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Applying for an ISBN from PNM

Applying for an ISBN from PNM

Getting an ISBN from Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia (PNM) is really easy—and it’s free! Whilst many ebook distributors/aggregators provide free ISBNs and/or have their own tracking system (eg: ASIN on Amazon and GGKey on Google Play), E-Sentral does not. They require you to apply for one from PNM, as we mentioned in our post on publishing on E-Sentral.

 

What’s an ISBN?

ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number and is a unique number associated with your book. An ISBN is assigned to each edition (except reprintings) of a book, which means that your e-book, paperback and hardcover would all need a different ISBN. If you want a quick reference, pick up the nearest book, turn to the back and look at the barcode. There will be a 13-digit number (or 10, if the book is super old)—that’s the ISBN!

 

Why do I need one?

The quick and easy answer is that it’s the simplest way to track and catalogue your books. For print, it’s how the cashier can ring up your sale quickly, by scanning the barcode. Like we mentioned earlier, some online retailers have their own tracking system and do not require an ISBN, but you can also link an ISBN to books sold on those platforms if you wish to. They (meaning Amazon and Google Play) can get away with is mainly because they’re big enough.

If you’re going through a distributor or aggregator such as Smashwords or D2D, you will need an ISBN because it’s a requirement to distribute to sales channels such as Kobo, Apple, and Overdrive.

 

Do I need a different ISBN for each of my different ebook formats?

According to best practices, each sellable format of your book should have a unique ISBN. Which means that your ISBN on E-Sentral should be different from the one on Smashwords (but this would be the same for all platforms that Smashwords distributes to since they only distribute the epub version).

Confused?

Don’t worry. Just take it that each place you upload to BY YOURSELF probably needs a different ISBN. If you’re not the one uploading it personally, then the distributor or aggregator you use will kau tim that for you.

In actual practice, we apply for ONE ISBN for print (used for both IngramSpark and Amazon POD) and ONE eISBN for ebook (used on our website, Draft2Digital, and Smashwords). If you want to do this, keep this important factor in mind: all the details for your print book MUST be the same. Same size, same cover, same paper settings, same type of printing and binding.

 

Okay, so how do I get an ISBN from PNM?

Here’s the updated process for applying for an ISBN that we have been sitting on for like, what, two years now! All you need is the internet! And screenshots, urgh screenshots.

Registering an Account

First of all, register for an account at Depositori. You’ll have to activate the account (by clicking the link they send you) and then log in again. Alternatively, if you have an account with e-sentral, you can just click on “Enroll” from the publisher panel.

Depository shortcut on the bottom of the e-sentral publisher panel

Next, fill up your Maklumat Penerbit. This is the same as the earlier Borang 1 (see below); so basically questions about YOU, whether you’re applying as an individual (you’ll need your IC) or as a company (you’ll need your company forms). We don’t have any screenshots for this because we used the e-sentral shortcut and linked our fancy new online account to our pre-existing account.

Their guide says they take about 2 working days to approve this. However, we think* that you’re supposed to start applying for the first ISBN at the same time that you apply to be a publisher. At least, that’s how it worked for the paper version, and it didn’t seem like they changed that process for the online version.

*at any rate, our memory is super spotty on this, so if you find out otherwise, let us know so we can update this!

 

Applying for an ISBN

Here we are at the meat of the thing!

Here’s how you do the thing, with screenshots from when we published The Tale of the Hostage Prince! (Which shows you we’ve been sitting on this post for months). There are 4 pages in total.

TIP: You can’t actually save progress, so you need to prepare everything beforehand unless you like filling up the same form multiple times.

On your very colourful dashboard, click Perkhidmatan Mohon ISBN/e-ISBN.

depositori dashboard

Page 1

The first page is information about the book. It’s pretty much the same info you’d fill on Amazon or Google play or wherever else you sell your ebook, like:

  • Language
  • Title and subtitle, if any. If there’s a series title, you put it here too.
  • Who’s who: Besides putting the author’s name, you can add in the illustrator, editor, or whoever worked on the book.

