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ISBN Numbers...where to get them, and how much they cost...

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Rest in Peace
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This little bit here may be of interest to anyone considering the self-pub thingy...check it out my writer-type friends...

How to get an ISBN
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In the US you can only buy ISBNs from http://www.myidentifiers.com/,
a site run by Bowkers. You can buy 1, 10, 100 or 1000 ISBNs. At
the moment a single ISBN costs $125, and a pack of 10 costs $250.

In the UK you can only buy ISBNs in packs of 10, which currently
cost £126. You need to obtain them from NeilsenBook.
http://www.isbn.nielsenbook.co.uk/controller.php?page=123

In Canada ISBNs are free! The process of getting an ISBN in Canada
is, however, quite convoluted, but this blog post explains it all:
http://randolphlalonde.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/getting-your-free-isbn-in-canada.html

In Australia, you purchase ISBNS from
https://www.myidentifiers.com.au/. A single ISBN costs A$42, or
you can buy 10 for A$84.

For other countries around the world, I suggest you visit this
handy ISBN information page:
http://isbn-information.com/isbn-administration/isbn-agencies.html

Please note that having an ISBN for your book does not copyright
it. The ISBN is simply a means of having your book identified in
databases and by libraries.

For more advice on self-publishing check out our archives here:
http://writing-world.com/publish/index.shtml[/size]
I once knew a drinker who had a moderating problem...

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Can I be incredibly dense and ask why one would need an ISBN? Does that make the book, um, official and stuff? Or harder to plagiarise? Or does one need one to be able to sell a book?
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Well, if you want to sell books, then it's always best to have an ISBN. For those of you who didn't know, it stands for International Standard Book Number. It cannot be duplicated, so once you have an ISBN, no other book will ever be assigned that number, I guess you could call it your book's fingerprint. Basically the ISBN enters your book into a catalog of all registered books. It is what book stores would use to order your books and find all relevant information - publisher, details, where it's available, etc.

Some places, like Smashwords, offer free ISBNs when you publish e-books through them. One of the neat things I like about Smashwords.

“Many people hear voices when no one is there. Some of them are called mad and are shut up in rooms where they stare at the walls all day. Others are called writers and they do pretty much the same thing.”