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New Product Creator: I Need an ISBN?

by nicolasmd2112
14 replies
Hi, i just finished creating my first product which an e-book. The publishing platform that i am using is saying that i need a valid isbn in order to sell on ibooks, and nook. How do i get this? Is is free? Can i get it for free?
#creator #isbn #product
  • Profile picture of the author Deji
    While some publishing platforms will give you a free ISBN, some others will require that you get it yourself. An ISBN is not free. You will have to buy it. The organization in charge of selling it is called Bowkers. You can google it for the website. You will be able to get it cheaper by purchasing more than one at a time. Other companies also sell ISBN's. All the best with your eBook.
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    • Profile picture of the author NewbieLifer
      You will need an ISBN for printed books/manuals. However, your post stated that your product is an ebook. You can sell that on Amazon without an ISBN. Just format it, upload it as a Kindle book, and your done. You can also sell it on stand alone sites as a digital download(pdf format). If you want to offer it as a printed book and get an ISBN #, you can buy one at: Home | ISBN.org (usually around $125) OR, you can self publish through Createspace and they will furnish an ISBN for you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Don Schenk
    If you publish through Createspace using an ISBN they supply, Amazon will be listed as your publisher of record in Books In Print. It's not a problem unless you are trying to build a publishing company name.

    NewbieLifer gave you good advice to start with it as a Kindle book without an ISBN. (You can always assign one later to the Kindle book.) That way you can make any changes to it you wish, based upon reader feedback. Same goes for a .pdf.

    ISBNs for publishers here in The States come from Bowker. They are at the link posted above, or here https://www.myidentifiers.com/

    The basic setup fee (does not include making the barcode) is $75. Then ISBNs are priced according to how many you purchase.
    1 is $50 plus the $75
    10 are $25 each plus the $75
    100 are $5 each plus the $75

    The POD company (printing on demand) that prints your book will supply a template for your book cover, based upon your book's size and the number of pages. They will create the bar code for you from your ISBN, and put it on the template.

    A POD company like Lulu will can do all the layout for you, and will be expensive. A friend of mine prints a 225 page 6x9 hardback at Lulu, and they charge him $17 per book - to which he has to then add his price markup. I use Lighting Source, Inc to print mine, and to print his book as a hardback book at LSI, the cost per book is $7. BTW Lulu has its books printed by LSI, then adds its markup.

    I just uploaded one to Createspace to see how they do. I have the same book printed at LSI too, and want to compare them. The process was easier at Createspace than with LSI.

    Createspace also provides writing templates in MS Word to handle the interior layout, and keep the margins correct.

    Aiming at Amazon and another book, POD for Profit, both by Aaron Shepard can clear up some of the mysteries for you.

    :-Don
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    • Profile picture of the author workoutstuff1
      Originally Posted by Don Schenk View Post

      If you publish through Createspace using an ISBN they supply, Amazon will be listed as your publisher of record in Books In Print. It's not a problem unless you are trying to build a publishing company name.

      NewbieLifer gave you good advice to start with it as a Kindle book without an ISBN. (You can always assign one later to the Kindle book.) That way you can make any changes to it you wish, based upon reader feedback. Same goes for a .pdf.

      ISBNs for publishers here in The States come from Bowker. They are at the link posted above, or here https://www.myidentifiers.com/

      The basic setup fee (does not include making the barcode) is $75. Then ISBNs are priced according to how many you purchase.
      1 is $50 plus the $75
      10 are $25 each plus the $75
      100 are $5 each plus the $75

      The POD company (printing on demand) that prints your book will supply a template for your book cover, based upon your book's size and the number of pages. They will create the bar code for you from your ISBN, and put it on the template.

      A POD company like Lulu will can do all the layout for you, and will be expensive. A friend of mine prints a 225 page 6x9 hardback at Lulu, and they charge him $17 per book - to which he has to then add his price markup. I use Lighting Source, Inc to print mine, and to print his book as a hardback book at LSI, the cost per book is $7. BTW Lulu has its books printed by LSI, then adds its markup.

      I just uploaded one to Createspace to see how they do. I have the same book printed at LSI too, and want to compare them. The process was easier at Createspace than with LSI.

      Createspace also provides writing templates in MS Word to handle the interior layout, and keep the margins correct.

      Aiming at Amazon and another book, POD for Profit, both by Aaron Shepard can clear up some of the mysteries for you.

      :-Don

      Actually, this is something I need to suggest to a business associate of mine who is working on a fictional series that he wants to, one day, turn into a TV show. Thanks for the info!
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    • Profile picture of the author biz_online
      Quick question... Do I need to have the Bowker ISBN and Bowker Bar code to get into bookstores? What the best route into hardcopy print?
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      • Profile picture of the author NewbieLifer
        Createspace offers all of that. (part of amazon)
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        • Profile picture of the author biz_online
          Originally Posted by NewbieLifer View Post

          Createspace offers all of that. (part of amazon)
          Right, but the ISBN belongs to Amazon, not the author. You can't use that ISBN to go into book stores. You need your own Bowker ISBN for that.
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          • Profile picture of the author colorado1850
            A couple of notes to be aware of. It looks like you are in the USA so you have to either buy an ISBN or use the free one with CreateSpace / Smashwords. In Canada and some other countries, ISBN's are free.