Page 1 (first half)

  • Book details: Price, length, number of pages, format, expected publishing date, expected print run. You can change the expected publishing date later on, so that’s not a big deal – but remember that you have to submit your book within 30 days of that date. Tick if it’s fiction, and tick if you have an index.
  • If you want to have the Cataloging in Publication data (CIP/PDP), which is that thing on the copyright page saying what categories the book belongs to, you can select to apply for it here too. You’ll usually get your ISBN first, and then the CIP/PDP a few days later. This isn’t compulsory. We did it for syok purposes for the print book but didn’t bother for the ebook.
  • Synopsis: We use the back cover description here. Even if your book is in Mandarin or Tamil (or other languages), you need to have your synopsis translated to English or Malay.

Page 1 (second half)

  • The earlier screenshot is for print, so here’s an excerpt of what changes if you select digital (instead of physical) for ebook. They’ll ask you for the Platform digital, or where you’re going to sell the book. Here you can put your website or Amazon or Google Play, wherever you plan to sell the ebook. It doesn’t need to be the exact link.

Page 1 - ebook version

Page 2

Page 2 print

Page 2 is the annoying page with all the documents you need to provide. They’re the same for print & ebook, whether you want the PDP or not, so we’ll just show you the ebook version we used. The additional item that the ebook version asks for is your current draft of the book. This doesn’t need to be the final final ebook (because you need to upload that again later anyway) so even if you’re still tweaking stuff, you can do ahead and upload whatever you have.

Page 2 ebook

Okay, so the stuff we uploaded:

  1. Cover page Cpver
  2. Title page (mukasurat judul)title page
  3. Copyright page (hakcipta)copyright
  4. Synopsis/prefacesynopsis
  5. Table of Contentstoc

 

If you can prepare all this before you start the process of applying for the ISBN, that really really helps reduce stress levels.

Page 3

Okay, the hard part is done. Page 3 is mainly confirming that everything you uploaded is correct. If it’s not, you can hit the back button and correct stuff.

Page 3 (first half) Page 3 (second half)

AAANNNND

Page 4

is a lie because as you can see in Page 3, even though it says Langkah 3/4, the button actually says “Selesai.” And also we don’t have a screenshot, so it’s probably the “we’ll approve it in x days” page. Or maybe it takes you to the status page. Hmmm.

Anyway, we got the ISBN within like a day, and the PDP in maybe 3 days or so, even despite the notice that it may be slower than usual. The only downside of this system is that they don’t actually email you the stuff. You have to log in and check the status by yourself.

But the Status Permohonan page is pretty comprehensive, so it’s not a big deal.

Approval Dashboard

Several notes on this page:

  • Remember when you used to have to send in TWO CDs for ebooks? HAHAHA no. Now, you just click Muat Naik. Finish. Thank you.
  • If you need to delay or change your publishing date, for whatever reason, this is where you do it. Just click Kemaskini Tarikh and put in the new one. There’s probably a limit to how many times you can change it, or how long you can delay it, but if you hit any snags, just write in to them and they’ll help you fix it.
  • If you need to fix any information after you’ve submitted stuff (other than the date), the only way to do it is via e-mail. There’s no “fix” button. Depending on the situation, they’ll probably cancel your application so that you can reapply.
  • You still need to send them your 5 physical print copies.

And that’s our 2022 update!

If you want to check out the old paper version, it’s down below after the break.

 

 

If you’re still stuck on old methods, here’s the previous paper version

You need two things: a printer and a scanner. (Well, and a laptop, and internet access, and paper, but who’s counting?)

[2022 edit: these links probably don’t work anymore since PNM has moved over to the new depositori site. Here’s their general FAQ page if you need more info: https://depositori.pnm.gov.my/p/soalanlazim_umum]

First of all, go to this page on PNM: http://www.pnm.gov.my/index.php/pages/view/18

That’s where you’ll get all the technical info we’re skipping over and the forms you need.

 

Download and fill Borang 1

Screenshot of Borang 1

Borang 1 is the application to be a publisher.

  • If you’re applying as an individual, you’ll need to scan your IC for them.
  • If you’ve opened a company/sole proprietorship, you’ll need to scan your Borang D plus the Pemilik printout from SSM that shows you are the owner.

