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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Indie

Indie

What Goes on the Copyright Page?

By Steve Laubeon August 9, 2021
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I have an odd habit born of being in this industry for four decades. Whenever I pick up a physical book, I look at the front cover, back cover, and then the copyright page. I know, it’s a rather nerdy thing to do; but you would be surprised what information can be found there and what it means.

The copyright page is placed after the title page and should always be on the left-hand side (called the verso page). Only a couple of things are critical to be included, but much more information is usually provided, including:

  • Copyright notice and year of publication [an absolute must]
  • Publisher name and address
  • ISBN [a must if you plan to sell to the general public outside an entity like Amazon]
  • Rights
  • Permissions, if needed
  • Disclaimer, if needed
  • Design, production, and illustration credits, if needed
  • Country in which the book was printed

Copyright notice and year of publication

I suggest you start with the title of the book. It is then followed on the next line by the actual copyright notice.

This includes the copyright symbol ©, the year the book is published, and the person or entity who holds the copyright. For example:

The Best Book Ever Written in All Time
Copyright © 2021 by Steve Laube

If the copyright is held by a corporate entity, then that name is used instead of the author name.
Copyright © 2021 by The Steve Laube Agency, LLC

If you use a pen name, consider who actually owns the copyright. A pen name is not a real person, so the name used to register the copyright is what should match here. If you are protecting your identity with a pen name, consider creating a business entity LLC or INC and assign the copyright to that entity.

Publisher name and address

This identifies the publisher. If the publisher is an imprint of a larger corporation, this information can appear like this:

Published by Orbit, an imprint of The Hachette Book Group [address].

ISBN

This is the 13-digit International Standard Book Number that must be included. It absolutely must match the number you have on the bar code on the back of the book. (Unfortunately, an all-too-common error.) If you indie publish and do not sell outside the Amazon sales channel, this is not necessary (because Amazon issues their own ASIN number). But if you plan to sell to libraries, bookstores, or any company outside Amazon, you’ll need an ISBN.

I wrote a lengthy article about the ISBN a few years ago. Please read it to understand its importance.

Rights

This is where the publisher or author declares the rights reserved for this particular book. This typically will read like this:

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, digitally stored, or transmitted in any form without written permission from [the Publisher name].

If there are exceptions to the above, they will be stated here.

Permissions

If you quote from a Bible translation, its rights and permissions language should appear here. The correct terminology is easily found on the website for that particular translation. Each translation used should appear here. If you use the King James Version, you do not need to write anything more than “All Bible quotations within are from the King James Version.” Why? Because the KJV is in the public domain (except in England where the Crown holds the copyright).

If you have used a quotation (like song lyrics) where you’ve received permission, list it here. If there are a lot of them, list them on a page in the back of the book in a special section.

Disclaimer

Many novels have language here along the lines of: “This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.”

Memoirs will occasionally have a disclaimer along the lines of: “Some names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of the people involved.”

Please be very careful here. Discuss your protections with an intellectual property attorney or your publisher.

Some publishers will even add their own disclaimer on this page. Example: “The story, the experiences, and the words are the author’s alone, not those of XYZ Books.”

Design, production, or illustration credits

While you can add their names in the acknowledgments and should (don’t forget your agent!), it is a nice thing to put those details here. For example:

Cover design by Fabulous Designer Inc., www.fabdesign.com
Typesetting and Interior Design by Even More Fabulous Designer, LLC, www.evenmorefabdesign.com

Country where printed

For example:
Printed in the United States of America.

However, if a book is published in the USA and no notification is posted here, it is assumed it was printed in the USA (if you are selling your book in the USA).

But, if a book is printed outside the USA and shipped into the US to be sold there, it should have the country of origin. For example:

Printed in Italy.

This statement helps the customs inspector. Believe it or not, there are stories where the country notification was not listed on the copyright page, so customs officials impounded the shipment, the publisher was fined, and the books were not released unless a sticker was applied to each copyright page, by hand, to reveal the printer’s country of origin.

It’s rare; but when you hear a story like that, you should pay attention.

More info!

There are other things occasionally added to the copyright page. These can include publisher trademark logos, environmental notices, ordering information, literary agency involved with the project, websites for authors and publishers, Library of Congress card catalog info (aka Cataloging-in-Publication notice), etc.

Why do I look at this page?

Here are a few things that I discover about the business of your book and even the content of your book when looking at the copyright page:

  • I can quickly determine when the book was published. This is crucial if the book is on a topic that needs very current information to be relevant to the discussion but was published 25 years ago. It also helps to figure out the order in which I want to read a series of novels if the books are not numbered as books 1, 2, and 3.
  • I can see if the author used a particular Bible translation. It is here where I often discover a book is self-published because they render the information incorrectly. I’ve seen authors cite the name of their study Bible as if that were a translation.
  • I may recognize the designer. (Usually a good thing.)
  • If the literary agency is named, I particularly find that fascinating.
  • If the publisher’s name is new to me, I may discover it is a new imprint of a larger-known publisher.

Therefore, if you indie publish, make sure you pay attention to the details on this page. They can help set you apart as more professional if done correctly, according to industry standards. If you are published traditionally, make sure to read this page carefully in your galley to make sure they have everything correct.

