Module 1
What Happens After the Manuscript
Understand the overall publishing process and the order things happen in.
You'll finish with: My Publishing Path
Free learning resource
Understand the publishing process before you make expensive decisions.Understand thepublishing processbefore you makeexpensive decisions.
Before you spend a dollar on publishing, I want you to understand how it actually works. I've guided scores of first-time authors through this process, and the most expensive mistakes happen when decisions are made out of order. So I built this course and made it free: five short modules that follow the order publishing really happens — editing, book design, ISBNs, Amazon KDP, setup and final review. When you finish, you'll have a written plan for your book, whether you work with me or not.
— Maurice Johnson, Founder, Self Publish Me
Course
Who this course is for
It assumes you have a finished — or nearly finished — manuscript, and no publishing background at all. It does not teach writing.
- You've finished a manuscript, or you're close to finished.
- You've heard terms like ISBN, trim size and KDP and you're not sure what they mean for your book.
- You want to understand publishing before you spend money on it.
- You'd rather make decisions in a sensible order than fix mistakes later.
What you'll understand by the end
- See the whole path from finished manuscript to published book.
- Know what has to be settled before production can begin.
- Understand why a manuscript file and a professionally produced book are different things.
- Make the publishing setup decisions — ISBN, imprint, metadata, account — with confidence.
- Know what happens in the final stages before publication, and what comes after it.
What this course does not cover
- This course does not teach you how to write a book.
- It doesn't cover story development, plotting or character work.
- It doesn't review or judge the quality of your writing.
- It won't tell you your book will become a bestseller.
Course outline
Five modules, in the order publishing actually happens.
Each module ends with something practical you keep — and everything you record builds your Publishing Action Plan.
Module 2
Getting the Manuscript Ready for Production
Understand when a manuscript is genuinely ready to move into book production.
You'll finish with: Manuscript Production Checklist
Module 3
Turning a Manuscript Into a Professional Book
Understand how the physical and digital book is actually produced.
You'll finish with: My Book Production Decisions
Module 4
Publishing Setup Without the Confusion
Demystify the administrative and platform decisions publishing requires.
You'll finish with: My Publishing Setup Worksheet
Module 5
Getting Ready to Publish
Understand the final stages before publication and what happens immediately after.
You'll finish with: My Publication Plan
What you finish with
My Publishing Action Plan
Not a certificate. A written summary of what you've settled, what's still open, the questions you wrote down along the way, and a sensible next step — which may simply be to keep preparing.