From Idea to Publication
Early 2024 → 1 September 2026
Careering Off Course was written and revised over two years by Andy Laker.
Eight stages. Multiple rewrites. No shortcuts.
March 2024 → August 2024
01 - Idea & Planning
The moment it became clear this wasn’t just another half-finished idea. Notes were made. Lists were created. Some were immediately ignored.
Outcome: structure agreed, stories selected, optimism high.
September 2024 → March 2025
02 - First Draft
Drafting chapters, revisiting memories, and discovering that hindsight is both useful and uncomfortable.
Progress was steady, motivation wasn’t.
Outcome: first full draft completed.
April 2025 → September 2025
03 - Editing
The painful process of admitting that not everything written was brilliant. Cutting, reshaping, and tightening — usually after convincing myself it didn’t need doing.
Outcome: second draft with actual structure.
October 2025 → December 2025
04 - Proofreading
Fixing spelling, grammar, repetition, and the same mistakes I’d somehow missed every previous time.
Outcome: clean, readable manuscript.
05 - Typesetting & Design
Cover design finalised, interior laid out, fonts chosen, spacing obsessed over. Everything made to look deliberate.
Outcome: print-ready interior and cover files.
January 2026 → April 2026
May 2026 → July 2026
06 - Final Proofread & Pre-Launch
Final approvals, test prints, website prep, and the creeping realisation that this is actually happening.
Outcome: files locked, launch ready.
August 2026
07 - Printing
The point of no return. Files sent. Proof approved. No more ‘just one last tweak’.
Outcome: books printed..
1 September 2026
08 - Publication & Distribution
Books shipped. Orders fulfilled. The thing exists in the real world — beyond excuses, drafts, and good intentions.
Outcome: book delivered to readers.
Two years. Eight stages. One finished book.
Getting things badly wrong takes time — getting them finished takes longer.