The most difficult questions to answer (hah) are these:

Screenshot of Borang 1, section 2

Don’t worry. You can totally guess for #3. It’s “expectation”, after all.

 

Next, download and fill Borang 2

Screenshot of Borang 2Borang 2 is the actual application for the ISBN. For this one, you need to state the print shop (if you’re printing the book) or the website (if it’s an ebook).

You’ll need to send them the copyright page and the cover of the book with your form.

For first-time applicants, leave the Publisher Identity section blank—the officer processing your form will fill it up for you. If you’ve applied before, you’ll need to fill this up based on the Publisher ID PNM gave you on your first application.

Screenshot of Borang 2, section B

If you’re printing your book, you’ll need to add in the printer’s name. If you’re publishing it as an ebook, you fill in the website, e.g. E-Sentral.com.my, Amazon.com, etc.

You’ll need to provide an estimated publishing date. Please do yourself a favour and don’t put it too soon—just in case anything goes wrong. You can also just fill in the month you target to publish it, instead of an exact date. Why? Because you have to submit your published book/ebook within 30 days of that date… and if something goes wrong and it’s terribly delayed, you can be fined up to RM3K!

 

Email everything to PNM

Once you have everything ready, email them to isbn@pnm.gov.my.

Well, you can go old-school and fax it over, but we’re guessing most of you don’t have a fax machine anymore (we don’t!). OR if you live near to the library, you can also walk/drive over and hand deliver your forms.

And you’re done!

 

Other things to note:

  • Only apply for a publisher ID and your ISBN when you’re almost ready to publish your book. We tried registering as a publisher without registering for any ISBNs yet (because we hadn’t yet compiled the info) but the officer asked us for the Borang 2 at the same time in order to process the Borang 1.
  • After the first application and registration as a publisher, you only need to submit Borang 2 for subsequent ISBN applications.
  • Processing usually takes about 3 – 5 working days.
  • Once you have your ISBN, you can proceed to upload to E-Sentral or print your books!
  • Remember that you’ll have to submit 5 copies of your print book or 2 CDs of your e-book to PNM within 30 days of publication. (Yes, CDs. THAT IS CORRECT.)

Let us know if you have more questions about applying for an ISBN with PNM!

85 comments

  1. Yuki says:

    Hi, thanks for the article. I have a few questions I hope you can help me answer.
    1) Does PNM approve or disapprove (can they even do that?) issuing an ISBN based on the content of the book?
    2) Is this procedure the same if the ebook has already been published on Amazon, and you are retroactively getting an ISBN for paperbacks?
    3) Finally, how is this process different when you’re using a pen name and prefer to keep your real name confidential. Is there a database on PNM where someone can look you up and associate your pen name with your real name?
    Thanks again!

    • admin says:

      Hi Yuki!

      1) As far as I know, they don’t approve or disapprove the issuance of the ISBN because all they ask for is the cover and the copyright page (i.e. they don’t look through the contents before publication). However, you are required to submit 5 physical copies (or if e-book, 2 cds) to them, so I suppose that’s where they could review it and issue a ban, if they wanted to, but that’s after the fact.
      2) The procedure is the same. If you’re only applying for ISBN for the paperback, you’re not obliged to give them your Amazon links 🙂
      3) In Borang 1 when you register as a publisher, you have to provide your IC (if you’re applying under your own name) or your company registration documents (if under your company). When you fill up Borang 2, you provide your publisher number/details but you can fill up whatever author name you like in the book details. I assume all this would then be in a database in PNM… so technically PNM staff could look you up by your publisher ID and associate that. I don’t work there, though, so I don’t know how secure their database is!

