As a self-published author, there is one page that you should work out thoroughly and come back to it until it is perfect. That is the copyright page. If you don’t get it right on this page, you could end up losing your hard-earned money and probably getting sued in the bargain. This is the page that establishes your rights and those of different parties mentioned or touching the book in one way or another. This applies for both hard paper books and eBooks. The following are the elements that should not miss in the copyright page.
1. Copyright notice
This shows the owner of the works and the year in which the works became the author’s. In the case that the works are a later edition, all reprinting years should be shown starting with the current. The copyright should be obtained from where the author lives and works.
2. Reservation of rights
This shows the rights as applied to the reproduction of the work. Usually, the author reserves all the rights to issue permission for any reproductions.
3. ISBN
The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) marks your book such that it is identifiable from anywhere in the world.
4. Place of publishing
The place of publishing is indicated including the different branches of the publisher
5. Disclaimer
For works of fiction, the disclaimer disowns any coincidences to people in real life which prevents lawsuits.
6. Permissions for works cited
This gives notice of any works from other published books, videos, photos or art. It is crucial to mention all works that are not originally by the author no matter how small in detail. These permissions should be backed up in real-life by the owners of those works. If there are too many permissions, that can have a separate page.
7. Credits
This is the section acknowledging those involved in producing the book including the designer of the cover/jacket, photographers and artists. Some authors include the proofreader, indexer, and printer. It should be noted that there is an acknowledgement page that mentions different people who contributed to the body of knowledge in the book and assisted the author in one way or another when working on the book i.e. experts, family, friends, etc.
8. Country and printing number
If the book is intended for international distribution, this information is used for customs purposes. The printing number shows the editions and the year of printing.
9. Publisher name
The name of the publisher and contact number are shown here. If it is a self-published book, the author’s details will suffice
Website and social media details for readers to visit and discover more on the author and other books.