you’re waiting, you can write the front and back matter of the book (come up with a title if you haven’t already, dedication, copyrights page, acknowledgments, etc.). Also, contact a developmental editor and determine a date they can begin work on your job.
 
+ Give the manuscript a good self-edit before sending it to a developmental editor, who may have the ms for four weeks. While it’s with the dev editor, contact a copyeditor and set up a start date.
 
When you receive the feedback from the dev editor, you’ll need time to make revisions, so block out that time on the calendar before you set a copyediting date. Copyeditors’ calendars can fill up fast, so it is a good idea to contact them weeks in advance.
 
+ Make your revisions and then send it to a copyeditor. Block out two to four weeks for this.
 
+ Have a cover made while you wait for the copyediting to be done.
 
+ Design the Interior. When the copyeditor has returned the manuscript, you can create your page design (I use Vellum, or you can hire it out) and send it for pre-publication reviews and author blurbs. Offer Advance Reader Copies (ARCs) to your street team, i.e., those who agree to provide an honest review.
 
+ Set a date for a title and cover reveal on social media. You might do a title reveal and follow with the cover reveal a few days or a week later. Give yourself more reasons to post!
 
+ Send the latest version to a proofreader (hired) or a proofreading pool (group of volunteers). Add two to four weeks for this step in the process. (CLICK HERE for my blog post on proofreading.)
 
+ Proofread it yourself. I usually proofread continuously in various forms—Kindle, paperback ARC, etc.— making corrections after each round, until I reach a point where I don’t find any mistakes.
 
+ Plan the Launch and the Publication Date. During the many waiting times that occur in this process, you can plan your launch and whatever promotion, publicity, and marketing you’ll do for the book. Update your website, list the book on Goodreads and Amazon, and figure out how you can draw attention with in-person events and online promos. (For more info, CLICK HERE.)
 
Even if you’re worried about your ability to finish the book, go at the project as if there’s no question that you will get to the end of the first draft. You will take it through the editorial process. You will make that finished manuscript into a book.

Enjoy the journey! It's a lot of work, but the finished product is something you can be proud of for the rest of your life. <3