  2. Annie says:

    Dear Admin,
    Thank you for this article about steps on how to apply for an ISBN number in Malaysia. I am co-authoring a book with another author and intend to publish it on my own. But I encountered a problem in trying to apply an ISBN number for my book from PNM. The feedback that I have received from PNM is that I need to apply for an ISBN number under a company. Do you think you can help shed some light on how to go about applying for an ISBN number with dual authorship like my case ? Thank you for your kind attention and assistance. Regards, Annie

    • admin says:

      Hi Annie!
      To apply for the ISBN from PNM, you need to register as a publisher under your IC or under a company name. As there are two of you, it would be quite impossible to register both your names as publisher, which is probably why PNM suggests applying under a company. To set up a partnership, you just need to register with SSM for RM60 per year.
      Alternatively, you can draw up a contract/agreement with your co-author where one of you agrees to be the publisher. This means that one of your names, eg, Annie, will appear as the publisher, whilst the book is authored by Annie + Co-author. The one who registers as the publisher would then be the one legally responsible for all business/publishing-related matters, including any legal matters relating to the book. It would be best to set down in the agreement how monies and costs, and other legal responsibilities will be split between the two of you, just in case something crops up in the future. As this goes into business matters, it’s best to seek legal & business advice.
      All the best!
      anna

  3. Tracy says:

    Hi Admin,

    I have a few questions about the ISBN code:
    1. If i want to publish my ebook in more than one website, for example Kindle and Kobo, do I need to apply for two ISBN or using the same ISBN number?
    2. Is there any fees and charges when applying for ISBN number? If yes, how much money do I need to prepare for it?
    3. After getting the ISBN, can i still edit some part of the content of the book?
    I am planning to publish my first e-book and I need more information about the ISBN.
    Thanks admin.

    • admin says:

      Hi Tracy!

      1. If you’re uploading them separately, you should apply for two ISBNs as they are considered different publications.
      2. If you’re applying through PNM, it’s free. You’ll only need to budget costs for burning 2 CDs per book and postage (unless you plan to hand deliver)
      3. Yes you can! You have 30 days after getting the ISBN to publish the book and send the copies to PNM.

      Hope this helps and all the best with your ebook!

    • Jimmy says:

      Hi,
      I would want to ask,
      Copyright page and books covers have to send in along with Borang 1 and 2?
      But I have not gotten ISBN digit yet, that means my copyright page will not have ISBN digit, which means I couldn’t send in my copyright page right?
      So, do I receive ISBN first by sending in Borang 1 and 2, then only send in copyright page?

      Thanks!

      • admin says:

        Hi Jimmy,

        Yes, you need to send in copyright page and book cover with your Borang 1 & 2. You can take a screenshot of the relevant page from your working file.
        They just want to match the copyright information to your Borang, so you can leave a line/space to fill in the ISBN number later.

  4. Travis Fong says:

    Dear admin,
    Thank you for your advise and insight in the article. I wanted to ask if having an ISBN means that my work is automatically copyrighted? Would have have to go somewhere else to legally protect my intellectual property? As I understand, ISBN is just a unique identifier for the book and edition. I have not seen anything online regarding the need to copyright so i’m a bit confused. Thank you in advance!

    • admin says:

      Hi Travis,

      You’re right–the ISBN is just a unique identifier for the book and edition. It has nothing to do with copyright, though it can help provide evidence on when the ISBN was issued or the book was published.

      Your work is automatically copyrighted to you once it is in tangible form, eg you type it out or write it down. You don’t technically need to do anything extra to exert your copyright, especially with computers where you can trace exactly when you created the file and started writing it!

      If you are worried, you can get a Statutory Declaration to register your copyright, though this is not compulsory/necessary.

      Hope this helps!

  5. Charles says:

    Dear Admin,

    Really thanks to your useful information.

    The above you did mention to email everything (scanned documents) to PNM. I guess this is very easy and it’s free of charge.

    May I know how does PNM reply to us and come back to us with the assigned ISBN number and barcode? They will use email or send hardcopies to us ?

    Thank you for your kind advice.

    Best regards.

    Charles

  6. Ming says:

    Hello,
    May I ask if a foreigner can register/apply for an ISBN and e-ISBN in Malaysia? And if so, is the procedure the same as you have outlined above?
    Thanks in advance.

  7. Jasveena says:

    Hey hi Anna,

    I’m Jasveena, from the Malaysian Writer’s Community. I saw that someone had asked about getting an ISBN for a book that has multiple authors. I think this would indirectly mean that I have to register under a company name. I will do it under my company name.

