It is a relatively straight forward process. My best advice is to contact your local FSDO and speak to the rotary wing operations person and start on establishing a good rapport with him/her. We used the Van Nuys FSDO and they were great.
In terms on the RLCFM, look at this web link:
http://www2.faa.gov/avr/afs/faa/8700...2/2_098_00.pdf
It lays out how the FAA evaluiates your proposed manual and even has diagrams for signals that you could scan and insert into your proposed manual.
Get the paperwork started as soon as you can. It can take a while, depending on the backlog.