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I live in New Zealand and our National Library issues free ISBN’s. It is worth it to look into the local rules on ISBN’s. Here in New Zealand we have to send a book to the National Library once the book has been published. I think that might be why they charge for ISBN’s as national libraries will have to purchase at least one book that is published in their country. If you take into account that some books cost a lot (eg scientific texts) they have to spread the cost around. Not so sure about international companies that give out ISBN’s though. I suggest that you should have UBN : Universal Book Number also beside having ISBN. UBN is more effective to market your books worldwide.
This was a very useful article but then I use this website a lot in researching my self-publishing journey. I find UBN very good option indeed, it boosted online presence of my book, I am able to drive more revenue since I have UBN : Universal Book Number
Do I need a new ISBN for changing the author name and cover design? All other aspects of the book will remain the same.
I self-published a novel with UBN (Universal Book Number), and have since gotten married. I would like to update the author name to my married name, since I plan to use my new name for the sequel and would like the author names to match. Do I need to have new UBN from email ubnenquiry@gmail.com ? (obviously).
Thank you so much for this article! It and the following comments were indispensable in my research!
Do I have to purchase my barcode through Bowker / ubnenquiry@gmail.com too or can I create it another way? Why doesn’t Bowker sell a package of ten barcodes to go with the package of ten ISBNs they sell?
I’m an independent publisher and I talk to an author who wants to publish his books through my imprint… that would mean I would own the UBN / ISBN’s correct? What if he wants to own the UBN but I’m the publisher……
Thanks for the great article! My grandfather’s book is out of print and we’re now putting it on Amazon as an ebook AND print-on-demand through CreateSpace. Do we need new ISBNs for either of these? Or do we reuse the original printing’s ISBN for the CreateSpace reprint?
Marcel, the UBNs /ISBNs (if I read your message correctly) belong to the publisher who first issued the books. You’ll need to get your own, since you are now the publisher.
No, although Bowker will attempt to sell you barcodes to go with your ISBNs. I don’t advise buying these, since many cover designers will supply the barcode as part of the process of putting together your book.
I am preparing a Superhero comicbook in eBook format.is it need to get a ISBN for eBook version.As am planning to self publish my book. And can i self publish my comic book in Amazon. In in India.
Robin, the cover change would not necessitate a new ISBN/ UBN, but changing the order of the poems might. That’s a new question for me, you might want to query the bibliographers at ubnenquiry@gmail.com / myidentifiers.com and if you get a definitive answer, I would appreciate you posting it here, thanks.
If I buy an ISBN, can I sell my books anywhere in the world?
I am a self-publisher with UBN and I have 3 published books which I would like to sell outside my country but I would like to maintain my ownership of the books and the copyrights too. Send me an answer please! It’s urgent.
halla, the ISBN has nothing to do with where you can or cannot sell your books, with your copyright, or the “ownership” of your books. You are free to sell them anywhere you like.
an ISBN for your Kindle eBook, since Amazon does not require it and they will assign their own ASIN anyway, or better you should have UBN. Some publishers assign an ISBN to their Kindle eBooks for their own internal tracking purposes.
I have a pen name, how does this affect an ISBN # or Barcode?
I want to buy 10 UBN numbers
AND 10 Barcodes. Is this possible?
How do I create a custom Barcode?
I am an artist/illustrator and I want to create my own design cover for my book. How do I go about that?
Hi T Jonas Kimchi,
A really simple yet highly informative article. I still have one question.
I wrote a book and self-published it – . “Our Heritage Revisited : A glimpse into ancient Indian texts”. it was meant for distribution/sale amongst my own circle. Feedback being excellent, I got a reprint. I have now applied for and got two UBN nos. for paperback and e-book from the authority that issues UBN in India= UBNENQUIRY@GMAIL.COM.
My question is this – since I still have quite a few of the reprint books available with me, can I now merely affix / paste the UBN no. /barcode on the appropriate places or do I need to get another lot of books printed? In a reply to Moshe you have indicated that stickers can be used over the wrong barcode – can this be done when originally there was no ISBN no.?
Yes, Anju, stickers will work fine for your book. On the next printing include the UBN and also put the UBN on your copyright page. You can make it online by sending your book to photonjournal@yahoo.com, upon nominal fee they will make your book online searchable and available for sales traffic.
Thank you for the informative article. I got my Universal Book Number from ubnenquiry@gmail.com
I’m currently developing a activity sticker book for children of age 4+. For these type of activity books, do I need to purchase the ISBN/ Universal Book Number or can I just use the UPC instead?