    I have two questions. We’re very close to launching right now, which is on the 4th of May 2019. The launching will be inaugurated by the Minister of Education. I understand that it takes about 3-5 days to get the code back from PNM. I was wondering if we could print about 200 copies without ISBN, just for the launch purpose. Is this legal?

    For the copyright page, do we just use an existing copyright page from books or come up with our own copyright page? Does this involve getting a lawyer to get a copyright page?

    • admin says:

      Sorry this is a little late–
      Yes, you should apply for ISBN under your company name.
      An ISBN isn’t technically a legal requirement, so you could do that. However, most bookshops won’t take books without an ISBN so you won’t be able to sell it elsewhere after the launch.
      You can use the existing copyright page from other books as a template and amend it to the details of your book. No lawyers needed.

  8. wong thiam boon says:

    Hi Admin,
    I am applyinf for a ISBN number for my book. In Form B2 – second page top section, what is Penerbit and ID Penerbit and do we need to fill them in ?

    • admin says:

      Hi Thiam Boon,
      Penerbit is the publisher of the book. An ID is provided by PNM when you first register using Form B1. If this is the first time you’re applying for an ISBN, you need to fill up both B1 and B2. In B2, fill in the same name/company you’re using in B1 and leave the ID blank. PNM will fill up the ID for you once they’ve assigned it.
      If you’ve published before, you should have been given an Identity Penerbit (formatted ISBN xxx-xxx-xxxxx). You should then fill in the same Publisher name and this ID.

  9. Boon Kiat says:

    Thanks for the article!

    I have two questions. What should I do to protect myself from being sued for copyright infringement if somehow the contents of some of the books I’m about to write accidentally appear to be identical to the ones found in other books? Do I have to do a detailed research of all books similar to my subject content and write a written permission if necessary?
    Also, if I’m planning to register for an ISBN under a company, will a LLP do, or does it have to be a sole proprietorship?

    • admin says:

      Hi Boon Kiat,
      If you are registering under a company, an LLP will do.
      Unfortunately, I can’t give you any advice on copyright infringement–if you do know of any books that are similar to yours, you could get in contact with those them to discuss it.

  10. reen says:

    Dear Admin,
    Thanks for this info, really helpful. In that form, it stated KDN permit, do we need to get KDN permit or we could just use SSM registration?

  11. SW Lee says:

    I wish to self publish and sell my e-book on my own social media accounts and across a few platforms like Mudah, Carousell etc . Do I need to apply for an ISBN ? By the way, can I sell the e-book in eSentral too at the same time selling on other platforms as mentioned earlier? Thanks !

  12. Ani says:

    Hello! I’m just wondering if I can submit the 5 copies to PNM by hand? Straight to the library? Is there anything I need to do or say to them if I give them by hand? Appreciate your reply!

    • admin says:

      Sure, why not? I haven’t done it before, but you’ll probably need to head to the right department (the one receiving books) and look for the person in charge. If you find out, let us know here!

      • Ani says:

        Hey, just want to share to you that the 5 copies can be send out straight to the PNM or specifically Kaunter Pos Pengawal 1 at Anjung Bestari, PNM! 🙂

        • Ha ChanByeol says:

          Hi. Thank you so much for this. It literally helped me out. I just sent mine by hand as well. Good to know there’s people doing the same

  13. Erik says:

    Dear Admin,

    I am planning to apply ISBN for my Chinese eBook. Do I need to translate my book cover, copyright, the table of content, summary etc into Bahasa or English when submitting with B1 and B2 form?

  14. Erik says:

    Hello, I am planning to publish my mandarin eBook and is wondering if I need to apply B1 and B2 form by translating the document (book cover, title, table of content, summary, etc) into Bahasa or English? Thanks a lot.

  15. Aria says:

    Hi, thank you for the information. You have provided a very detail and helpful idea of getting myself an ISBN.
    So I’ve receive the my e-ISBN. The date of my publication date is written as “5th May 2020” in the form , but for some reason, I have to postpone the publication date until November. Does it matter if I only send them the CDs after the publication is done?

