Me too. I decided to start a company because I'm working on some children's education books and it looks better having a 'real' company logo on the back cover.balaspa said:I have an invented publishing company these days, but used to just put my own named. These days I use HMIL Publishing...even though it is not a registered company or incorporated at this point.
Yes, you have to register it.Aislynn Archer said:If you enter a publisher name, it should be a real publishing company (you need to open your own business, in other words). Otherwise, just enter your own name into that field.
It does sound distinguishedToniD said:Thanks all for the replies.
So, where do you register your pub company? And how real business must it be? I mean, do you need to have a logo and pay taxes and all that?
Oooh, do like the idea of naming it after a landmark in your life. I grew up on Milbank Street. Milbank Publishing sounds rather distinguished.
I wouldn't advise that. It's much better to do the relatively minimal paperwork to register a DBA and keep things legal and tidy.balaspa said:I have an invented publishing company these days, but used to just put my own named. These days I use HMIL Publishing...even though it is not a registered company or incorporated at this point.
Only if you're overly suspicious. My fiction and non-fiction are written under two different names. It makes sense to have an umbrella company tying the two together.CraigInTwinCities said:Making up a company name as a DBA reeks of "mislead" to me...
I'm not sure if I can agree with that. If I opened a shoe shop, I don't have to call it "David Gaughran Shoes". I can call it "Ghetto Stiletto" if that tickles my fancy.CraigInTwinCities said:Making up a company name as a DBA reeks of "mislead" to me...
Nah, disagree. As a self employed individual you can trade in any name you want as long as it is not for the purposes of fraud, hence the accepted use of Pen Names. You don't gave to be incorporated. If I want to be Declan Conner T/A 'decon publishing,' and design a logo, I can.Aislynn Archer said:If you enter a publisher name, it should be a real publishing company (you need to open your own business, in other words). Otherwise, just enter your own name into that field.
Maybe the rules are different in the various America states. However, if you publish POD with Lightning, which is an American company, you have to give a publishers name. It doesn't have to be registered, but they need a name to put a handle on the ISBN.dgaughran said:I'm not sure if I can agree with that. If I opened a shoe shop, I don't have to call it "David Gaughran Shoes". I can call it "Ghetto Stiletto" if that tickles my fancy.
Self-publishing is no different. You are setting yourself up as a business, it's not misleading to have a business name. Now, if you set up a fancy website to make it look like you were a small publisher (i.e not just publishing your own work), that would be a different story.
Yup, that was my first reason for making a publisher name.Decon said:Maybe the rules are different in the various America states. However, if you publish POD with Lightning, which is an Amrican company, you have to give a publushers name. I t doesn't have to be registered, but they need a name to put a handle on the ISBN.
Some of these details vary when you go with Expanded Distribution at CreateSpace, though, right? You get a real ISBN of sorts because your book can be ordered outside of the Amazon universe....Decon said:They only claim to be the printer for legal reasons and the ISBN is in house which is why sales are not recorded with genuine ISBN reporting companies. There would be potential legal liabilities if Create space claimed to be the publisher
IANAL, first off. But it's my understanding that can vary from state to state. Some states that might be OK - others you might get in trouble.Decon said:Nah, disagree. As a self employed individual you can trade in any name you want as long as it is not for the purposes of fraud, hence the accepted use of Pen Names. You don't gave to be incorporated. If I want to be Declan Conner T/A 'decon publishing,' and design a logo, I can.