What’s in my 683 pages of book notes
In addition to my book files, I have a separate book notes file for Project: T.A.G., my dystopian sci-fi trilogy. That file is currently 683 pages, and includes over 100,000 words of copy I’ve cut or substantially rewritten, but wanted to save. The remaining 50,000 words are focused on two very different aspects of the project:
Continuity & story details
- Information about each of the two superpowers, the Union of Nations and the Global Assembly, including the national anthems I wrote for them
- Cast list, including details on appearance, backgrounds, motivations, mannerisms, speech patterns, etc.
- A timeline that goes from 2048 to 2116, even though the action in each book takes place over a year or less, academy-style, between 2104 and 2106 over the course of the three books in the series
- Locations around the world where scenes take place
- A list of all weapons, equipment, and technologies used by characters
- Themes for each book
- A list of mirror scenes and echoes
- The playlist for each book
Publication & marketing plans
- Comparable books
- Back cover copy and flap copy (book description, bio, etc.)
- Potential blurb contributors
- Notes on book cover concepts
- Website updates to make, including creating an electronic press kit
- Pre-publication launch marketing plan
- Post-publication marketing plan
Along with my book notes, I have a separate spreadsheet to track my querying efforts. I also have a separate doc to plan my blog and social media content that has a running list of topics and draft posts for this trilogy and the next four novels I have planned.
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