    • admin says:

      You should definitely only send them the CDs after publication as the version you send them should be the final one uploaded (in case you make changes in between). You may need to check in with PNM to let them know that your publication date has been postponed in case they still think it’s on 5 May as per the form.

  16. ML says:

    Hi,

    Sorry this may be a silly question but I’m a little confused.

    On Borang 1, in Section C Acknowledgement,

    What does the designation refer to? Is it to my role as the Publisher, or my real job that I do for a living?

  17. Connie says:

    Hi admin,
    Thank you for all the useful information!
    I would like to ask few questions:
    1. In Borang 1, Section B no.4, ‘Number of title in printing process’, does this mean the number of copies that I plan to print at that moment?
    2. What is the meaning of this under the guidelines of Borang 2: ‘If you’re printing your book, you’ll need to add in the printer’s name.’ Because I couldn’t find where to fill up the printer’s name.

    Thank you so much!

    • admin says:

      Hi Connie,
      1. “Title” refers to how many different books you are preparing to publish, not the number of copies.
      2. On the left column, after you fill in your details, there’s a line for “Nama Pencetak” — that’s the printer’s name; and then after that “Laman Web Penerbitan” — that’s for where you plan to upload your ebook for sales.

  18. SKT says:

    DEAR ADMIN,
    I wish to publish some children’s books as public domain. The public domain book cannot be copyrighted. Thus, may I know is it alright to write such public domain statement in the copyright section of PNM forms?

    Many thanks.
    May you be well and happy always!

  19. Shirley says:

    Thanks for all the detail information. Very very useful guide here. I am applying the ISBN for the COMIC book.
    May I ask, do you send all the attachment that requested in 1 PDF or in each individual JPG?
    Do you send some inside of the book as well?

    • admin says:

      Hi Shirley,
      I usually try to send it in a PDF, but I’ve also sent it in individual files before, so it shouldn’t be a problem. I don’t send any extra material.

  20. James Ku says:

    Thank you for the very helpful information on applying for ISBN.

    I wish to ask regarding Borang 1 part B, Q. 1 & 2 & 4, does this refer to past publications or does it include the one for which I’m currently applying for ISBN ?

    Hope you can guide me on this.

    Thanks.

  21. Yanna says:

    Hi,

    1. In PNM website it states that i need to send “Cetakan skrin kulit hadapan berserta URL” for eISBN. How to do this since i don’t have personal website?

    2. In Borang B2, is Nama Penerbit and website URL the same for eBook?

    Thanx a lot

    • admin says:

      Hi Yanna!
      If you’ve stated a third party side like e-sentral as where you’re going to publish the ebook, they usually don’t ask for the screenshot with the URL. I’ve submitted with just the cover and they’ve accepted it.
      In borang B2, nama penerbit would be the publisher, i.e. the name you filled up for B1. the website URL is where you’re going to sell the ebook, eg. e-sentral, amazon, google play.
      Technically though, PNM isn’t responding to paper applications anymore. They’ll ask you to register online here: https://depositori.pnm.gov.my/

      (I’ll update this post one day!!)

  22. Hilary Choy says:

    Hi Admin,

    I would like to do self publishing of children’s book. It would be one series with 6 titles (as in 6 little books kept inside a kit).

    I would like to ask the following questions:
    1) should I apply ISBN for distinctively for these 6 books and another ISBN for this 1 box to keep these books?

    2) referring to the the checklist of checking kelayakan to apply ISBN (under buku kanak-kanak category), is it really has to be more than 15 pages? Does the requirements more than 15 pages including front cover and back cover?

    3. I’m going to publish Children’s book (my content is more like a educational pictorial books, full of pictures and some wordings only) does not have “Muka surat isi kandungan”, “muka surat judul” and “prakata / pendahuluan”. Can I submit ISBN application without these 3 documents?

    Thanks for your advise Admin.

    • admin says:

      Hi Hilary,

      1) Each book should have its own ISBN. If you’re just grouping these books together in a box to sell as a bundle, then you don’t need another ISBN for the box. However, if you’re printing them together as an omnibus edition, then you should have a separate ISBN for that edition.
      2) This would probably be something you’d need to check directly with PNM as we haven’t published such children’s books before!
      3) Yes, we’ve submitted books without contents page & foreword before. The muka surat judul is just the inside cover page with the title.

