A complete, phase-by-phase checklist covering every task from 8 weeks before launch to 8 weeks after — so nothing important gets missed and every launch is better than the last.
| 10-minute read | All levels |
Most launch failures are preparation failures — tasks that were either never done or done too late to have their intended effect. The author who starts ARC reader recruitment two weeks before launch instead of six weeks before, who finalises their categories the day before publishing instead of a week before, or who writes their book description in the hour before hitting publish is working against themselves at every stage. This checklist is designed to be worked through in sequence, starting eight weeks before your planned publication date, so that by the time you press publish everything is in place and the launch executes on a foundation of prepared assets rather than last-minute improvisation.
Phase 1: Eight Weeks Before Launch
Manuscript final draft complete. Your manuscript is finished — not “mostly done” — and ready for professional editing and proofreading. A book that is still being written eight weeks before launch is at risk of a rushed final edit that shows in the quality readers encounter. Book Vappingo’s manuscript proofreading service now so your slot is secured and you receive corrections with at least four weeks remaining before your planned upload deadline.
Cover commissioned or completed. Your cover should be designed and approved eight weeks out, not in the final week. A cover designed under time pressure is a cover that hasn’t been tested, revised, and compared against genre conventions with sufficient care. Commission your cover designer six to eight weeks before launch with a clear brief that references the top-selling covers in your specific category. Resources like the Self-Publishing Formula’s cover design guidance provide useful frameworks for briefing designers with genre-specific requirements.
Keyword research complete. Spend 60–90 minutes using KDP Rank Fuel’s Keyword Goldminer to identify your seven backend keywords. Kindlepreneur maintains a useful KDP keyword resource at kindlepreneur.com if you want supplementary guidance before your research session. Document them in a spreadsheet alongside their estimated search volume and category relevance. Your keyword list should include two to three category-anchoring terms (genre vocabulary from your category names) and four to five specific long-tail search terms reflecting the tropes, settings, and character types in your book.
Category research complete. Identify ten to fifteen candidate categories, verify each is a live non-ghost category by clicking through to their browse page, assess competition thresholds at your expected launch sales velocity using KDP Rank Fuel’s Category Research tool, and select your three final categories. Document your choices and the competition data supporting them.
ARC reader recruitment open. Send your ARC recruitment email to your list and post ARC requests in relevant reader communities. Set a clear deadline of two weeks before your launch date for ARC readers to finish and post reviews.
Phase 2: Six Weeks Before Launch
Book description drafted and reviewed. Write three versions of your description using the hook-conflict-stakes framework (fiction) or problem-promise-proof framework (nonfiction). Share with beta readers or a writing group for conversion feedback. Select and refine the strongest version. Check the above-the-fold text (first 150–200 characters) is your most compelling material.
ARC copies distributed. Send your ARC ebook file via BookFunnel to all confirmed ARC readers. Include a brief reader guide covering your launch date, review platform links, and a reminder that the review is their honest opinion and is optional. Log each recipient in your tracking spreadsheet.
Newsletter promotion submissions made. If you’re submitting to book promotion newsletters (Freebooksy, Robin Reads, Ereader News Today, etc.) for launch week or the first post-launch promotion window, submit now — most services require 2–4 weeks advance notice. Confirm dates, prices, and submission requirements for each service.
Social media content calendar prepared. Plan your social media content from cover reveal through week two of launch. For BookTok, draft five to seven video concepts. For Bookstagram, plan your launch week grid. This is planning and drafting, not posting — you’re building a content library you can execute against in the heat of launch week without scrambling for ideas.
Phase 3: Four Weeks Before Launch
Proofread manuscript received and implemented. Your professionally proofread manuscript should be back with corrections implemented and the final file formatted for both ebook (EPUB) and print (PDF) by this point. If corrections are still outstanding, your timeline is at risk — escalate with your proofreader or adjust your launch date.
Cover reveal executed. Share your cover across all your channels — email newsletter, social media, Goodreads — with a compelling announcement that includes your genre, a brief hook line from your description, and your publication date. The cover reveal is your first public engagement event and should generate likes, shares, and social proof of reader interest that warms your audience for launch day.
KDP listing set up (pre-order or draft). Enter all metadata into KDP: title, subtitle, series information, author name, keywords (your researched seven), categories (your verified three), description (your finalised version), and pricing. If using a pre-order, set your publication date and upload a placeholder file now. If publishing directly at launch, set up the draft so it’s ready to publish with one click. Verify every field before saving.
