What Is an ISBN?
There are an immeasurable amount of books on the market. While each is different, it can be hard to tell apart books with similar titles or subjects. The most efficient way to tell different books apart from one another is the International Standard Book Number (ISBN). This allows booksellers, libraries, and any other interested people or businesses to identify the book. Anyone can search your book’s ISBN and find everything they need to know about your book.
The ISBN is the unique numerical identification number assigned to all books. This number is assigned to authors or publishers based on their home country. Understanding the role of ISBNs is crucial to being successful in the publishing industry.
What Does an ISBN Look Like?
If you grab a book off your shelf, you can usually find the ISBN on the back cover. Often, the ISBN will be accompanied by a barcode and located right above it. Please note, an ISBN is not the same thing as a barcode number, they just have a similar purpose. Currently, ISBNs consist of 13 digits — it used to be 10 until 2007, when it was raised to meet demand.
The first three digits are the prefix of the number. This number is either 978 or 979. The prefix accounts for the three digits added to ISBNs in 2007. 978 is the prefix used for the older, shorter 10-digit codes, while 979 was added for the added inventory.
Next, is the registration group of the book. This number is based on the country and language of the book’s origin. This number can be anywhere from one to five digits, and some countries have multiple. For example, the registration group for the United States is either 1 or 0. Examples of groups of various lengths are Denmark (87), Peru at (612 or 9972), and Bhutan (99936 or 99980).
The third part of an ISBN is the registrant element. These digits represent the specific publisher or imprint releasing the book. This can be anywhere from one to seven digits to identify the entity. Cloverly’s registrant code is 89743.
The next part is the publication element. These digits identify the book itself, including the edition and specific publication. This can be up to six digits. The length of each of these elements is affected by the size of the publisher and their catalog.
The final part is the check digit. This is the final one digit of the ISBN and acts as a safeguard to make sure the rest of the ISBN is correct. There is a mathematic equation to figure this number out, but that is not something authors have to worry about.
Putting all these sections together creates a 13-digit ISBN that identifies your individual book.
How to Get an ISBN?
Most publishers, including Cloverly, take care of getting an ISBN for your book. However, self-publishers are also able to get their own ISBN for their book. The Library of Congress, which catalogs books, uses ISBNs in their work, but they do not directly assign ISBNs. That service is outsourced to Bowker Publishing Services. Bowker sells ISBNs for individual books, as well as packages of larger quantities. This is the official ISBN agency for the United States, but each country has their own provider.
As a publisher, Cloverly receives a block of ISBN from Bowker that we assign to our newly published books. We handle the entire process, making sure your biggest focus should be on making your book of your dreams. Each version of a book — hardcover, paperback, eBook, audiobook — requires a unique ISBN. Cloverly handles all of it.
