Your latest book is hot off the press. Now what? Suddenly finding yourself with unstructured free time can be downright scary. After all, you’ve become accustomed to that persistent little writer voice in your head demanding that you write, Write, WRITE for months on end. Of course you have another book, story, or project to work on, but what about the time in between the last one and the next?

Now’s the perfect time to C.R.O.P. – Celebrate, Rest & Reconnect, Organize, Promote

Celebrate

Go ahead! You’ve worked hard and deserve a treat. Binge watch your favorite shows, order takeout, soak in a bubble bath, go shopping, plant flowers, eat chocolate – whatever floats your boat. Preferably, it’s something you wouldn’t normally have the time or energy for. You have permission to spoil yourself, and if anybody gives you grief, I’ll take care of it.

Rest & Reconnect

This is your chance to catch up on sleep, read a book, take a walk, eat regular meals, and give your mind and body the opportunity to re-charge. You’ve run yourself ragged for too long, and you’re best (future) work depends on being in good shape.

Don’t forget your supportive friends and family who have been patiently waiting (or not) for you to re-join the land of the living. Make some phone calls, respond to emails, write a letter, and say hello to your neighbors. They deserve your attention, so reach out and find out what’s going on in their world. They’re more likely to tolerate your weird habits and continue to be supportive if you give them a little TLC.

Organize

If you’ve ever watched a new house being built, you know it goes through many stages. Even when the structure is finished, there’s more work to do. The site has to be cleaned up, fill dirt brought in, concrete poured, and landscaping done before the job is complete. The contractor can’t move on until everything on the list has been checked off. Only then is he free to move ahead and focus on the next one.

Your work space is probably a shambles, and maybe the house, too! Use the downtime to clean and organize your notes, research, files, story ideas, or any other data you may need in the future. Do it now while the information is still relatively fresh in your mind. This will be especially helpful if you’re writing a series, or think the book you just finished might become a series. Names, dates, story threads, web sites, helpful articles – they all become a blur over time if you rely on memory alone, and doing a bit of housekeeping now will save you grief later on.

There’s another benefit, too. Wrapping up your last project provides closure so you can focus on the next one without distraction. Even if you continue in the same genre, the next book will be hampered if you haven’t put the last one to bed properly and set yourself up for a fresh start.

Promote

The dreaded promotion phase kicks into high gear once the book is done and available for purchase. Get all your ducks in a row before starting something new, or you risk  constant interruptions and frustration. Done properly, marketing won’t require huge blocks of time, enabling you to ease into your next project.

There’s a wonderful feeling of satisfaction when you send your latest creation out into the world! The early days are filled with waiting for those elusive reviews to appear and watching the sales figures. Unfortunately, the “New Release” excitement quickly fades amid all the other things you have going on, so enjoy it while you can.

All right – now you’re ready to start listening to your writer voice and allow the persistent little taskmaster to bully you back to work. It may have been anywhere from a few days to weeks, but your C.R.O.P. time set you up for success. Go on! Your fans are waiting…