How I Wrote, Produced, and Published “Recoded: Transform Your Business DNA with AI”

A Step-by-Step Process Guide

By Susan Frew, CSP

Google AI Certified Keynote Speaker  |  AI Business Strategist  |  Author

The Big Picture

Most people think writing a book is the hard part. Turns out, publishing one is its own adventure. Here is exactly how I went from raw keynote recordings to a finished book on Amazon, an audiobook on Audible, and a podcast channel I actually listen to. No ghostwriter. No traditional publisher. Just AI, some seriously smart tools, and a lot of iteration.

This is the real, behind-the-scenes process I used to create Recoded. I am sharing it because if I can do this, you can do this too. And yes, I am biased. AI made every single step faster, smarter, and more doable.

The Tools in This Story:  Claude AI, NotebookLM, Descript, 11 Labs, Nano Banana, Canva, Fiverr, Amazon KDP, Audible

Step 1: Start With What You Already Know

Step 1: Record and Transcribe Your Keynotes

I did not sit down and write a book from scratch. I started with the content I had already been delivering on stage for years. Over the course of about a year, I recorded every keynote I delivered and had each one transcribed.

This is an incredibly powerful move that most speakers overlook. Your presentations are already organized, already road-tested with real audiences, and already packed with your best material. The transcripts became the raw material for everything that followed.

• Record every live keynote and workshop session.
• Use transcription tools to convert audio to text.
• Gather all transcripts in one place before moving forward.
• Do not worry about perfection. You can clean it up later.

Pro Tip: You have already done the hard thinking on stage. The transcripts are not rough drafts. They are your first draft, spoken out loud.

Step 2: Build the Book with AI Assistance

Step 2a: Use Claude to Break Content into Chapters

With all my transcripts gathered, I brought them into Claude and worked through a process of organizing, shaping, and refining the material into a full book structure. Because there was a lot of content, I broke the work into 12 separate chapters, feeding sections in and working through each one methodically.

• Feed your transcripts into Claude in manageable chunks.
• Ask Claude to identify themes, key points, and natural chapter breaks.
• Work chapter by chapter rather than trying to do everything at once.
• Use Claude to sharpen language, add transitions, and tighten the narrative.
• Iterate. Go back and forth until each chapter sounds like you at your best.

Step 2b: Use NotebookLM to Deepen the Work

Alongside Claude, I used NotebookLM as a second brain for the project. Once my transcripts and chapter drafts were in there, NotebookLM became a powerful research and synthesis tool that helped me pull insights together and explore the content from different angles.

• Upload all your source transcripts and chapter drafts into NotebookLM.
• Use it to ask questions about your own content and surface connections you missed.
• Let it help you identify gaps, themes, and areas that need more depth.

Pro Tip: Running Claude and NotebookLM side by side gives you two perspectives on your content. One helps you write. One helps you think.

Step 3: Listen to Your Own Book

Step 3: Use Descript to Create a Podcast Channel for Editing- HelloAudio is free.

Here is where things got really fun. I uploaded the finished chapter versions into Descript and created my own private podcast channel. Then I started listening to my chapters like they were episodes.

This changed everything about how I edited. When you listen to your writing instead of reading it, you catch things your eyes skip right over. Awkward phrasing jumps out. Missing context becomes obvious. Sections that felt great on the page suddenly sound thin out loud.

• Export chapter drafts as audio or text into Descript.
• Set up a private podcast feed so you can listen on the go.
• Listen while you walk, drive, or do anything that keeps your hands busy.
• Take notes as you listen and bring those edits back into the manuscript.

Pro Tip: Your ears are better editors than your eyes. Listening to your own book is one of the most underrated revision strategies in existence.

Step 4: Make It a Real Book

Step 4: Create Chapter Exercises and Infographics

A business book without application is just a long article. For each of the 12 chapters, I developed exercises and infographics that helped readers take the concepts off the page and into their businesses.

This is where Recoded became more than a book. It became a tool. Readers can work through it, apply it, share the infographics with their teams, and actually use what they are reading.

