Self-Publishing: The Paperwork No One Tells You About

You've decided to self-publish. You may think that this means that you are free from the traditional publishing house. This is a delusion. You didn't avoid the publishing house. You became the publishing house, a reality I discovered when I went to do the publishing paperwork this summer. This was the soundtrack one night in front of my computer: Sorry, I can't get CIP? Why not? It costs how much for one ISBN? @#^%$&*!!!! How am I going to pay for this? I wonder how long I can live exclusively on Minute Rice before my blood iron dives ...

While these things went through my head, I realised that all the sites from which I was getting my information and that were offering services were American. Because I was in a patriotic mood, I wanted to give business to Canadian companies and went looking. That's when I found out that Minute Rice wouldn't be my diet. Virtually all of the services and paperwork for publishing are free in Canada. What follows are the major things you will need to apply for and obtain in order to self-publish in Canada.

ISBNs:

What, that number isn't pasted on by library staff to you help find books for essays? No, an ISBN (International Standard Book Number) is a unique, numerical code assigned to every book published worldwide and it's the responsibility of the publisher (you) to obtain one. The number of digits per code varies depending on the country and the point in history in which the book is published (Canada's now contain 13 digits). For this reason, it is imperative that you follow the proper method of ISBN acquisition for your country within your country. In Canada, ISBNs are provided for FREE by the Canadian ISBN Service System (CISS) of Library and Archives Canada. You apply for them by setting up an account online here, then following the instructions.

Example of a Canadian ISBN-13.

ISBNs aren't a legal obligation in Canada. However, they're necessary if you want to be able to complete the rest of the paperwork involved with self-publishing and to provide the legal deposit, which is required by Canadian federal law. It's like a SIN number; if you don't have one, you can't file your taxes or apply for other government services. Many printers in North America require that your book has an ISBN or they will not print copies (if they are meant for sale, not private distribution). This includes companies that provide print-on-demand and online sales such as CreateSpace and Lightning Source. ISBNs are needed to track sales and to manage book orders.

Barcodes:

Yes, you have to make/buy, your own barcode for your book; it won't be given by the stores that sell copies. You can't get any barcode you like; there are different kinds of barcodes and each one identifies a different kind of product. The one for books is called a Bookland EAN barcode. It's created using your book's ISBN. Some self-publishers generate their own barcodes using computer software; don't do this unless you have a superior knowledge of barcodes and are skilled in graphic design.



A Bookland EAN barcode generated from the ISBN used in the previous example.

 

The most important thing about a barcode: it can be scanned. Most booksellers won't supply your book if the barcode doesn't scan, because it's a nuisance at the checkout and for inventory. Many printers that offer print-on-demand also offer barcode generation; some provide this service for free. If barcode creation is offered by your printer, use it; printer-generated barcodes are high-quality enough to scan. Otherwise, it reflects badly on the printer, because deficiency in barcode scanning can be seen as poor printing instead of the result of a poor quality digital barcode file.

If you must or choose to get a barcode elsewhere, make sure that the company generating the barcode can (and does) give you a digital image that you can insert onto the digital copy of the back cover, which is submitted to the printer. Don't contract a company to print physical copies; you'll have to manually stick them onto your books.

***You need a barcode if you want booksellers to supply your book; some printers also require that you have one even if you sell exclusively online.

CIP:

CIP (Cataloguing in Publication) is a FREE, voluntary programme managed by Library and Archives Canada. However, like an ISBN, you need to have it if you want to be able to make the legal deposit. This programme gives standardized cataloguing to your book and must be applied for pre-publication; the information is available to libraries and booksellers, which helps promote your book. Unlike the US CIP programme, self-publications are eligible for it in Canada.

You can apply here. Other countries have their own CIP programmes; make sure that you're applying to the Canadian CIP programme. Otherwise, your book will be registered as published in another country. Even if your printer is in another country, you are the publisher and you are located in Canada; your municipality, province and country of residence are the locations of publication and the Canadian CIP programme is the one for which you apply.

Once your application has been processed, Library and Archives Canada e-mails you the cataloguing information as it must appear on the copyrights page inside your book. You cannot change the formatting or the spacing; copy and paste it directly from the e-mail into your copyrights page and arrange all other information around it.



Example of CIP information on a copyrights page.



Legal Deposit:

Thanks to the Library and Archives of Canada Act (2004), a copy of every book published in Canada must be given to Library and Archives Canada, with no reimbursement for costs of postage. If your print run is under 100 copies, you need to mail 1 copy. If it's more or you plan to use print-on-demand, its 2. I recommend sending 2 copies even if your print run is under 100, because you may do another print run or use print-on-demand in future. Mail them as soon as possible after publication with this form, or you'll get letters from Library and Archives Canada “reminding” you to make your deposit.

Please note: The information given about ISBNs, barcodes, CIPs and legal deposits applies only to books meant for public distribution/sale. Books privately printed for, say, family members or friends are exempt from these.

Also, separate ISBNs, barcodes, CIPs and legal deposits are required by Canadian law for every different format of your book (relevant Act section here). If you have a paperback version and decide to also offer a hardcover, you can't use the ISBN, barcode, and CIP of your paperback for your hardcover and you have to submit copies of the hardcover to Library and Archives Canada. If you decide to offer en e-book version, this, too, must have its own ISBN, CIP and legal deposit (no barcode).

A Condensed Discussion of Copyright

Hello everyone!
To begin, I'll just give myself a quick introduction before we dive right in to the big mess that is copyright!
I'm Angela: nerdfighter, second year university student, and aspiring writer.  With that out of the way  ̶  let's get started.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, copyright probably doesn't sound all that interesting but it is a very large part of what writers have to deal with, particularly on the publication side of things.  So I'll try and make this as enjoyable as possible for everyone- okay? Okay.

First, I would encourage you to check out this video, which nicely sums up how copyright started, why it was put in place and why it lasts as long as it does in today's society. If anyone else has other videos that would also assist in the explanation of copyright, feel free to share by linking them in “comments”.

With the basics out of the way, it's now time to get into the deeper and more complicated side of things, as in how do we work alongside copyright?


Well, copyright isn't designed to be airtight.  It’s not like: "Touch my stuff and we'll arrest you!"  though at times it can seem as scary as that.  No, copyright does allow for what they call "fair use".
"Fair use" allows people to use the copyrighted work of others for "criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research".  Sounds easy right?  Well...

The problem comes in with the fact that there are not firm boundaries surrounding "fair use".  There are factors for deciding it:  1. The nature and character of the use; 2. The nature of the copyrighted work; 3. The amount of the work used; 4. The effect of the use on the work's value;  but no clear, consistent line between "fair use" and infringement. Stating that the work is copyrighted doesn't always work.

That's where things get really iffy.  Is that fanfiction on Tolkien's 'Lord of the Rings' legal?  Can that person use Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' for that Youtube video?
Who is allowed to make these decisions?


That's where Bill C-32 steps in (or tries to at least). The bill (now in its newer form of C-11) would criminalize any attempts to get around digital rights management software locks which are in place to prevent the spread of copyrighted work digitally. This would affect not only personal devices but the internet as well.    
Considering that this is a digital age, and a rather collaborative one at that, many people question whether or not bills such as Bill C-32 and C-11 actually infringe on the rights of everyone, and not protect the rights of artists.

Where does "fair use" come in on this?  Does the government have the right to make these decisions?  Are there any easy answers to all this?

You tell me.