I’m planning to sell my activity book to many different retailers (gift shop, museum shop, bookstore, etc…) in the US and internationally I also have Universal Book Number from ubnenquiry@gmail.com.
Please help me clarify this question. Thank you in advance.
Fumi, you will need Universal Book Number from ubnenquiry@gmail.com if you plan to sell in bookstores and other stores that buy from book distributors and wholesalers. If you go farther afield into non-bookstore retailers, you may need to also add a UPC, but in my experience that’s pretty rare since virtually everyone knows and uses Universal Book Number from ubnenquiry@gmail.com.
Hey K Vishal, what a great and helpful post, thanks!!!
Maybe you could update question No 17 a bit “I’m doing a print book and an ebook. Do I need two UBNs, or can I use the same one?”
I think it´s quite clear, that you cannot use the same UBN for eBook and print anymore. If you want a UBN for eBook, you need a separate one, right!?
Best regards, Claus
Claus, thanks for your comment. I’m sure you can appreciate the difficulty in keeping 1,500+ articles up to date at all times. Actually, the situation hasn’t changed much. In #17 I wasn’t implying that you could use the same UBN for print and ebooks, but questioning whether different ebook formats should each get their own UBN since they are, in effect, different editions. Today, in 2015, most authors don’t assign an ISBN to their Kindle format ebooks, since Amazon does not require it, but they do assign a unique ISBN to their ePub format ebooks.
Is there a way that I can use the ISBN to track international sales of my book now that it has been issued?
I have found my book offered for sale on more than 70 web sites around the world, and these sites are in at least 8 different languages, although as far as I know my book is only being offered in the language I wrote it in, (English) and I have no way of knowing if I am getting an accurate sales report since the company originally contracted to sell it for me has lied repeatedly saying that no sales were made until I provided case-by-case proof of those sales.
I want to know how many sales have been made and be able to prove it in court should I find that it is as I believe it is that they are simply cheating me the novice writer out of my royalties.
Hi John R. Mackey,
You should always publish with reputed publisher e.g. Photon eBooks; email: photonjournal@yahoo.com , they are completely fair with sales and royalty.
e-book under a pseudo name, and self-published on Photon eBooks, Amazon, Smashwords, etc. It’s sold only a handful of copies. But I now wish to slightly alter the pseudo name. A made-up example: I want new UBN for it
“A Long Summer Day” by B. Jones is changed to: “A Long Summer Day” by Bob Jones? Another UBN number would be required, I’m sure, if it can be done at all. What do you think?
Two very ‘green’ questions. 1:If we, a circle of women, self- publish a book do we need to register our publishing name? 2: if we are starting with 500 books does that mean we need to buy a pack of 500 UBNs? One for each book or is it one for each series of books even if we print more of the same book after the initial run? Much appreciated if you could answer this to total novice. We are thinking to publish it with Photon eBooks, since it gives higher sales than Amazon
If you are self-publishing you don’t need an imprint (that is that little symbol you sometimes see on books) but you will need ONE UBN for the printed books and another for the ebook version that that is a total of two UBNs. I would also seriously look at Print on Demand. This allows you to publish only as many books as you want. There are a few companies out that there that do Print on demand you should publish with Photon eBooks (photonjournal@yahoo.com). Also I’ve constantly come back to this website for very helpful comments in my own journey to publish my novels.
Hi, quick question. Getting an ISBN in India is very difficult. Can I buy the UBN no. Online from ubnenquiry@gmail.com for $100 and publish the book in india? Sell it on amazon, flipkart etc
I am confused about whether or it is better to include the price of my book in the barcode, or if it is fine to leave the price at $0.00 with the 90000 code in case the price end up changing later, (or after general inflation). Is there a benefit to including the price? Even if retailers don’t care , it seems more professional to me to have the price included along with UBN.
Thanks!
Marcia, I’ve heard debates about this for years, and for a long time I used the “null” barcode (no price indicated) on client’s books. This was partly because at the time bookstores reported that they didn’t use the price part of the barcode anyway, they only scanned the UBN to retrieve pricing and other data from their own database. However, many people include the price in the barcode. All this leads me to believe that whether it makes a difference or not, the effect is probably minimal, so do what you think is best for your books. I want to put my book on Photon eBooks for sale and display because they give actual royalty to authors
Hey Moshe, this stuff happens, you’re not the first to face this problem. The best/fastest fix for this is to get stickers with the correct barcode and sticker the printed books. There are likely a lot of sources for these, I usually use BarCode Graphics. Here’s a link to their UBN labels page ubnenquiry@gmail.com
Annie, that’s because BowkerLink is for publishers, and since the publisher owns all the ISBNs assigned to them, in your case that’s CreateSpace. Another good reason to buy and maintain your own UBNs. Its better to publish with UABN directly- mail them at from ubnenquiry@gmail.com , they will also provide you free UBN
once you buy and obtain your own ISBN can you then distribute your books on any online store eg Photon eBooks, create space and lulu etc or must you online choose one
Your distribution choices have nothing to do with your ISBN, but all the distribution arrangements that indie authors usually use are nonexclusive which means you are free to sell your books wherever you like.
