TWP Docs

Address labels get purchased in groups:

* Patronizers – these books are made out to individual supporters by name, regardless of destination – MWL hand-maintains this spreadsheet because there's so few of them.

* Overseas sponsors – buying postage requires filling out custom forms online – books are signed with “Thanks for sponsoring, $NAME” so need to be separate from ks backers

* Domestic sponsors – books are signed with “Thanks for sponsoring, $NAME” so must be separate from ks backers

* Overseas Kickstarter backers

* Domestic KS backers

* Domestic KS backers who chose bundles like The Full Michael

* Possibly complicated by people who receive extra books or extra copies, which I only offer when I'm an idiot and forget that I have to track who gets what instead of shipping a bunch of identical packages.

Each group gets its own spreadsheet. Take the KS backer spreadsheet, cut it into foreign & domestic. Save them as CSV.

Pack one book in a padded envelope. Weigh it. Note the weight.

Get the customs info from MWL.

Log into goshippo.com shipping app. I use goshippo because they let us fill out customs forms online and print them for us.

Go to account→ profile→packages. See if there's a predefined package of the right weight. There probably is.

Set the default package to 6x9x1 and the weight.

Log out. Restart the browser window.

Log back into goshippo. When we order postage, the default package should now be assigned to every package. (It doesn't always work. It's supposed to.)

Go to Upload CSV. Load the CSV we're working on.

Choose the right import template. There's one for Kickstarter and one for sponsors.

Let goshippo map field names. Double-check to make sure they look sensible. Import the orders.

Wait a few minutes for goshippo to populate the orders page with the spreadsheet.

Now the ugly part. The addresses are in, but the customs info isn't. Check each package. Did goshippo choose the right default package? Did they set ANY package? Fix that. click on the customs information for every package. Manually enter the customs info. Over and over. Until every package has customs info or eternity, whichever comes first. Still better than filling out customs forms by hand.

Postage is ready for purchase.

Use US Priority Mail envelopes. They're the same weight as the poly mailers.

Set that to the default package. Log out, exit browser, log in.

Upload the domestic CSV.

Postage is ready for purchase.

Select and purchase everything you uploaded.

Shippers do not check addresses until you try to buy. If shippo can't identify an address, they complain now. Look for obvious typos. Don't assume you can figure it out via Google Maps or whatever; I lost many packages that way. Contact the recipient with the address and tell them USPS can't figure it out.

When you buy postage, goshippo offers the labels in PDFs for 4×6 stickers. Save those PDFs. We'll be printing them all en masse. Keep each order separate so we know what to put in the envelope.

At the end of the day, print goshippo manifest! Manifests are only available for a couple days, so this is vital to avoid angering the postal folks. (Do not anger the postal folks. They can crush you with a thought.)

Goshippo offers to transliterate addresses. Accept the offer.

Prepare an additional address label with the original address in the original language.

The US label gets the package out of the US. The original address gets it to the destination.

Yes, these packages get four address labels.

When the books arrive, MWL signs them all while watching Star Trek.

Shipping day, set up assembly line. Table. Envelopes. Tape gun.

Pack Patronizers first, then sponsors. MWL makes out each book as per the shipping label.

Last, KS backers. The books are signed so we can just seize & stuff.