Paperback
I'm Going to Die:Getting Your Affairs in Order & Saying What You Still Need to Say
(2 reviews)The dying is not the problem. The figuring-out is, and most of it can be settled over a few evenings by somebody who knows which parts actually matter.
- ✓The people you appoint — and whether you have actually asked them
- ✓The money a will never touches, and where it really goes
- ✓The phone, the email and the photographs nobody else can reach
- ✓The letter, the conversations, and the things only you know
Free US shipping · Printed to order · Arrives ~ 2 weeks
Why it matters
The problem is not the dying. It is what nobody wrote down.
A bank will not tell your family which accounts exist. An insurer will not call to say there is a policy. The phone in your pocket holds the photographs, the two-factor codes and half the logins, and nobody else can open it. None of that is a legal problem. It is a knowledge problem, and it only has a solution while you are still here to supply it.
So this book finds the relatively small number of things that would cause the biggest trouble, and handles those. Who you appoint, and whether you have asked them. The money a will never touches. The house, the car, and who can physically get in. The pets. How much of a funeral there is any point planning. The objects people fight over, the conversations that keep being postponed, and the things only you know.
Then it stops, so you can. Sixteen chapters in four parts, 148 pages — and where an attorney, a tax professional or your insurer is genuinely the right answer, it says so, says why, hands you the questions worth asking, and gets out of the way.
What sets it apart
A book to read, not a binder to fill in
Almost everything sold under this heading is a fill-in product: blanks, boxes, ruled tables, a page for account numbers. Those have their place and we publish one. This is the other half — the reading you do before a blank page is any use, so you know what you are deciding and why you are deciding it. There is nothing to complete and nothing to keep current, and no trusts, probate, estate tax or state-by-state tables anywhere in it. Every chapter lands on one thing small enough to do this week.
No blanks, no boxes, no formsSixteen chapters, four parts
What's inside — the mess, the practical stuff, and the handoff
The people, before the paperwork
- Who would have to start guessing, and about what
- Pick the people first — then actually ask them
- Who decides if you are still here but cannot
The money a will never touches
- Named beneficiaries outrank the will, and usually hold more
- Simplify the accounts now, or somebody untangles them later
- The house, the car, and who has a key
The phone, the pets and the funeral
- The device nobody else can open, and the photographs on it
- Pets, and anyone else who depends on you
- How much of a funeral there is any point planning
What only you can deal with
- The objects nobody should have to fight about
- The conversations you keep putting off
- Write the letter, and tell them what only you know
Leave a clean handoff
- Where it all lives, and who can actually reach it
- Thirty minutes a year, then go live your life
- One thing small enough to do this week, every chapter
Where it sends you somewhere else
- When an attorney is genuinely the right answer
- The questions worth asking once you are there
- No trusts, no probate, no estate tax, no state tables
What readers say
“A book for someone suddenly thrown into handling someone's affairs”
As someone with a dying parent, I think this was great for me to know what to do. Sometimes having a whole list of things to do suddenly is overwhelming. I liked how this book explained reasons for the overwhelm and validation for what I felt. I wish there was a korean version of this book for my parents to read. I feel like it explains things well without shaming the person who hasn't gotten their affairs in order. It would be a good counterpart to a practical list of things to do when getting someone's affairs in order. I loved how it didn't blame anyone but rather empathized with every type of person that reacts when handed this type of responsibility.
Boebin, reader · Sep 2026
“A Practical Guide to Leaving Things Clear”
What I appreciate about this book is how it makes end-of-life planning feel much less overwhelming. Instead of turning the process into a complicated legal or financial project, it focuses on the everyday details that can create real problems for loved ones, from digital accounts and access to important belongings and personal wishes. I also like the emphasis on having conversations and making sure the right people actually know what to do. It sounds like a short, practical read for anyone who wants to make things easier for their family without getting buried in paperwork.
Theresa, reader · Sep 2026
Good to know
Common questions
Is this a fill-in planner?
No, and that is the point of it. There are no blanks, no boxes and no forms — it is sixteen chapters you read, each one landing on something small enough to do this week. If you want the fill-in half as well, The Ultimate End of Life Planner is the companion, and the two are sold together as a bundle.
How do I get my affairs in order?
Start with the people rather than the paperwork: who would act for you if you could not, who would settle things afterwards, and whether you have actually asked either of them. Then handle the things that cause the most trouble for the least effort — the accounts whose named beneficiaries outrank your will, the phone nobody else can open, and the house or car somebody has to be able to get into. That is a few evenings' work, not a six-month project, which is the part most people have backwards.
Do I need a will first?
No, and the order matters less than people think. A will decides who inherits what, and it does not touch retirement accounts, life insurance or anything else with a named beneficiary — which is often most of the money. Chapter 3 is about that gap specifically, so reading it before you see an attorney tends to make the appointment shorter.
Is this legal advice?
No. It is educational, and it is deliberately not a legal textbook: there is no trust, probate, estate tax or state-by-state material in it. Where an attorney, a tax professional or your insurer is genuinely the right answer, it says so, says why, and hands you the questions worth asking before you go.
Is it depressing to read?
It is candid rather than grim. The title says the thing out loud so the rest of the book does not have to keep circling it, and the last chapter is about how little upkeep any of this needs once it is done — thirty minutes a year. The reading turns out to be the easiest part of a job most people have been dreading for years.
Who is it not for?
Anyone who wants a binder to fill in: this has no blanks, boxes or forms, and the companion planner is the product for that. And anyone who wants estate law — there are no trusts, no probate, no estate tax and no state-by-state tables in it, by design.
How long is it, and how fast does it arrive?
148 pages, sixteen chapters, four parts — a few evenings. The paperback is printed when you order and posted with free US shipping; delivery runs about two weeks, which is the printer's schedule rather than ours.
Ready when you are
$25.99Paperback · shipped to you
Free US shipping · Printed to order · Arrives ~ 2 weeks
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A few quiet afternoons now — and it's done, off your plate and off your mind.
Free US shipping · Printed to order · Arrives ~ 2 weeks
