Earlier this year I lost another family member. At the funeral, I caught myself giving more attention to the impact this person had on other people, and how it’s not about how they died but how they lived. Yeah, maybe trite and cliché, but the shift from mourning to celebration mattered to me. To pine too much over the loss is to deny them recognition for what they donated in life.

As writers, we hope to have donated something to be remembered.

That revelation took me home to tweak my own plans for when I’m gone. While losing someone is a burden on whomever is left behind to take care of affairs, methods can be used to lighten the load. I already had a will, and my intellectual property is specifically mentioned in it and handled separately from other assets, but I refined my plans. Hopefully, these ideas can help you.

1) Make sure someone you trust is in charge, and while you are still around, hold conversations with them so there is no doubt what you’d like to happen. Their questions might tell you what you forgot to cover.

2) Plan for your intellectual property specifically, on its own. Who owns the rights afterwards? Do you wish the heir(s) to perpetuate sales of your work or shut it all down? Who reaps the reward from sales? Does everyone know how to access these rights, royalties, or earnings? (Hint: the fewer people who own the rights the better.)

3) If you use an attorney to create your will, make sure they understand intellectual property. Most attorneys do not. For the most part, they get a short class in law school then never deal with it again. My attorney admitted I knew more about intellectual rights than she did, but we researched it together.

4) Create a power-of-attorney to manage your affairs while you are still around. Illness or age can have you to keep up with things as time goes on.  You might need assistance. Make it someone you absolutely trust.

5) Create a password list. Mine is three pages long covering everything from managing my websites and newsletter to Amazon. From Netflix to my retirement plan. From banking to affiliate connections. Take time to make this list, and keep it handy to perpetually update. Keep it in a very safe place that only you and one other are aware of. Repeat….update it often.

6) Write a book of instructions and guidance about what you want. This one will take some time, but you are supposed to be a writer. Not that this book needs to be 70,000 words and two-hundred pages, but it needs to be comprehensive. It should cover topics like:

• Where the original documents are for everything
• Basic facts – SSN, birth certificates, email account access, basic passwords, cell phone access
• A general discussion on what should take place and who is in charge
• Finances, banking (to include places like PayPal, Venmo and Zelle), outstanding bills, utilities
• Who to contact ONLINE. Yes, online contacts are important, and that’s not just creditors
• How to notify publisher, affiliates, Amazon, anyone related to books and rights to writing
• How to access writing-related information, to include locations/descriptions of flash drives and signed contracts
• Life insurance, medical insurance, retirement funds
• How to file subsequent income taxes
• The difference between beneficiaries and heirs and which apply to what (HINT: make as many people beneficiaries as possible)
• Funeral preferences (NOTE: get a prep list from a funeral home that they use for actual clients)
• Small extra things like shredding papers, getting a copy of a credit report to close accounts, pets
• Attach a list of: assets, liabilities, and passwords
• Attach a phone tree listing everyone you feel needs notification via phone call (NOTE: if you include address and email, this likewise helps afterwards when you cannot reach someone by phone or need the address for thank-yous)

I want my Facebook, Twitter, and newsletter folks to hear the news immediately. I was incredibly hurt when I lost online friends whose family didn’t notify anyone online for weeks. My heart went through the floor, and twice I went outside and cried at not having the opportunity to send a card timely, send flowers, or even attend the service. We are highly connected these days.

While this is probably more than you care to know, I wanted to offer to you what I’ve learned after handling several deaths, funerals, and estates. Sometimes even a little bit of planning makes a huge difference in how your loved ones remember you.