This is the second in an occasional series of what I have on at the moment. I always go on about how busy I am, but that's only because I like the sound of my own voice. The others in the office are slightly busier than me, but they're just better at managing their time and their temperament.

We use an excellent thing called Windows Small Business Server - rubbish screenshot above - which allows us to have a mini-intranet upon which we contain everything that's useful. Amongst other things, it records bitty bits of info like the weird code names of the CMYK printer cartridges our office printer burns through, and literary awards we've entered, and trading terms, and a record of what rights we've sold. It contains discussion boards where we brainstorm ideas for new titles. We keep a running corrections log - each of our books includes an email address where readers can email errors to and we log them ready for the next reprint.

And it contains to do lists for a variety of things. There's the Uber List, which is a catch-all for everything that's going on - except for ongoing things that we do every week, like sales. There are also specific lists for particularly tricksy things to organise, like snowbooks design services cover designs (we do a lot, which need tracking) and the book fairs. Here is what's on the Uber List at the moment:

Edit and proof Ground Fighting
Edit and proof Punch Your Way to Fitness
Typeset PYWTF
Organise Sparring photoshoot
Follow up lawyer meeting (am I ever going to electronically archive all our contracts?)
Investigate sponsorship for City Cycling
Final royalties calculation (the ones based on retail price, not net. The system I wrote calculates royalties on net receipts, and it's a royal pain in the whatsit to have to calculate the two books we have on retail price. NEVER AGAIN.)
Consider xxxx (a manuscript we're looking at)
FInalise Xmas 2007
Lay out catalogue
xxxx brief (a snowbooks design services project)
Consider setting up Avon-type club for books?
Consider establishing local magazine?
Research using Amazon web things (don't ask)
Edit Sparring
5 year plan
snowbooks design services work
bills
thanks to x, y and z (extra nice people who deserve a special thank you note)
xxx grant application (more soon!)
thanks to Sage (they went above and beyond for me on something and I want to write to the lady's MD to say thanks)
bookkeeping

That's just my bit: Gilly's goes on for pages!