01/04/2026
In my experience, one of the biggest mistakes self-publishing authors make is not setting a deadline. Without one, most books swing wildly from full steam ahead to the back burner. In the end, the whole project gets heavy and bloated by an increasing level of perfectionism. Far from being exciting and challenging, it just becomes another source of stress. That’s not fun.
I know this because when I worked at BBC Book, I'd been given one of a few non-TV tie-in books to manage. I ended up working on it for months because the schedule had a rare degree of elasticity. But strangely, this made it harder to get the book over the line. It was a nightmare! One day, when I was very close to the end of the project, I decided to work all night on it in the office just to get the blasted thing off my desk and finished. If there had been a harder deadline, that book would have got done sooner - and far less painfully.
In contrast to that project, I also worked on another book with a phenomenally tight deadline. In fact, it was so demanding none of the other editors wanted to touch it. This book was a total joy to produce. Everyone on the team was motivated by the tight deadline and the challenge of producing a great book in very little time. We were focused, invested and excited by the challenge.
So, if you’re planning to write a book, set a deadline - ideally one that’s both motivating and achievable for everyone involved.