      Hope this helps!

  23. David Anthony says:

    Dear Admin,
    I am going to publish with IngramSpark in Print and ePub. They will distribute to Amazon, Apple, Kobo and Barnes & Noble. They will do print-on-demand. I do not have the name of the printer.
    To apply for ISBN locally do I have to fill in both the forms? Will a scan of my IC be sufficient?
    Thanks

  24. KC says:

    Dear Admin,

    I am self publishing my own book and need some advise.

    1. I would like to use my Stage Name for my publication rather than my real name, is this allowed ?

    2. How does the copyright go if only my stage name is used on the publication instead of my name ?

    3. I intend to publish this under a company that I am working with. So to whom shall the copyright be ?

    4. For the 5 copies, must it be the readily printed book from the publishers or is it just a self printed copy with binding ? Must it be full colored if the original book has colored pages ?

    5. When submitting the application, do I have to send the full book or only the cover and copyright page ?

    6. Lastly, do I attach the bar code to the book when I send it to the publishers ?

    Thank you.

    • admin says:

      1. Yes, you can. It’s called a Pen Name / Pseudonym in the writing world.
      2. The copyright would still remain with you as the author. The inside copyright page can show either your pen name or your real name, but when applying for ISBN, your real name should be included to prove that it’s you.
      3. The company you are working with would only have the rights to publish & sell the book for [x] number of years/print runs, they do not own the copyright. Please make sure this is stated in your contract with them.
      4. The 5 copies sent must be the FINAL book as it will be for sale.
      5. For print books, they only ask for the cover, copyright page, and contents page during application. If it’s an ebook, they also ask for the current draft ebook.
      6. Yes. Once your ISBN is approved, PNM will send you the barcode. You should get your cover designer to add that to your book cover. Some publishers are able to add it on for you, so you can also ask if that’s possible.

  25. Missy says:

    Hi there,
    I’m trying to apply for ISBN, and I notice they require an address for the publisher in the Copyright page.
    Can I omit that in my actual e-book/paperback?
    I’m using a pen name and really don’t want to include my address to maintain my privacy.

  26. Missy says:

    Thanks for the quick response.
    This is my dilemma as I don’t wish to be known at all (where I’m from).
    Also, I’m entering the details on Amazon, they require an imprint.
    Any idea whether they’ll accept your pen name as the imprint?
    Because PNM seems to have listed my real name as the publisher…

    • admin says:

      Amazon will match the ISBN with the publisher on record. So…if PNM has listed your real name as the publisher, Amazon will want to match that before it approves the listing. To get around that you may need to register as a sole proprietor with a business name and use that business name as the publisher instead of registering as an individual with your IC.
      Though…Amazon does provide free ISBNs for print and they don’t require an ISBN for their ebooks. If privacy is an issue for you, you could opt for that.

  27. Saya says:

    Dear Admin,

    Thank you for this blog, it’s very helpful. Regarding the registering for account part, it’s the same as your Borang 1. You fill in the necessary (IC is a must) and it will take some time for them to approve your account. There’s a part at the bottom that asked if you have ever published a book before, and if you check yes, you fill in the last book ISBN that you have published. For me, I was lucky that they took 1 working day to approve my account.
    On a brighter note, thank goodness, no more burning 2 CDs for eBooks.

  28. Bummer says:

    I ran into a road block with the National Library, where they rejected by application because I am a dependent (on spouse visa). They do not allow publishing for foreigners. That was a real blow as I wanted to go with self publishing.

    • admin says:

      Oof, yea, that’s true. Have you tried registering a partnership/company with your spouse? That would let you create the account and publish under the company name. Author/Copyright name would still be yours.

      Alternatively, many self-publishing platforms like Amazon & Draft2Digital offer free ISBNs; and some do not require it altogether unless it’s a print book. Depending on where you come from, you could also check out how your country issues ISBNs and get it from there.

  29. sarah says:

    hi… we are a new publisher… do we need to go perputakaan Negra to apply book ISBN for the first time, or can just submit through online?

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