Cover design, ISBNs
Covers, jackets and blurbs
If you decide to have a paperback book you will need a cover, and a jacket will be needed for a hardback. In either case, we can create an original design for you, from the very simple and economical, to the most complex and lavish. Again, we will advise you as to the best options for you and what the costs will be so that you can make an informed choice.
Visit our examples page to look at some of the covers we have designed.
We don’t use templates and each cover/jacket is individually created to look very attractive, have impact, and convey the subject matter of the book.
Both covers and jackets need a ‘blurb’, or short summary of the book, written in a way that is intended to spark interest in it. We usually ask the author to provide the summary and then if required we can ‘jazz it up’ – although the author has the final say on exactly how the blurb is worded.
ISBNs
You don’t have to have an ISBN by law and only need one if the books will be sold through shops, online etc, as all retail outlets will need an ISBN and barcode. If you don’t have these, retailers cannot accept the books for sale.
You can either use one of the Scotforth Books ISBNs or buy your own and publish under a name you can choose (your own imprint). We can advise you as to best option for you, which will depend on your specific requirements. It is easy to buy your own ISBN and we can give you all the information you need to do this yourself, or we can arrange it all for you.
Once you have decided on the publisher (Scotforth or your own imprint), an ISBN can be allocated and all the relevant authorities can be notified of the details of the book, including title, author, price, publisher, binding, number of pages, blurb and how it can be obtained. Again we can help you with this.
Barcodes
These are created using the ISBN and like barcodes on any product they are used to identify it, sell it through tills, monitor stock levels and re-order. Because all retailers have computerised systems which depend on barcodes, any product which is to be sold via them, including books, must have one. We can generate barcodes and place them in the appropriate place on covers and jackets.