1. Ensure you have your `.gradle/gradle.properties` filled with the requisite credentials:
````
nexusUsername=<sonatype username>
nexusPassword=<sonatype password>
signing.keyId=<signing key id>
signing.password=<signing key password>
signing.secretKeyRingFile=<signing pgp key path>
````
2. Update `VERSION_NAME` in `gradle.properties` to reflect the release version. (Remove "-SNAPSHOT" when releasing.)
3. Run `gradle publish` to upload to Sonatype.
4. Run `gradle closeAndReleaseRepository` to release to Maven (do not combine with previous command as ordering isn't guaranteed.)
5. Update `VERSION_NAME` in `gradle.properties` to prepare for next release version.
1. In the top-level gradle.properties file, update the `VERSION_NAME` property. This will usually just be removing the `-SNAPSHOT` suffix.
1. Commit and push changes.
1. Tag the release: `git tag v[VERSION_NAME]`. Make sure there is a `v` prefix at the front of the tag. This indicates to the CI that this is a release tag.
1. Push tags: `git push --tags`
1. Confirm that the `publish` github action is completed successfully.
1. Add a new GitHub release with change logs.
1. Prepare the version for the next release by bumping the `VERSION_NAME` property and adding the `-SNAPSHOT` suffix.
1. Additionally update the version names in README.md.
