July 18, 2007

POD Secrets Revealed: Upselling Authors On Inflated Copyright And LCCN Registration Fees By Angela Hoy
printable version

This week, we're going to talk about Copyright and LCCN registration for your self-published book.

It's always a good idea to register your copyright because you may have to pursue an infringer some day. It's also a good idea to obtain a Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN) for your book. When registering, you need to send each entity a copy of your book.

COPYRIGHT FEE INFLATION

If you want to register a copyright for your book, you can do so yourself for only $45. Yes, that's right. That's all the government charges. And, you can download the forms instantly from this page: http://www.copyright.gov/forms/

It's that simple.

Would it surprise you to know that some POD publishers charge up to five times that amount to do it for you? Yes, you read that right.

For example, xLibris.com will be happy to register your copyright for you...for a whopping $249! Whoa!!!

But, at AuthorHouse, you can get a deal (ha ha) by only paying $170. That's almost four times the actual registration fee.

LCCN - TURNING A FREE GOVERNMENT SERVICE INTO A PROFIT CENTER

The government will be very happy to give you a Preassigned Control Number (PCN) before your book is published, or a Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN) after your book is published, at no charge! Isn't that nice of them?

But, xLibris.com will charge you $99 if you want them to do it.

AuthorHouse will charge you $75.

POD publishers who charge these types of inflated fees may claim it's expensive to send a copy of your book to the government (trust me - they're getting the book cheaper than you do!) and that it takes a long time to complete the forms (it doesn't).

They may also claim you can't register your own book because they are the "publisher." This is not true. If they don't take rights to your book (the outfits above don't), you are your own publisher and you can register for your own copyright and LCCN, even if you're using one of their ISBNs.

Next week, we'll talk about how much some POD publishers are inflating actual shipping charges. Think you know how much you're going to be paying for copies of your own book? Think again! You won't believe it...