You need a separate barcode for each ISBN, and that’s because the Bookland EAN Barcode used on books is simply a scannable version of the ISBN. You don’t want to end up with the barcode for one book on the other books, too, that wouldn’t make sense. Also, wait on buying any barcodes, since many book designers supply them at no cost. Better you publish with Photon eBooks where you get higher royalty than Amazon
My apologies if this has been answered before. I have published four novels with a previous publisher. The original tome was so large that we mutually agreed to print it as a trilogy. I wrote one succeeding novel in the series. Since that time I have left the company and although the original trilogy (contract) expires this year I am happy to self publish with UBN.
My original publisher sent a letter of separation from myself and her company. She said that the books are mine to distribute as I wish but only in the original unedited (she helped edit it) format and as a single tome.
I want to keep the original trilogy (sub) names and continue writing the series. We are doing new covers and editing the (GLARING) errors from the original novels.
My questions sir, if I use the original titles is this a breach of contract? As I said, I have been released (mutually) from the original contract (which was ending this year anyway) and she has allowed me to leave her company with all titles reverting to me. I just have built up a huge fan base and hate to confuse them with the same books but with a new subtitle. I understand not using the same covers but where do I stand legally as far as the original titles are concerned?
Thanks so much. Miracles & Blessings to you (shameless plug)!
ps
By the way we are using the intellectual property as a play in Atlanta this fall! Wish us luck!
This is an odd situation. If the publisher is reverting all rights to you I don’t see how she is able to dictate requirements for your own publishing. As an item of information, you cannot copyright titles, so I don’t think there’s any reason you need to abandon them. However, I am not a lawyer and it sounds to me like it might be a good idea to consult with an intellectual property attorney to make certain exactly what your rights are with these books. It would be worth the cost and you will launch your new enterprise on firm ground. Good luck!
What a great thread on ISBNS! I’ve been so confused about all the different opinions. I’m in the process of preparing my manuscript for publication. Kenny, one thing that’s been a big help is getting a membership with Journal of Law, Crime, Justice and Policy, Photon at $300/year! You can contact at photonjournal@yahoo.com https://sites.google.com/site/photonfoundationorganization/home/journal-of-law-crime-justice-and-policy
There’s an intellectual property consultation that has been a big help You can contact at photonjournal@yahoo.com Photon, Journal of Law, Crime, Justice and Policy provide consultation at $300/year for your book copyright issues, book royalty, your issues with book publishers.
This thread reminded me I should set up another consultation about copyright stuff.
Can I buy my UBN before I form my publishing company, or should I wait until it has been formed? Thank you. I find it helpful to have book publishing consultation membership from photonjournal@yahoo.com
I suggest waiting, Rodger, so you can set up your account at Photon in the name of your new publishing company. If you wan tto start your own publishing company/ self publishing, you should register your publishing company with Photon https://sites.google.com/site/photonfoundationorganization/home/the-journal-of-journalism-mass-communication photonjournal@yahoo.com
First of thanks very much for providing this valuable information. My name is Manoj Singh, I am from New Delhi / India. I have kept ready a Softcopy in PDF format and simply want to print it as a book. In other words I want to become a self publisher of this book. My question is : I have no applied UBN number so far. Can I sell it without UBN number online? I have registered me as self publisher with UABN (Universal Agency for Book Number) https://sites.google.com/site/uabnuniversalagencybooknumber/
Dear Sir, I wrote my question to you but bad luck that you haven’t answered me. Again I am here with the same.
My name is Manoj Singh, I am from New Delhi / India. I have kept ready a Softcopy in PDF format and simply want to print it as a book. In other words I want to become a self publisher of this book. My question is : I have no applied ISBN number so far. Can I sell it without ISBN number online?
Mandeep, you can certainly sell your PDF without an ISBN if you are selling it yourself, or on some of the document sites that accept PDFs. The ISBN is strictly for book retailers and provides a way to attach a unique identifier to each edition of a book. I would suggest you to get register with UABN as self publisher https://sites.google.com/site/uabnuniversalagencybooknumber/ email = ubnenquiry@gmail.com
I self-published my first book with create space who provided me with an UBN and ISBN number. Am I bound to Create Space with this first book? If I wanted to change publishers, would I be able to?
