What is an ISBN and do I need one?
The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a 13-digit number that uniquely identifies books and book-like products published internationally. The purpose of the ISBN is to establish and identify one title or edition of a title from one specific publisher and is unique to that edition.
ISBNs are used by publishers, booksellers – both online and high street, libraries, universities, wholesalers and distributors to identify a book to enable them to order the correct book, list the title and manage their stock controls and sales. It also provides details about who owns the ISBN and details about the type of book, the edition and format.
An ISBN is assigned to each title or product, including any backlist or forthcoming titles. Each format or binding must have a separate ISBN (i.e. hardcover, paperbound, VHS video, laserdisc, eBook format, etc). A new ISBN is required for a revised edition and cannot be reused. The ISBN is printed on the lower portion of the back cover of a book above the bar code and on the copyright page.
Here at 2QT we offer ISBNs but we would advise authors who are planning on writing more than one book or want to be registered as publishers themselves to purchase their own ISBNs directly from Neilsen UK who are the registration agency who issue ISBNs in the UK.
What about copyright and other rights to my book?
Whether you publish your book under your own publishing name or 2QT Publishing, the book will be copyrighted to the author. You may need to acknowledge any rights for example, where there are illustrations or photographs.
You will need to send complimentary copies of the book to the British National Library and the five legal deposit libraries for deposit, in line with the Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003 and the Copyright and Related Act, 2000.
If we issue you with the ISBN we also request a copy of your book for our library. We will hold electronic files of your title on your behalf for the period that you are with us. The files are held for printing purposes only. We stress that authors/writers should always keep a back-up copy of their work, both electronic and hard copy.
All other rights to your book will remain with the author. Where 2QT issue the ISBN we revoke any rights to your work.
Do you accept all genres?
We are happy to work with most genres including general fiction and non-fiction – business, self-help and outdoor books. We produce art or specialist books and poetry. 2QT reserves the right to refuse publications that are of a pornographic nature; incite racial or religious hatred; promote criminal activities or abuse of any nature.
What formats of books can you do and where do you print?
We can create most formats both the physical (printed book) and digital (eBook) whether that be paperback, hardback, booklets, CD/Audiobook inserts and disc labels and we also create digital files for eBooks. We can also do any size or dimension of book and are generally not restricted to whether your book is square or tall, landscape or portrait.
We have Print On Demand (PoD) options which allow you to keep printed copies to a minimum and greater flexibility with matching your budget.
Our traditional printers allow you even greater flexibility in how you want your book to look and can print embossed, UV Spot, Colour photos/images. We have links with printers both in the UK and outlets in Europe and China – see Our Partners page for printer links.
How long will it take?
This is a difficult question to answer as we work with our authors at a pace that suits them and it depends on what services they require. However we generally talk about months rather than days and weeks. When we begin working with the author we will always keep you updated on timings and provide you with realistic deadlines so you can plan ahead.