• Design one practical exercise per chapter that ties directly to the chapter’s core idea.
• Create a visual summary or infographic for each chapter.
• Think about how your reader will use this content at work, not just read it.
• Keep exercises short, specific, and immediately actionable.

Step 5: Design Your Book Cover

Step 5: Nano Banana to Canva

I created the original cover art in Nano Banana, then uploaded it into Canva to make the design edits and get it sized correctly for print and digital formats. This two-tool approach gave me the creative flexibility of AI image generation combined with Canva’s precision layout tools.

• Use Nano Banana or a similar AI image tool to generate your initial cover concept.
• Upload the art into Canva for professional layout and sizing adjustments.
• Amazon KDP has specific size and file requirements. Make sure you download their cover template first.
• Create both a print-ready version and a Kindle cover at the correct dimensions.

Pro Tip: Do not skip the cover template from Amazon KDP. It saves you from having to redo everything when the dimensions are off.

Step 6: Format and Publish

Step 6: Fiverr Formatter + Amazon KDP

I hired a book formatter on Fiverr to get the interior of the book production ready ($300.00 + $400 for the kindle version). This is one of those places where spending a little money saves you a lot of time and frustration. A professional formatter knows all the style requirements and edge cases that will trip you up if you try to do it yourself for the first time.

Once the book was formatted, I uploaded it to Amazon KDP in both print and Kindle formats. Amazon handles everything from there. Print on demand means no inventory, no warehouse, no upfront printing costs. Someone orders your book, Amazon prints it, ships it, and you get paid.

• Search Fiverr for experienced book formatters who specialize in your genre.
• Provide them with your final manuscript in Word format, your chapter structure, and any special formatting notes.
• Review their work carefully before uploading to KDP.
• Upload your formatted interior file and your cover to Amazon KDP.
• Set up both print and Kindle versions so you cover all your bases.

The Big Win: No printer needed. No inventory. No upfront costs. Amazon prints each copy when someone orders it. You focus on writing and marketing, and Amazon handles the rest.

Step 7: Create Your Audiobook

Step 7: 11 Labs Voice Clone + Descript Audio Editing

The audiobook is where I pushed myself to learn something entirely new. I cloned my own voice using 11 Labs, then went back into Descript to remix all the audio and edit the wording to match the final published version of the book. (WARNING: this is not for beginners and is complicated. You may need to hire an audio editor)

I taught myself how to remix the audio files so I could upload the finished audiobook to Audible directly. No recording studio. No audio engineer. Just me, some patience, and two tools that made the whole thing possible.

• Create a voice clone in 11 Labs using high-quality audio samples of your voice.
• Use the cloned voice to generate audio for each chapter.
• Bring all audio files into Descript for editing and syncing with your final text.
• Use Descript’s editing features to clean up pacing, remove filler words, and match the audio to the printed version.
• Export the finished audio files in the format Audible requires.
• Upload directly to Audible through their ACX platform.

Pro Tip: 11 Labs voice cloning sounds intimidating until you try it. Your listeners will not know the difference, and you can update your audiobook any time the text changes without re-recording everything.

The Full Picture

Here is the complete journey from first recording to finished product:

1. Record and transcribe all keynotes over the course of a year.
2. Use Claude to organize transcripts into 12 chapters.
3. Use NotebookLM alongside Claude for synthesis and research.
4. Upload finished chapter versions into Descript and create a private podcast to listen and edit.
5. Develop exercises and infographics for all 12 chapters.
6. Create cover art in Nano Banana and refine in Canva.
7. Hire a Fiverr formatter for the interior layout.
8. Upload to Amazon KDP in both print and Kindle formats.
9. Clone voice in 11 Labs and edit all audio in Descript.
10. Upload finished audiobook directly to Audible (using ACX-advanced skills).

AI did not write this book. It helped me write it better, faster, and on my own terms.

That is the whole point of Recoded. AI is not here to replace you. It is here to amplify everything you already know, already do, and already say on stage. Your expertise is irreplaceable. The tools just help you get it out of your head and into the world.

Susan Frew, CSP  |  SusanFrew.com  |  Usable AI