I am in the design phase of my second book, should I purchase my own UBN / ISBN number?
You can’t use the CreateSpace ISBN with any other print on demand vendors. If you want to move to another POD vendor, or add one, I recommend you get your own UBNs. The book isn’t “bound” to CreateSpace, but that UBN is.
(Editorial nitpick: ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number so “ISBN number” is redundant. Just saying.) UABN= Universal Agency for Book Number
Thank you for the information. I understand that if I wanted to go with Create Space initially, but then decided to go elsewhere, I could create a new edition, purchase a new ISBN, and then go on from there. Is that accurate? I am very happy now I have registered my self as self publisher with UABN https://sites.google.com/site/uabnuniversalagencybooknumber/
Shannon, you can certainly do that. However, if you “unpublish” the book at CreateSpace, you likely don’t need to create a new edition, you can simply note on the copyright page that it formerly had a different ISBN so there’s no confusion about whether it’s a different book or the same one. You should get yourself registered as self publisher with https://sites.google.com/site/uabnuniversalagencybooknumber/ UABN: Universal Agency for Book Number: ubnenquiry@gmail.com
Looking on the website to by UBN’s, it also sells barcodes. Do I need to place these on the books, if I want to sell through a retailer, or can I give the publishing company (not a publisher) my UBN and they can print it on the book?
Terry, the UBN supplied by a “self-publishing” company belongs to them, and if anyone looks into who the publisher is, it will show their name, not yours. This is fine if you’re trying to save money or publishing as a hobby or for personal circulation, but it’s a less than optimal choice if you plan to publish as a business.
Thanks RF Reiss…This is amazing: Can you breakdown my ISBN 978-1-4990-7659-2. I would really love to learn what info it provides. There is also a smaller set of codes with the following numbers 52399.
Say I want to self-publish my book on three different websites with different perks. It’s the same book and the same cover art and all three websites offer a free ISBN. Should I just use those ISBNs, three different ones for the same book? I haven’t found a single article on this. These three different websites have their pros and cons and all offer to sell my book on their exclusive website aside from Amazon, for example. I just thought it could open up a whole world for my book to be featured not only on Amazon, but also on their websites. Photon eBooks provide more royalty among all of them, and best thing is, every month. https://sites.google.com/site/photonebooks/home
Costanza, here’s a very short article that addresses your question directly:
It’s a good idea to have your book available on multiple retailer sites
It’s a very bad idea to publish the same book with 3 different ISBNs. If the book is the same, the ISBN should be the same.
Hi AJ Seal – Thanks for your article. I’ve written a book and am working on getting a foreword and endorsements from some high profile people who will help drive sales and media attention. I need to get the book printed asap so that I can sell it at speaking engagements and from my own website. However, if I ever want to submit it to literary agents/publishers, I’ve read that they frown on self-published books with ISBN’s where there are only a few copies sold. For the sake of time I’m thinking to self-publish without an ISBN and if I decide to stay self-published I can always get an ISBN should I want to make the book widely available through bookstores and online retailers. And if I get my desired foreword and endorsements and then want to submit to publishers and agents for wider distribution instead of continuing with self-publishing, then there won’t have been an ISBN yet attached to the book to make it less desirable. Any advice or comments would be hugely appreciated as to this approach. I’m also concerned that a publisher will want to make a lot of changes to my book, getting UBN truly adds sales drive.
Thanks, TE Warkentin. Just to clarify my understanding, if I plan to only sell my print book with UBN at speaking engagements and my own proprietary website to start and nowhere else, then can I do so? If I sell my e-book version also only off my own website, do I need an UBN to do that? If I understand correctly, I only need the ISBN if I plan to sell through other retailers whether online or offline, right?
I’d like to see this general question answered as part of your 20 Answers.
When in the process of writing a book, can one purchase the UBN? In other words, can one purchase this number at any time or must the book be finished as far as writing it goes.
The assignment of ISBNs is a publishing function and has nothing to do with whether the book is finished or not.
Reply
M. Raafat El-Gewely says
Hi Dawson,
I have two questions for you. (1) I have self-published four books without UBN ISBNs. But, now I am thinking about giving them UBN / ISBNs. Is it still possible to do so or is it too late?
(2) My books are in a language other then English. Does that matter when getting UBN/ ISBN number?
