Welcome
To another Wednesday Business Blog. Where the business is all about creativity with tips, tricks, rants, and hopefully, helpful topics surrounding the creation of art and books.
Today,
I want to talk about the process of taking a book from idea to published, or at least the process I’ve found that works, and how long each step takes. Before I go any further, a small disclaimer:
I am a self-published author and have only been publishing for five years, this does NOT make me an "expert." That being said, I have now published 14 books (find them all here), and I’ve worked out a system that just might work for you, if you’re a “Discovery Writer” like me. That just means we don't outline first and jump in headlong discovering along the way.
~ Without further ado! ~
(updated August 2026)
1) the idea:
This is where every story starts. It can be as easy or as complex as you want to make it, but now that you have the idea, what should you do with it? For me, I talk it out with my Manager, or my Best Friend.
My Manager is a long time reader of many genres and loves my series/world. I bounced all my ideas off him (until March when he had heart surgery and had to recover), and he helps me think from different angles and give me different ideas from time to time. When Matt had heart surgery and was out of commission for a few months, my Best Friend, Lilah, helped me through by becoming my sounding board while he recovered. I owe her more than I can say for keeping me sane through that rough patch.
What do you talk about with your sounding board? Anything and everything, but try to gather your own thoughts first as they will either ground you or throw the table and make you go in a different direction by asking a simple question that redirects your entire series (looking at you Matt).
I am what they call a "Discovery Writer." I have an idea, a character, or a line, and I start writing without much prep. If you're a Discovery Writer like me, but don't have someone to bounce books and ideas off, I highly recommend finding someone whether its via Buesky, TikTok, FB groups, or locally, find a writing friend. And if you're the type of writer who likes outlines and writing with them, the idea phase is where you're going to outline your book/story/series.
The talking, or “outlining” for those of you "Plotters", can take anywhere from an hour to a year. This is up to you and you should never let anyone tell you when it’s too much, unless it’s becoming a road block from actually writing the story. There is such a thing as too much information. It is also best to research and figure out on average how long the books in the genre are BEFORE you start writing.
For my first book, I didn’t think about word count, and I didn’t know what genre it was. I simply had a story that needed to get out and went on the assumption that most books in the broad Fiction category are near 100k words. This is generally, but not always, the case. High Fantasy books can be up to 200k-300k words, but I’d recommend starting with a goal between 50-75k as sometimes in editing it can grow, or it can shrink, we’ll worry about that later…
2) After you've talked it out, or outlined...
(Or sometimes you just had the idea and kept it a secret) You start writing. You sit your butt in the chair and set your fingers to the keyboard, or picked up a pen and pad of paper, and you write. As with idea discussion or outlining, this can take as long or as short as is needed/wanted. I find that the faster I get to writing, the easier it is for me to “follow my muse,” and get the story out. If I overthink, or get stuck on a certain part, I go back and read through what I’ve already written and realize that one part was off or not sitting well. I’ll read it to my Manager and discuss it. Usually, during this discussion it will hit me, and I'll get back to writing again.
A major tip: (I used to have a hard time with this)
DO NOT start a new project until the first draft is DONE. I know, that seems like a no brainer to some, but to other’s you’ll start arguing with me and telling me that I don’t even do that. Grab your britches, untangle them for me, and take a few deep breaths. I didn’t say until the book is done, i.e. completely polished. Just until the first draft is done. It will become clear as you read this blog that those are two different things, and you can thank me later.
For me, if I’m writing about 5-8 hours a day, usually broken up by an hour or two of chores, art, sleeping, or editing, I can pump out the first draft in 15-45 days. Fifteen days was the quickest it’s taken to write a short-er story/Novella. I still can’t write stories under 45k, but that’s another blog entirely. 45 days is the usual if I'm writing at least 2k every day, which isn't normal as I edit, illustrate, take commissions, and work on other creative projects too... I also sometimes have days where I write 10-18k words, and some days where I barely crack a 100 becuase of migraine, socializing, or some other bull shittery with my body as I have a couple chronic illnesses and chronic pain too. But I don't let them stop me!
