Protect your work with a Copyright Page
Let’s get started and protect your hard work with a copyright page. The copyright page is where the publisher places all the legal notices and information related to a book. If you are self-publishing, you will need to create a copyright page yourself. The most crucial element of the copyright page is the copyright notice itself. This notice protects your work from unauthorized use by notifying others that you created the work. You do not have to register a book with the United States Copyright Office to create a copyright page or have copyright protection.
Step 1
First of all, determine where you will place the copyright page. It can go on the title page or the verso – the page after the title page. But it can also be placed on either side of the front or back covers. It can even be placed on the first or last page of the book.
Step 2
Secondly, insert a blank page into your work in the correct place using your word processing program or desktop publishing software.
Step 3
Thirdly, we begin by typing out the copyright notice. Use either the word “Copyright” or the © symbol, followed by the year and your name. There should be a period after your name. You can follow this with “All rights reserved.” If you are writing the copyright for a reprinted book in different years, you can add these to the copyright. For example, a book was published in 2008 and reissued in 2009 and 2011: © 2008, 2009, 2011 by Jane Doe. However, if the book was reprinted over successive years, you can write the copyright as © 2008-2011 by Jane Doe.
Step 4
Next, add a reserved rights warning. This warning consists of placing the words “All rights reserved” after the copyright notice. The notification can also include the following standard information, suggested by the USCO:
“No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Jane Doe.”
The reserved rights warning sets out precisely what is protected by the copyright notice.
Step 5
Now add your contact information or the publishers’ contact information at the top of the copyright page, above the copyright notice and reserved rights warning.
Step 6
Furthermore, decide what additional information you will include on the copyright page. This page may depend on how the book is being published. If you have an International Standard Book Number and Library of Congress Catalog Publication data, you can place these on the copyright page. The publishers’ name and address also often appear on the copyright page below; the copyright notice may also include the Edition Number. You can add the printer’s location, credits for any copyrighted material used in the book, dedications, and acknowledgments.
Step 7
Finally, save the copyright page in your word processing program.
To move onto the Text Templates page, click HERE. If you are ready to order a Softcover or Hardcover version of your book, click HERE. But if you are looking for more genre-specific copyright pages, check out this helpful resource at the Self Publishing School.
