Setting Up a Book Production Line

When managers operate a factory they set up a production line to produce faster and more efficiently. For your book it helps to set up a production line. For this, you need your own space that will not be interfered with by others. Better still, have a large table on which you can lay out piles of papers that represent the different chapters and research. There should not be one thing on the table that has nothing to do with this book.

Insert each chapter idea or topic into a plastic sleeve, and add to this information you have accumulated on different topics such as:
• Front cover
• Back cover
• Introduction
• Etc
Testimonials or credits
• Research one, research two, etc.
• Chapter one, chapter two, etc.
• Bibliography
• Research

Organizing Core Book Elements

Then there will be sleeves for:
• Character sketch. Characterisation of the first protagonist (the hero or heroine). Characterisation of the second protagonist, and so forth.
• The opening, the end-resolution.
• Various dialogue types.
• Place and setting.
• Plot.

The book production method will help identify what is missing.

Benefits of Using the Book Production Method

Benefits of the production line are:
• Helps with the planning of the work, as information can easily be located or moved to a more appropriate sleeve.
• As most people are visual, the brain more readily sees the work. That’s why I prefer this manual and physical method as opposed to the apps you can use.
• If everything is captured on a computer, it’s not so easy to see the components fitting together. The constant scrolling up and down, changing data-files is clumsy, time-consuming, and annoying.
• It gives clarity and also creates a feeling of control, whereas a lack of control creates stress and frustration.
• In your house, you do not have the sugar in the tool shed, the tea in the lounge and the milk in the bedroom. You have it all in one convenient area. The same applies to all the components of your book.
• A book is a massive jigsaw puzzle in as much as pieces fit together creating a homogeneous whole. Some information may fit in several chapters. However, there is that one perfect place for it. By playing with the piece (as if a jigsaw) you will find the best fit.
• A production line helps with the logical sequence that the book must ultimately take.

Building Your Book Step-by-Step

Once you have set up the sleeves, you build the book, rather than just write it.

Conclusion

Using this book production method not only helps you stay organized but also brings a sense of structure and clarity to your creative process. By visually laying out your book’s parts and working step-by-step, you will find the most efficient, stress-free way to bring your ideas into a complete and well-crafted book.

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