3) After the first draft:
Let me stop here and say CONGRATULATIONS ON FINISHING A BOOK! You've done something not a lot of writers do (and by writers I mean those who DON'T USE AI! That's cheating and stealing, you're not a writer but a thief.) You'd be surprised how many writers out there don't ever finish a draft. Even if you never publish or polish it, you wrote an ENTIRE book! That's a huge accomplishment, please reward yourself with something before continuing. The rest of the blog will be here when you get back. Seriously do it.
Alright, you back? Got your reward? If not, please go at least get your favorite drink and a snack. Okay, I'm taking it on faith that you've done that. Now! What next?
I recommend leaving it to sit for at least 1 week. 2 weeks is best and 4 is ideal, but 1 will be fine. Do not open it. Do not listen to it read via a text reader. And if you’re like me, don’t listen to the books playlist. “But Jenn! What do I do while I wait?” I usually start the next book… No joke. I have so many books planned, that I will start the next book, or edit the last book in some cases while I let that first draft sit.
4) After letting it rest
It's time to dust it off, change the font, and read it over. Yes, you read that right, change the font of your document, just for now, and read/edit it using the read aloud feature (if you have word) for the first time as a whole. This might sound weird, but it works. Believe me, you’ll pick things up with it from misspelled words, to words that are similar but one or two letters off. Changing the font or having it read to you forces your brain to really think about what it’s reading. For me, this process can take 1-3 weeks depending on how fast I can read/edit, and how rough that first draft was. For others this can take longer if they have work, other responsibilities, and such.
5) Draft 3...
If you didn't use the read aloud version. Download a text-to-voice program, read it aloud to yourself (yes, read it aloud to yourself), or grab a friend to read it to. I prefer reading it to my Manager, Matt, at this phase, and sometimes have my favorite text-to-voice reader read it to me during the day, then I’ll read him back the edits at night as he lives in Australia.
6) Draft 4: The Hard copy
This is the time for the hard copy or proof copy print. Whether you print it out on a home computer, take the file to your local print shop, or your parents house, and pay them for paper and ink, print it out and take a red pen to it... or whatever color pen you'd like. I actually format everything and input it into Amazon and buy a “proof copy" to edit with a red pen. It usually cost about $10-12 dollars with shipping depending on how thick the book is.
Note:
I can do this because
1) I format as I write (ever since my first book in October of 2021), and
2) I’m an artist/illustrator and make all my own covers.
Purchasing the “proof copy” for my hard copy edits allows me to see how the cover looks and if it needs adjusting. I’m going to do a blog about cover art sometime, so if you’re wondering about that, keep checking back.
7) Find/Hire an Editor
Now the editor and an alpha reader get to read the book. No, I don’t let anyone, besides my Manager and my Best Friend, read my books before I edit at least four times. Only after we’ve all read it at least twice, does it then get sent to my first editor.
Everybody works differently and finding the right editor for you can be tricky. When I first started I had a dear friend, Maxine, editing all my books, but life derailed this in 2024/2025 after her mom died and she inherited a house that needed MAJOR work. I'm still sad that she's missed nearly four books now, but we'll catch up later. I now have 2 other editors, One being Lilah (my best friend), and the other being Dianna Powers, a friend from DeviantArt, along with my Dad who reads all the books that don't have smut in them (after Fated Angel).
The way I do edits is that I give the book to my editors (except dad) in chunks of 5-9 chapters, depending on how big the book is. This is something unique I do becuase having a full manuscript edited at one time, and then having to look it all over skyrockets my anxiety, but having it 5-7 chapters at a time, helps me not to get overwhelmed, and it helps me know how far they are, which also aids in calming my anxiety. I do the same for my betas too. On that note...
8) Beta Readers
Beta reading come after edits. Beta reading takes about 5-8 weeks depending on how big the book is. I like to give my betas a week per chunk of chapters and then at least 2 weeks at the end as a cushion if they haven’t read all the chunks yet.
“Hold on! Jenn, where do I get betas?”
For me, I talked about my books on TikTok, and someone offered to beta read for me. I replied with a video and did a “call out for Beta Readers.” Mind you, this was 2021/22, the algorithms and people work differently now. BE MINDFUL OF SCAMMERS! Paying for Beta readers is a big red flag for me. If you're being asked to pay for feedback, that's editing not beta reading.