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Category: Book Business, Common Questoins, Copyright Issues, Indie, Publishing A-Z

Where Do Your Readers Come From?

By Guest Bloggeron May 24, 2021
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Today’s guest writer is Carla Laureano. She is a two-time RITA® award-winning author of over a dozen books, spanning the genres of contemporary romance and Celtic fantasy. A graduate of Pepperdine University, she worked in sales and marketing for more than a decade before leaving corporate life behind to write full-time. She currently lives in Denver, Colorado, with her husband, two sons, …

Read moreWhere Do Your Readers Come From?
Category: Book Review, Book Sales, Branding, Indie, Marketing, Self-Publishing, The Writing Life

What Is the Best Way to Submit My Self-Published Book?

By Steve Laubeon May 18, 2020
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Since it has become so easy to self-publish, many authors are creating their own books, both in ebook and print form. Later those authors are not quite sure what to do if/when they want to approach an agent. Or pitch to an editor at a conference. Should they just send a copy of the book with a letter? Or should they create a proposal? Or do both? Is there truly a right way and a wrong way? And if …

Read moreWhat Is the Best Way to Submit My Self-Published Book?
Category: Book Proposals, Indie, Self-PublishingTag: book proposals, Get Published, Self-Publishing

7 Good Reasons to Self-Publish

By Bob Hostetleron February 21, 2018
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I have mentioned before on this site (here and, most recently, here) that aspiring writers often shoot their publishing futures in the foot, so to speak, by self-publishing a book (or books). I won’t repeat myself again (see what I did there?). Instead, I will talk briefly about the good reasons to self-publish. There are many bad reasons to do so, of course (because no agents or editors seem to …

Read more7 Good Reasons to Self-Publish
Category: Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life

Three Things I’ve Learned as an Agent

By Bob Hostetleron January 10, 2018
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Just over six months ago, I became a literary agent with the Steve Laube Agency. Hoo boy. It has been some ride.  Lots o’ fun, lots o’ work, and lots o’ learning. So I thought I’d take a few minutes (it’s all I have before the boss calls and starts yelling at me again) to reflect on what I’ve learned in that short period of time. It’s not an easy task, considering I already knew pretty much …

Read moreThree Things I’ve Learned as an Agent
Category: Agency, Agents, Book Business, Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agency, Agents

Test Marketing Books

By Dan Balowon May 23, 2017
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In the traditional book-publishing world, insiders often refer to the initial release of a book from a new author as a marketing test…more R&D than launching and promoting a known product. The self-publishing process can function in a similar role of market testing for a first time author. You won’t know for certain how it will be received, but it is worth the effort to try. Most authors …

Read moreTest Marketing Books
Category: Book Business, Indie, Marketing, Self-Publishing, The Publishing LifeTag: Indie, Marketing, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life

At What Point Would an Agent be Interested in an Indie Author?

By Steve Laubeon April 10, 2017
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I am an indie author. I’ve written several novels, some of which have sold well and all of which have *at least* 4.7 stars. Is there a point at which an agent would want to talk to someone like me? When/why might I consider getting an agent? Thanks to Heather for the question! A number of factors play a role in answering this question. (Are you getting tired of my “it depends” answer to all your …

Read moreAt What Point Would an Agent be Interested in an Indie Author?
Category: Agents, Book Proposals, Indie, Pitching, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, Indie

Writers Learn to Wait

By Steve Laubeon December 5, 2016
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Ours is a process industry. Good publishing takes time. Unfortunately time is another word for "waiting." No one really likes to wait for anything. Our instant society (everything from Twitter to a drive-thru burger) is training us to want things to happen faster. Awhile ago I wrote about how long it takes to get published which gave an honest appraisal of the time involved. Below are some of the …

Read moreWriters Learn to Wait
Category: Book Business, Contracts, Get Published, Indie, Marketing, Steve, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, Book Business, Contracts, Editors, Get Published, Marketing, Traditional Publishing

Zip It Mr. Galilei

By Dan Balowon February 16, 2016
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Did you ever tell someone, “Don’t feel that way” and not get the best reaction? In the same vein is “Don’t be that way.” Honestly, I could never figure that one out. Feels like a philosophical conundrum of the highest order. Telling someone not to be. Four hundred years ago this week in 1616, Cardinal Bellarmine, representing the Catholic Church, issued an order to astronomer Galileo Galilei that …

Read moreZip It Mr. Galilei
Category: Book Business, Branding, Contracts, Economics, Get Published, Humor, Indie, Marketing, The Publishing LifeTag: Book Business, The Publishing Life

The Anatomy of the Publishing Cycle

By Steve Laubeon March 23, 2015
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If you ask an editor or an agent “What’s hot right now?” you are too late with the question. The nature of the publishing business is that what you see selling today are books that were conceived, written, published, and marketed over the past couple years or more. That is why we, on this side of the table, avoid making pronouncements on current trends. In some ways the agent and the acquisitions …

Read moreThe Anatomy of the Publishing Cycle
Category: Book Business, Branding, Career, Creativity, Indie, Marketing, TrendsTag: publishing, The Publishing Life, Trends
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