ISBN Basics: What Authors Need to Know

ISBN - THE INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BOOK NUMBER

IS TYPICALLY ASSIGNED TO A PUBLICATION.

An ISBN for your eBook can make it easier for booksellers and readers to find your book, but it's not necessary. Your unique ISBN is like a fingerprint for your book. It helps people identify your book and eliminates confusion between similar works. An ISBN could be critical if someone decided to publish a book with the same title as yours, for example.

A separate ISBN is needed for each format you publish. For example, paperback, hardcover, 2nd edition, etc. Digital and audiobooks are optional but highly recommended. Magazines use a different numbering system called ISSN.

Once you have a formatted interior, a great cover, and your ISBN, it's time to publish and get your book into your readers' hands. It costs anywhere from $0 to $125 to get an ISBN number for a book in the U.S. The costs in other countries vary. Here's a few ISBN facts to know:

• LOCATED INSIDE THE FRONT OF A PUBLICATION

• 5 SECTIONS DIVIDED BY DASHES

• BUY A SINGLE ISBN OR A DISCOUNTED BUNDLE 

• ALWAYS 10-13 DIGITS

• IMPLEMENTED IN 1969

• YOU CAN'T RECYCLE OR REUSE I