Balancing Writing With Life Commitments: 3 Time Management Tips for Authors
BookPublishing.io
Balancing Writing With Life Commitments: 3 Time Management Tips for Authors
Tackling the demands of writing while juggling life's myriad commitments can be daunting, but it's not insurmountable. This article distills practical time management strategies, directly from seasoned authors and productivity gurus, designed to streamline the creative process. Discover how to optimize writing routines, leverage technology, and build a supportive author platform through expert-recommended approaches.
- Set Up Automated Review Reminders
- Spark Curiosity with Podcast Appearances
- Build a Solid Author Platform
Set Up Automated Review Reminders
One of the most challenging aspects of self-publishing for me was getting an early review group and ensuring they followed through with posting their reviews. Without reviews, a book doesn't gain traction, and sales suffer. People often promise to leave a review but forget or get busy, so setting up email automation for reminders was key. Automated follow-ups helped keep my early readers engaged and increased the likelihood of them actually posting their reviews.
Another key factor in organic sales is having a strong platform. Many self-published authors struggle because they launch with little to no audience, but I entered publishing with an established brand and 150K followers. This gave me a huge advantage in marketing my books, as I could leverage my existing audience to drive early sales and visibility.
For authors facing similar challenges, my advice is to start building your platform early—whether through social media, blogging, or email lists. Having an engaged audience before publishing makes a significant difference in organic reach. Also, don't rely on word-of-mouth alone; implement structured systems like email reminders and incentive-based review strategies to ensure your early readers follow through.
Spark Curiosity with Podcast Appearances
My book, Interns Into A-Players: A Playbook for Remote Bosses, is hitting shelves in a few months. Writing the book? That was the easy part. The hard part? Making sure people actually read the thing.
Here's what I'm doing to make sure it doesn't collect dust.
First, I'm jumping on as many podcasts as I can. Why? Because there's nothing like hearing people's real challenges in managing interns and remote teams. When someone asks, "But what do I do when my intern won't even check Slack?" I can dig into the solutions the book is built around and prove this isn't just another boring management manual.
Then there's LinkedIn. I'm treating it like a movie trailer. I'm posting excerpts, sharing the most practical insights, and leaving just enough unsaid to make people think, Wait, what's the rest of the playbook? The idea isn't to shove the book in their face—it's to spark curiosity. If you're not building a little FOMO, you're doing it wrong.
And here's the unglamorous part: I've been sending drafts to a few close business partners who have zero problem telling me, "This part is garbage." It's how you take "meh" ideas and turn them into something people actually bookmark, screenshot, and forward to their team.
The biggest lesson I've learned so far? Make people feel like they're missing out if they don't pick it up. Because if they're not laughing, nodding, or texting their co-worker about it, you didn't do your job.
Build a Solid Author Platform
The marketing and promotion of a book is the most challenging aspect of self-publishing. As a self-published author, I need to take care of my role as a writer as well as a marketer.
I focused on building a solid author platform to overcome this challenge. The major part of this strategy includes boosting social media presence, creating an engaging author website, and curating email lists of readers. I shared valuable content, such as insights into my writing, and also showcased snippets of my work to create a strong connection with my readers. This drove a piece of interest in the readers to follow my publication.
Furthermore, I collaborated with prominent authors to participate in joint promotions and book launches.
My advice for other authors facing similar challenges is:
Take the initiative to build your author platform.
Take professional help from marketing professionals if your budget allows you to do so.
Join writing groups to engage with creative and experienced fellow authors.