            Originally Posted by Don Schenk View Post


            ISBNs for publishers here in The States come from Bowker. They are at the link posted above, or here https://www.myidentifiers.com/

            The basic setup fee (does not include making the barcode) is $75. Then ISBNs are priced according to how many you purchase.
            1 is $50 plus the $75
            10 are $25 each plus the $75
            100 are $5 each plus the $75
            The price is $125 USD for one ISBN or $250 for 10 (and the discounts get better the more you buy). I don't buy barcodes though. You can generate the barcode free once you have the ISBN.

            Originally Posted by arronwall View Post

            There are so many free tools online to help you creat ISBN barcode. But I do't think the free ones have so many professional functions with the paid ones. You'd better employ one and check its free trial package fist if possible. I hope you success. Good luck.

            Best regards,
            Arron
            You're actually buying the rights to a reference number that is then used by booksellers / catalogers around the world to find your book. The barcode, as you point out, is something a lot of book cover designers can create for you free.

            Originally Posted by biz_online View Post

            Quick question... Do I need to have the Bowker ISBN and Bowker Bar code to get into bookstores? What the best route into hardcopy print?
            If you publish a physical book through CreateSpace, using their ISBN you can still get your book in bookstores. It is mandatory to have an ISBN on your cover and like I mentioned earlier, most designers can add this for you for nothing.

            Probably the most important thing you need on your cover is a the price! I learned the hard way that a book with no price on the back cover is going to get declined by about every bookstore .

            Originally Posted by bwh1 View Post

            A bit aside of the OP question

            Does Amazon/Createspace ask any exclusivity if you publish there? As I understood they become your publisher.

            If not you always can start there and if the title takes off you expand into the other platforms.

            G.
            They do not get exclusive to your book. It's yours. If you use Smashwords or CreateSpace ISBN's, they are the publisher of record as Don mentioned. All that means is that they show up as the 'publisher'.

            HOWEVER, on Kindle, if you use KDP Select, you are giving Amazon / Kindle exclusive rights to your book until you un-enroll from KDP Select. So if you use it, you can't put your book for sale on iBooks or B&N etc.

            Originally Posted by biz_online View Post

            Right, I see that Smashwords provides a free ISBN but it I also see that they own the ISBN and they take from 40% to 60% of your profit.:confused:
            Smashwords takes 15% - so authors get 85% royalty for books sold on Smashwords. Authors get 60% on books where Smashwords has published for you through Apple and B&N.

            The big benefit of Smashwords is that it is the best way to get your book on Apple's platform if you don't own a Mac. You can't publish to in the iBookstore unless it is done through Smashwords or you load it up yourself through iBooks Author app on a Mac. It's a free app, but you pretty much have to reformat your book all over again.

            Anyway, to make a long story short - you can use Smashwords to get your book on ibooks and B&N. Smashwords will give you an ISBN for free.

            If you want to publish the book yourself to those platforms, you will have to buy an ISBN.

            Good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author arronwall
    There are so many free tools online to help you creat ISBN barcode. But I do't think the free ones have so many professional functions with the paid ones. You'd better employ one and check its free trial package fist if possible. I hope you success. Good luck.
    '


    Best regards,
    Arron
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    • Profile picture of the author makaveiljojo
      Originally Posted by arronwall View Post

      There are so many free tools online to help you create ISBN barcode. But I do't think the free ones have so many professional functions with the paid ones. You'd better employ one and check its free trial package fist if possible. I hope you success. Good luck.
      '


      Best regards,
      Arron
      It seems little bit difficult for me to get open source of ISBN on Google, would you please help me with it?
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  • Profile picture of the author sabatek
    Yes, you can can get it for free from sites like smashwords.com but what publishing platform are you using that is not providing it or not allowing you to move forward without it? Just curious.
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    • Profile picture of the author Don Schenk
      Originally Posted by sabatek View Post

      Yes, you can can get it for free from sites like smashwords.com but what publishing platform are you using that is not providing it or not allowing you to move forward without it? Just curious.

      He mentioned iBooks and B&N's Nook books. They require ISBNs. Bookstores will not handle a book that does not have an ISBN, and all printed books need an ISBN.

      If you want your business to be listed as being the publisher, you will need your own ISBNs, because whoever owns the ISBN will be listed in Books In Print as being the publisher.

      The companies that give "free" ISBNs (like Createspace and Lulu) become your publisher of record, which means you would no longer be the publisher. Ooops! They buy ISBNs by the thousands from Bowker.

      Here in the US, R.W. Bowker is the distributor/registration house for ISBNs, and they charge for the ISBN. In many other countries, if not most other countries, ISBNs are free. You simply need to go to that country's ISBN registrar.

      Each type of "book" needs its own ISBN. So, if you publish your book as a paperback printed book, a hard cover printed book, a Kindle, a Nook, an iBook, a Kobo book, each will need to have a separate ISBN.

      :-Don
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    • Profile picture of the author biz_online
      Originally Posted by sabatek View Post

      Yes, you can can get it for free from sites like smashwords.com but what publishing platform are you using that is not providing it or not allowing you to move forward without it? Just curious.

      Right, I see that Smashwords provides a free ISBN but it I also see that they own the ISBN and they take from 40% to 60% of your profit.:confused:
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  • Profile picture of the author bwh1
    A bit aside of the OP question

    Does Amazon/Createspace ask any exclusivity if you publish there? As I understood they become your publisher.

    If not you always can start there and if the title takes off you expand into the other platforms.

    G.
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