How I Plan to Publish at Least Three Books in 2022

Last Updated on May 20, 2023 by Michael Brockbank

I am one who often pushes himself pretty hard to accomplish personal challenges. And after publishing my first book in November of 2021, I decided to come up with a plan to publish more books in 2022. Considering how much I have to do in a day, it’s a viable challenge.

Keep in mind that I have my GreenGeeks work, blogs, YouTube channels, and podcasts to manage. And all of them are going to get a lot more attention in the coming months.

If you need a few ideas to help with self-publishing, perhaps my plan can be adapted to fit your needs.

Just remember that this is from someone who doesn’t have a lot of time in the day due to the sheer volume of what I do.

Table of Contents

The Plan to Publish More Books and Why

In 2022, I plan on self-publishing at least three more books. In fact, I’m more than a third of the way through my next book. But how am I going to manage to get all of them out when I don’t have a lot of time on my hands?

In the grand scheme of things, I take on an awful lot.

Words-Per-Day Writing Goals

First of all, I always have a writing goal for the number of words I create. This includes blog posts, Buy Me a Coffee content, YouTube scripts, GreenGeeks articles, any client work I take on, and novels.

I also have a spreadsheet that I use to keep track of those words and where I need to be to succeed.

This next year is going to be a bit difficult to master simply because I did create a lot of content in 2021. However, when broken down per day, I really don’t need a massive amount of words as long as I stick with my schedule.

In fact, if I write fewer than 1,000 words per day just for the books alone, I will have produced far more than needed to publish my books for the entire year.

Setting an Estimated Number of Words per Book

Part of my daily goals relies on the number of words I need to write throughout the entire year. Then, this is broken down by day.

For example, I am estimating I need 120,000 words per novel. This is based on my average story length, which is subject to change.

I write until the story has been told regardless of goals.

Anyway, if I want to publish three books, I would need 360,000 words throughout the year. This breaks down to only 987 words minimum per day to surpass that goal.

I can do that before breakfast.

2.5-Hour Time Blocks in Asana

Now comes the most important aspect of my plan to publish more books this coming year: time management.

I use the free project management app, Asana. It lets me set up a workflow using blocks of time I can dedicate to specific tasks. And everything I do is set up as “projects,” including individual blogs.

After crunching some numbers, I estimate I’ll need 2.5-hour blocks of time at least three times per week. This lets me get in enough time for the books while also working on my other projects.

Unfortunately, this means I cut one of my blogs down to one post per week for now. But that’s what happens when you pay attention to prioritizing your projects.

Prioritizing the Plan to Publish Books

Speaking of prioritizing, I’ve been paying a lot of attention to this over the past few weeks. The end result has been getting far more of the important things done and set up, which is leading to some pretty awesome experiences.

For example, I prioritized my book after my GreenGeeks work and managed to publish it the day before Thanksgiving.

Anyway, you need to prioritize the projects that are either paying you well, have a high degree of impacting your career, or have a higher level of potential than the other things you want to do.

The hardest part is then sticking to that plan of action. Especially when you’re as easily distracted as I am.

Delegating and Hiring Help

I tried to see just how far I can take my success without spending money. And although I have no doubt that I’ll continue to succeed, it’s slow-moving.

I think it’s time to spend a bit of money to help create content, build the YouTube channels, and keep the podcasts going.

This means hiring some help. That’s a bit more difficult, though. I don’t have a lot of disposable income to pay someone what they’re worth.

However, it’s definitely something I am looking into for the next year.

At any rate, being able to delegate tasks and hire help will give me more time to focus on other projects. If I don’t have to worry about a blog post, that’s two hours I can spend on my plan to publish more books.

Dumping Cash into Marketing

Probably the most expensive part of the plan is marketing. After all, you can’t expect people to buy and read your book if they don’t know it exists. There’s only so much you can do for free.

In fact, stage one of my marketing campaign should launch today or tomorrow. The next time I get paid, I’m putting at least $100 into Amazon. If anything, it’ll give me content to share regarding my experience.

So, even if I don’t sell a single book, it’s still a win for the blog and YouTube channel.

Why Does it Matter?

I am one who is driven by goals, self-improvement, and constant challenges. It’s what keeps me motivated to continue growing as a creator and as a person.

Setting up a plan to publish three more books is setting the bar high enough to make it difficult, but not impossible.

Something else to keep in mind is how publishing my first book has made an impact on me. It’s a life-long dream that I finally accomplished!

This, alone, has been worth the effort.

My sense of accomplishment is at an all-time high, my self-confidence received one hell of a boost, and my determination has never been stronger.

It was never about making it rich as an author. It was more about finishing a project and seeing my name on the spine of a paperback.

Ever since publishing A Freelancer’s Tale, all I want to do is spend the entire day writing.

So, what if I only sold a handful of copies? When someone asks me what I do, I can tell them that I’m a writer and published author. That, there, is worth more to me than anything.

Don’t get me wrong, I hope my future books sell well. After all, I have bills to pay. But the mental impact it made to self-publish my first book was, quite literally, life-changing.

Need help writing your book? Knowing how to structure your manuscript can go a long way to providing a better exeperience for your readers. Take a look at the Reedsy Masterclass for How to Write a Novel. It was perhaps the most influential three months I’ve spent for crafting my books.

Is a Plan of Action Needed to Publish Books?

I’m not saying that you absolutely need to have a plan of action in place to be successful. However, having something written down, perhaps a publishing checklist, can make the world of difference.

For me, a plan helps keep me focused and motivated to take the next steps. If I just attempt to do this without a solid base, I know I’ll get sidetracked and take longer to reach my goals.

It all comes down to structure.

How I set up every single day affects the next. And by having a plan of action for what I want to accomplish, I am sure to stay the course.

What Kind of Plan Do You Have to Publish More Books?

Everyone has unique needs and wants. Not to mention available time in the day. How elaborate are your plans to publish more content in the future? And I’m not just talking about books.

Whether you’re a blogger, YouTuber, or author, having an idea of what you want to accomplish is only half of the journey. The other half involves taking steps to get to where you want to go.

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Michael Brockbank

Michael has been a freelance writer since January of 2012 and has contributed to a long list of blogs throughout his career. He is also a published author and continues to help other writers find their own paths. Maintaining both the WriterSanctuary blog and YouTube channel, he covers topics that relate to writing in all forms.