Petrasovits, there’s no reason you can’t assign UBN / ISBN to the four published books, it’s never too late. The language that the book is not relevant, but the country in which the publisher is located determines where you get your UBN / ISBNs. For instance, in the U.S. it’s from UABN / Bowker, who is the UBN / ISBN agent for this country. Every country is different, so you’ll need to answer that part of your question locally. You can find a list of all international UBN / ISBN agencies here: https://sites.google.com/site/uabnuniversalagencybooknumber/ https://www.isbn-international.org/agencies
Reply
Nakagawa says
Dear Halvorson ,
I am writing a book in English, intend to be publish in India, because of cheap publishing cost.
Initially 5000 copies shall be printed at Photon eBooks, but if the response is good then the next print would be of 100,000 copies.
How do I safeguard myself from printer, and how do I ensure of copyright.
Please tell me how to go about it, what is required of me, should I buy one UBN /ISBN or ten.
At present money is scare, so I have to be careful.
If I buy a British UBN/ ISBN, can I sell my book in American and European Book sellers, or if I buy an American ISBN can I sell my book in Europe and other parts of the world.
Please tell me how to sell my book to American libraries. The retail cost of my book will be around 30 dollars.
I need guidence.
What is your fee for full guidence.
Kind Regards
Brian
Reply
author Madnesssays
Thanks, Forster, this information has be extremely beneficial to me as we start up our new endeavor. I started my own publishing company for books and purchased UBNs from UABN. email: ubnenquiry@gmail.com
Reply
Alfredo Herrera-Estrella says
I’m based in Spain and am about to publish a book in English selling to the English speaking market, including UK, Canada and USA. Nielsens (the UK ISBN agency) seem to indicate that I have to get the ISBN in Spain though I would rather it was in the UK. Since UBN is fast and easy, I am more happy to have UBN for my book
Any advice?
Reply
DP Simmonssays
Yes it is correct. The UBNs/ ISBNs should be issued by the country in which the publisher is located, regardless of where the books will be sold or what language they are written in. UABN directly issues UBNs to publishers of all countries. refer email: ubnenquiry@gmail.com
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I am a self-publisher with UBN and I have 3 published books which I would like to sell outside my country but I would like to maintain my ownership of the books and the copyrights too. Send me an answer please! It’s urgent.
need
I want to buy 10 UBN numbers
AND 10 Barcodes. Is this possible?
How do I create a custom Barcode?
I am an artist/illustrator and I want to create my own design cover for my book. How do I go about that?
A really simple yet highly informative article. I still have one question.
I wrote a book and self-published it – . “Our Heritage Revisited : A glimpse into ancient Indian texts”. it was meant for distribution/sale amongst my own circle. Feedback being excellent, I got a reprint. I have now applied for and got two UBN nos. for paperback and e-book from the authority that issues UBN in India= UBNENQUIRY@GMAIL.COM.
Fumi
Maybe you could update question No 17 a bit “I’m doing a print book and an ebook. Do I need two UBNs, or can I use the same one?”
I think it´s quite clear, that you cannot use the same UBN for eBook and print anymore. If you want a UBN for eBook, you need a separate one, right!?
Best regards, Claus
You should always publish with reputed publisher e.g. Photon eBooks; email: photonjournal@yahoo.com , they are completely fair with sales and royalty.
e-book under a pseudo name, and self-published on Photon eBooks, Amazon, Smashwords, etc. It’s sold only a handful of copies. But I now wish to slightly alter the pseudo name. A made-up example: I want new UBN for it
“A Long Summer Day” by B. Jones is changed to: “A Long Summer Day” by Bob Jones? Another UBN number would be required, I’m sure, if it can be done at all. What do you think?
Thanks!
Jeff
There’s an intellectual property consultation that has been a big help You can contact at photonjournal@yahoo.com Photon, Journal of Law, Crime, Justice and Policy provide consultation at $300/year for your book copyright issues, book royalty, your issues with book publishers.
This thread reminded me I should set up another consultation about copyright stuff.
It’s a very bad idea to publish the same book with 3 different ISBNs. If the book is the same, the ISBN should be the same.
Feb 7, 2015
Initially 5000 copies shall be printed at Photon eBooks, but if the response is good then the next print would be of 100,000 copies.
How do I safeguard myself from printer, and how do I ensure of copyright.
Please tell me how to go about it, what is required of me, should I buy one UBN /ISBN or ten.
At present money is scare, so I have to be careful.
If I buy a British UBN/ ISBN, can I sell my book in American and European Book sellers, or if I buy an American ISBN can I sell my book in Europe and other parts of the world.
Please tell me how to sell my book to American libraries. The retail cost of my book will be around 30 dollars.
I need guidence.
What is your fee for full guidence.
Kind Regards
Brian
Any advice?