Author Central profile updated. Add or update your author bio, confirm all your books are claimed under your profile, and prepare any editorial review quotes you’ve received from bloggers or advance readers. If you have A+ Content planned, begin creating it now so it’s ready to submit immediately after publication.
Phase 4: Two Weeks Before Launch
Final manuscript uploaded to KDP. Upload your final, formatted EPUB and print PDF files. Review the KDP Previewer for both formats — check the table of contents, chapter openings, back-matter links, and cover display. Confirm the Look Inside shows your strongest opening page prominently. Verify all metadata is displaying correctly in the draft preview.
ARC reader follow-up sent. Email your ARC readers with a reminder that your launch date is approaching and share the direct Amazon review link. Express genuine gratitude and reconfirm that the review is voluntary and must be their honest opinion.
Launch email drafted and scheduled. Write your launch announcement email, including cover image, hook description, direct purchase link, and review request. Schedule it to send on launch day morning (7–9am in your primary reader market timezone for US readers; 8–10am UK time for UK readers).
Post-launch promotional calendar confirmed. Finalise the dates, mechanics, and submission deadlines for your post-launch promotions — your week-three or week-four Countdown Deal, any newsletter submissions for the post-launch window, and your BSR check schedule. Writing these in your calendar now means they happen; leaving them as intentions means they often don’t.
Phase 5: Launch Day and Week
Publish (or confirm pre-order has gone live). If publishing directly, hit publish and monitor KDP for the “Live” confirmation. If using a pre-order, confirm the publication date has triggered correctly and that the book is showing as purchasable rather than pre-order.
Launch email sent. Your pre-written email goes out. Monitor open rates and click-through throughout the day. Respond personally to any replies from readers — these are your most engaged audience members and deserve individual attention.
Social media launch posts live. Post across all your channels according to your content calendar. Engage actively with comments and shares throughout launch day — algorithm and human visibility both increase with engagement activity.
Category and BSR monitoring begins. Check your product page every few hours on launch day to confirm categories are displaying, your BSR is moving, and your listing looks correct. Note your peak launch-day BSR and category rank for comparison in post-launch assessment.
Phase 6: Post-Launch (Weeks 2–8)
Week 2: Review assessment. How many reviews have you accumulated? If below 10, intensify review outreach. Use KDP’s Request a Review button for every recent purchase. Send a personal thank-you email to ARC readers who posted, and a gentle reminder to those who haven’t.
Week 3–4: Post-launch promotion executed. Run your pre-planned Countdown Deal or price promotion, combined with newsletter submission and social media activity. This is your rank maintenance event — it prevents the post-launch decay from reaching dormancy level.
Week 4–5: Metadata review. Assess whether your category selections are still appropriate for your post-launch daily sales rate. If your categories require more daily sales than you’re now generating to maintain visible rank, identify and switch to lower-competition alternatives. Check for any Amazon category auto-moves.
Week 6–8: Full launch retrospective. Document what worked and what didn’t across every element of your launch: ARC programme (review yield per ARC reader), newsletter submissions (sales generated per service), social media (which posts drove the most Amazon clicks), email list (open rate, click rate, conversion to purchase). This retrospective is your brief for the next launch — each book’s launch should be demonstrably better than the last.
Adapting the Checklist for Different Publishing Scenarios
The eight-week checklist above is designed for an author with a moderate lead time, an existing email list, and a straightforward new release. Not every launch fits this template perfectly. A debut author with no email list, a brand-new book, and a tight timeline needs a modified version. An established author launching a fifth series book with 2,000 subscribers and a proven launch infrastructure can compress some phases while expanding others. Use the checklist as a framework and adjust the timing and depth of each task to your specific situation.
For debut launches, the most important items to prioritise from a compressed timeline are: ARC reader recruitment (start immediately even with a shorter window than ideal), category and keyword research (non-negotiable regardless of timeline), and professional proofreading (getting this right is more important than the timeline pressure — delay the launch if necessary rather than publish with residual errors). A debut launch with 10 ARC reviews, excellent metadata, and a proofread manuscript will outperform a debut launch with zero reviews, guessed metadata, and visible errors regardless of how aggressively the rest of the checklist was executed. The KDP Beginners Guide covers the fundamental setup tasks that precede this checklist for authors publishing their very first book.
For experienced authors publishing later books in an established series, the checklist can be compressed because many one-time setup tasks (Author Central, series page, email delivery infrastructure) are already in place. The focus shifts toward launch-specific execution: the ARC programme, the email campaign timing, the promotional stacking, and the post-launch promotional calendar. The metadata tasks take less time because you understand your genre deeply and have benchmark data from previous launches to inform your category and keyword choices.