In the video or post be sure to mention what the book was about, some triggers, how many people you want, how you'd like to give them the book, and, this parts important, the timeline for when the chunks or book would need to be read by.
As I said before, I usually have 4-7 chunks and give 6-8 weeks to read the full thing. Some will read faster and some might read slower. Thus why you need to outline what you’re looking for in the post/video/reel/whatever social media platform you have. For me, Tiktok has been the most interactive. No joke, though that was back in 2023. Things have since changed, but I still get more consistent interaction there.
Also, find what works for you. I’ve found that Root is a great asset for this. I have a server for my Betas and in that server are different locked chats for each book. I have roles that grant access to said chats. If that went right over your head, you can always stick to sending via email, though I found this to be unreliable as some people don’t check their email or you end up in their spam box on accident.
Other options:
- Skype
- Ellipsus
- Social media DM/Group
- Whatsapp (this one is tricky, I had to google it since I don’t use that app)
- A group chat that will usually allow you to send documents, if they are saved locally to whatever device you are using.
Only two more things left!
9) Time for formatting
It’s formatting time. I saved this for last because it took me quite a while to figure out and is intricate and ever changing. I’m going to make a separate blog about it (hopefully soon, as of updating this in 2026, I've not done it... oops!), about how to format in Microsoft word. I have made videos about it though. DISCLAIMER: you CAN use Word to Format if you have a windows device/laptop/tablet, but if you’re running iOS/Mac (specifically iPad or iPhone) formatting is nigh impossible in their word applications.
To format eBooks, I recommend researching it or learning coding, which I have not done and using a program like Calibre. Amazon makes it a bit easier as they have a program that you can download to use for kindle formatting, but kindle format may not work if you want to upload it to another platform like Draft2Digital, which is how I publish other places, but their PDF to ePub transfers are flawless if you make sure to embed your fonts.
Since I don't know coding and my Manager also formats my ebooks, though I'm learning from him how to do it, just in case something happens like his surgery in March 2026 which delayed Deadly Sirens. I will not be writing a blog on that as it’s his area of expertise not mine.
10) Publish it!
Congratulations, you’ve made it to a stage that even fewer writers have. I know that when I started writing, I wasn’t writing to publish. I was writing to get the story in my head down on paper so I could read it again and again. Then I started making art for it, showing that art to people, and they got interested in the story, but finishing a book, just finishing draft 1 is an accomplishment! If you’ve gotten through 4 drafts, an editor (or 4 editors like me), betas, and formatting that DESERVES to be celebrated big time!
Go out on a Date with your Significant Other, plan a night out, binge a season/seasons of your favorite show and order in, you do you, but CELEBRATE THIS WIN!!! SHOUT IT FROM THE ROOFTOPS... or across your social media platforms, by god, PLEASE, be talking about your book BEFORE it's published this will help later with marketing.
From Idea to Published summary/time:
The timeline, given this plan, is about 6 months from conception to publishing, if you run it straight through.
If you'd like to know more about my books, you can visit the book/series pages or if you'd like a more in depth look, head to the book "blogs" where I've listed potential triggers, added the covers, blurbs, and art for those books coming up or are published so far.
Final notes:
- "But Jenn, you didn't mention Cover art! When do I get that made?"
As I am an artist/illustrator and make all my own covers, I do the cover art when the idea strikes. It can happen at any stage in the process, so I did not list it. I'd recommend leaving it for at least the middle of the book so that you can get it right the first time, or at least have a general idea what the key tropes, themes, weapons, people, and genre is. If you need ideas for covers, I highly recommend looking up your genre of books and working from there. DO YOUR RESEARCH as a cover can make or break a book. Also, DON'T USE AI TO MAKE YOUR COVER! - Also: you should be making yourself known on social media BEFORE you publish your book.
You need to be talking about the book, hyping it up, and showing people quotes, teasers, and even art that you (or someone you've commissioned) has made for the book. I highly recommend watching Jenna Moreci's video "Ten things to do BEFORE writing your book." All of her videos on writing and publishing are great for getting started. I watched so many of them when I was researching publishing options.
that's all I got. thanks for reading!
I know this one has been long! But if you have a question, leave it in the comments below and I'll shoot you an email!
~ Jenn A. Morales
(Follow me on social media for updates and more shenanigans)
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