Prepare the launch materials

Gather launch files and facts

Gather the six things every request will ask for into one folder, in the right formats, so any pitch, listing, entry form, or event page can be filled from it in minutes.

RecommendedOwner: Author and PublicistYou: Do itFreeAll publishing paths

Why it matters

Requests for materials arrive on deadline and in bulk during a launch. Having the folder ready means saying yes quickly, sending the correct version every time, and never scrambling to find who took the photo. It also makes the materials consistent across every place they appear, which is the whole point of the identity work earlier in this checklist.

Your part

What you do: Do it. You normally do this yourself.
Who normally owns it: Author and Publicist. Publisher supplies cover, description, and identifiers; author assembles and maintains the folder
When: 4 to 6 months before publication, as soon as the cover and description are final (Prepare the launch materials: six to three months before publication, before the first pitch goes out)

How to do it

The full walkthrough

Nearly every interaction around a book, from a podcast booking to an award entry to a bookstore event page, asks for the same set of materials: the cover image, a headshot, a bio, the book description, the identifiers, and how to reach you. Preparing them once, in the formats people actually need, is the single most time-saving item on this list.

The folder should contain: the front cover at print resolution and at web resolution, plus a three-dimensional or spine view if the publisher provides one; the headshot in high and web resolution with the photographer credit in the file name; the bios at every length in a plain text file; the description in a short and a full version, also as plain text; a list of ISBNs (International Standard Book Numbers) by format with price, page count, and publication date; and a contact block with your email, website, and, if you have one, your publicist's details.

Traditionally published authors get the cover and description from the publisher and should ask for final files, not the catalog draft. Hybrid and self-published authors export the final cover from their designer or platform and should confirm it is the approved version.

Name the files so a stranger can identify them in a download folder, and keep the folder somewhere you can share a link to.

Common mistakes

Sending the catalog cover comp instead of the final cover.
Keeping the bio only in a formatted document that pastes badly into web forms.
Forgetting the photographer credit, then guessing.
Storing the folder on one laptop with no backup.

Identifiers for Gather launch files and facts

Set a status on any record and it joins this step. All book identifiers.

Book and author identifiers
My status	Identifier	Why this matters	Cost	Yours
Not reviewed Learn more	ISBN The International Standard Book Number, printed above the barcode. Most formats sold through the book trade get their own.	Every retailer, wholesaler, and library orders and lists your book by this number, and the title, contributors, format, price, and publication date attached to it are what those systems display, so one wrong detail shows up in many places at once. Traditionally and hybrid published authors normally receive the numbers from the publisher and check what is attached to each one. If you publish the book yourself, you buy the numbers and assign them, and you are the one who decides whether your imprint or a platform is recorded as the publisher. Keep one list of every ISBN beside the edition and format it identifies so you can check listings against it.	Free from a traditional publisher. Self-publishers in the United States buy them from Bowker; prices vary by quantity.	Add your ISBN-13

A template for this

Media-kit checklistEverything a journalist, producer, bookseller, or event organizer expects to find in a media kit, grouped so you can see the gaps at a glance.

When to use it: Use this when you first assemble a media kit, when the publisher sends theirs and you want to check it against your own records, and again after any significant news. Do not use this when the kit would be out of date the moment you shared it. An out-of-date kit is worse than none, because it gives a journalist wrong information with confidence.

MEDIA KIT CHECKLIST: [Book Title]
Kit address: [Link]
Last updated: [Date]

THE BOOK
- Title and subtitle exactly as on the cover: [Book Title]: [Subtitle]
- Author name as it should appear: [Author Name]
- Publisher and imprint: [Publisher], [Imprint]
- Publication date: [Publication Date]
- Formats: [Formats]
- ISBN, price, and page count for each format: [ISBN And Price By Format]
- Short description, about 50 words, as plain text
- Long description, about 150 to 250 words, as plain text
- Front cover at original resolution, as JPEG or PNG, in two versions:
  - For print: at least 1500 by 2250 pixels, which is 5 by 7.5 inches at 300 pixels per inch. Pixels per inch tells you nothing on its own; it only means something alongside the printed size.
  - For web: about 600 pixels on the long edge, for a listing, a post, or an article.
- Buy links for each format: [Link]

THE AUTHOR
- Biographies at 50, 100, and 250 words, as plain text
- Headshot at original resolution, as JPEG or PNG: at least 1200 by 1500 pixels for print use, plus a web version about 800 pixels on the long edge. Keep the print and web downloads separate and labeled.
- Photographer credit: [Photographer Credit]
- Author website: [Link]
- Social profiles you actually use: [Link]

FOR INTERVIEWS AND FEATURES
- Press release or announcement, with a date
- Sample interview questions and topic angles
- Endorsements, with permission to quote and correct attribution
- Review excerpts within permitted length, with source and date
- Excerpt or sample chapter, if permitted: [Permission Status]
- Upcoming events and appearances, with dates and venues
- Past interviews and coverage, with links

CONTACT
- Author contact: [Your Name], [Your Email]
- Publicity contact: [Publicist Name And Email]
- Rights or bulk sales contact, if different: [Contact Name And Email]

BEFORE YOU SEND
- Every fact matches the Book Identity Sheet
- Files are named so a stranger can tell what they are
- Every link tested on mobile and desktop
- The publisher's kit and yours agree, or yours links to theirs
- The last-updated date above is current

What done looks like

One shared folder with subfolders for cover, headshot, text, and identifiers.
Cover and headshot in both print (300 dots per inch) and web sizes, with credits in the file names.
Bios and description as plain text so they paste without formatting problems.
ISBN, format, price, page count, and date for every edition in one text file.
A contact block with the same details that appear on the website.
A version date so you know when it was last refreshed.

Ask your publisher

Copy this into an email. Replace the bracketed parts with your details.

Hi [Name], could you send the final approved cover files for [Book Title] in print and web resolution, the final description, and the ISBN, price, page count, and publication date for each format? I am assembling one folder of materials for publicity and event requests. Thank you.

Sources and last checked

Official source: No single official page for this step.
Last checked: Not checked against its source yet.
How confident we are: Verified