What I learned from writing/publishing my first book...

[Jennifer]

As ISBN is helpful if you're looking to be stocked in bookstores and libraries - you can purchase them direct from Bowker. A standard copyright page should be sufficient.

[Jim]

Lokki wrote: "Hi. Jumping in here because I don't know where else to look for answers.

If you are self-publishing do your need to get an ISBN or any other sort of identifier for your book?

What about copyri..."

Lokki,

An ISBN is essential for having your work recognized and featured in any literary periodical, website or commercial vendor's inventory. A different ISBN is required for each format in which the work is available - print, electronic, audio.

In the United States, copyright law protects the actual work itself. It does not protect book titles. However, an author can protect the title of his book by filing an "intent to use" application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. This is only recommended if the author plans to eventually expand the original work into a series. The standard application also contains a "grant of merchandise licensing rights" clause.

[Lokki]

Jim wrote: "A different ISBN is required for each format in which the work is available - print, electronic, audio."

Thanks Jim. Another quick question. When you say a different ISBN is required for each format, does that also mean for an epub vs mobi? Or can you use the same ISBN for all forms of ebook?

Any fellow Canadians out there that know if there is anything different I need to know for Canada?

[Christine]

Lokki wrote: Any fellow Canadians out there that know if there is anything different I need to know for Canada? ..."

In Canada you automatically have a copyright on any original work - however it is wise to register your copyright with the Intellectual Property Office. In the event you need to argue your ownership - if registered - the other party must prove their case. Without registration - you have to prove your case. It costs $35 to register and everything can be done online at

http://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointe...

Jim is correct on the ISBN numbers and they are universal for the most part.

The only other point I would make is copyrights should be registered by US writers as well, for the same reasons I cited above. However, if you register in one country, a cooperative agreement between the USA and Canada makes the registration valid in both countries (and most friendly countries around the world).

[Lokki]

Christine wrote: "In Canada you automatically have a copyright on any original work - however it is wise to register your copyright with the Intellectual Property Office. "

Thanks Christine!

[A.M.]

Great discussion as always. I want to thank everyone who has participated so far.

Since there's been so much good information passed along here, I thought it would be helpful to compile a list of the top 10 most important tips from this discussion. I've posted it to my blog, if anyone is interested in seeing the compiled list.

- A.M.

[Jim]

A.M. wrote: "Great discussion as always. I want to thank everyone who has participated so far.

Since there's been so much good information passed along here, I thought it would be helpful to compile a list of..."

A.M.,

Your blog post highlights the most important suggestions and detailed information succinctly and very effectively. Good job!

Jim

[Groovy]

Good job, A.M.

And I agree: writing is a job, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

[Lance]

Lokki wrote: "When you say a different ISBN is required for each format, does that also mean for an epub vs mobi?"

In theory -- if you listen to Bowker -- then yes, each non-interchangeable format should have its own ISBN.

As a practical matter, MOBI never escapes the Zonverse, and Amazon has its own equivalent to the ISBN (the ASIN), so you don't strictly need to blow an ISBN on your Kindle edition. You should still have one each for your ePub, paperback and audio editions, and for each of your translations.

[Lance]

Gisela wrote: "I am confident that Amazon/Createspace knows more about every opportunity than I do..."

They may do so. However, they're primarily concerned with feeding the Amazon universe. There's also a great deal of suspicion that non-Zon outlets look with some level of contempt on CS editions because of who owns CS. There's no guarantee that Ingram will pick them up as there is if they come through LSI.

I use both: CS for Amazon, and LSI for everyone else. I use CS for proofing because they're fast and cheap and don't lard on as many fees as LSI does.

[Lokki]

Lance wrote: "As a practical matter, MOBI never escapes the Zonverse, and Amazon has its own equivalent to the ISBN (the ASIN), so you don't strictly need to blow an ISBN on your Kindle edition."


Thanks. That's good to know.

[Gisela]

Lokki wrote: "Hi. Jumping in here because I don't know where else to look for answers.

If you are self-publishing do you need to get an ISBN or any other sort of identifier for your book?

What about copyri..."

@Lokki, the copyright comes with "giving birth to your script, idea, notes, painting your picture etc..." The important issue that you can PROVE WHEN, so to speak you "gave birth to that idea". You can compare it with giving birth to a kids. Obviously, when you publish your book, the day it's published you have that proof just like giving birth in a hospital, where a nurse records date, time, etc...

But what about if you write and rewrite your manuscript for years (but don't publish yet)? You might even tell a lot of people about your book etc... (some of who might want to steal the idea, or tell somebody about it inadvertently.)

That's when it pays off to register with the library of Congress. ($35) Even if you register the first unedited version, from then on your work is copyrighted though it is not published.

[A.M.]

Since the issue of copyrighting has come up in this discussion a number of times, I want to add a few facts to the thread about copyrights in the U.S. And, I will note that I am not an attorney of any kind, just someone who spent a lot of time looking at copyright facts, once upon a time.

Works in the U.S. are automatically copyrighted upon creation.

Christine mentioned above that this is the case in Canada. It is in the U.S, too. However, a copyright registration makes it easy for you to prove the work is your own, should you go to court. It is considered "prima facie", in legal terms, or a fact presumed to be true unless proven to be not true. Ownership becomes much harder to prove without a registration.

A copyright does not protect your "idea" or your notes or your characters or your title, only the written content in your registered work.

Taken directly from the copyright.gov FAQ: "Copyright, a form of intellectual property law, protects original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture. Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed." So, if someone plagiarizes a piece of your book, you can sue them. However, if someone writes a book that's very similar to your book, proving copyright infringement gets harder.

This is how Dan Brown was able to win the infringement case against him for The Davinci Code, and how Fifty Shades of Gray, which was originally Twilight fan fiction, was published without any legal action against E.L. James. Both were just very similar to other works. I can't say that I feel it's "right", but this is just how the publishing world goes.

You can register an early, unedited version of your work, to protect the text you've written so far (again, not the ideas presented in it).

However, if you copyright an incomplete draft, you will have to file for a supplemental copyright later. This happens any time you add substantial amounts of new text (say, a new chapter or three) or artwork (like a map, in my case). Only your original work and any general edits you make to your manuscript - changing names, fixing typos, correcting grammar - are covered by your initial registration. New chapters and other such items are not covered. So, technically, if you just copyright a early draft, but you add three new chapters later and then send your book out for publication, someone might plagiarize from the unregistered three chapters and then might make a case for why it's their work and not your work if you sue them. Whether that will hold up in court is unknown, but rather than risk it, file for a supplemental registration of your work if you add a lot of new text or other items after the original filing.

Note: "a lot of new text" does not include your copyright page or an "About the Author" page, just text relevant to the original manuscript.

You can publish without a copyright and then file for a copyright after the publishing date.

Note that when you file for a copyright, after the fact, does have an effect on what kind of damages you can seek if you sue someone for copyright infringement. The moral of that story, I think, is just register for the copyright when you feel like the manuscript is close to being ready for market.

[Lance]

A.M. wrote: "You can publish without a copyright and then file for a copyright after the publishing date..."

Couldn't find the originator of this quote, so A.M. gets stuck with it...

Something to consider: if you file for the copyright before publication, you can submit an electronic depository copy. If you file after publication, they expect two physical books, so add the shipping costs and general hassle to that $35.