#11 – Designing a Librarian System

Summary The conversation covers various topics related to onboarding authors, challenges faced by self-published authors, and book discovery issues on Goodreads. The hosts discuss the importance of understanding the needs and problems of authors throughout their publishing journey. They also review the new feature for editing books and editions, including the ability to upload covers and set audio book details. The conversation concludes with considerations for future enhancements, such as utilizing OpenAI for book descriptions and optimizing the user interface for different screen sizes. In this conversation, Adam and Ste discuss the backend changes required for book editions, including updating reviews, lists, and prompt answers. They also talk about improving the user feedback system by implementing a notification system for report status. Adam mentions that the current project is laying the groundwork for future features, such as editing prompts, series, and authors. They then discuss upcoming tasks and Ste shares his progress on the book page design. They explore visual ways to show readers and Ste presents his designs for user reviews. They also discuss the importance of reusable components for data organization and express their excitement for future front-end clean-up. The conversation concludes with a discussion about the upcoming Vercel ship and their plans for the next week. Takeaways Understanding the challenges faced by self-published authors is crucial for developing effective solutions. Book discovery is a significant issue on platforms like Goodreads, and improving the tagging and organizational system can enhance book visibility. Building a strong relationship between authors and readers is essential, and features like author updates, Q&A sessions, and merchandise stores can help foster this connection. The ability to edit books and editions is a valuable feature for maintaining accurate and up-to-date information. Considerations for future enhancements include utilizing OpenAI for book descriptions and optimizing the user interface for different screen sizes. Backend changes are necessary to support book editions and require updates to various components. Implementing a notification system for user feedback can improve the user experience. The current project is laying the groundwork for future features and will allow for easier addition of new fields and editing capabilities. Designing the book page and finding visual ways to show readers is an exciting task. Reusable components can greatly simplify data organization and front-end development. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Casual Conversation 03:00 Discussion on Onboarding Authors and Self-Published Authors' Challenges 09:00 Book Discovery Challenges on Goodreads 19:00 Exploring the Needs and Problems of Authors 28:00 Editing Books and Editions Feature 36:00 Future Considerations for Book Editing and Description Fields 47:53 Backend Changes for Book Editions 49:00 Improving User Feedback System 50:20 Laying the Groundwork for Future Features 51:23 Upcoming Tasks and Book Page Design 53:18 Visual Ways to Show Readers 55:01 Preview of User Reviews 56:04 Reusable Components for Data Organization 57:43 Normalization and Clean Up on the Front End 58:24 Wrapping Up the Conversation