ISBN vs. LCCN vs. CIP vs. ISNI vs. VIAF: What Every Author Needs to Know

The short version, before the story. An ISBN identifies one edition and format of a book. An LCCN identifies a Library of Congress catalog record. CIP is a fuller prepublication catalog record for eligible publishers. An ISNI identifies you as a creator. NACO authority records are the library world's official spelling of your name, VIAF links the national libraries' versions of you together, and an OCLC number identifies a WorldCat record. This guide is for any author who has met these acronyms on a form and wants to know what each one identifies, who controls it, and when it matters.

When I published No Loose Ends, I expected to learn about writing, editing, and promoting a book. I didn't expect to learn an entirely new alphabet.

ISBN. LCCN. CIP. ISNI. NACO. VIAF. OCLC.

Which one confused me most? All of them. But the acronyms weren't the real problem. The real problem was that nobody could tell me who does what, or when. The Library of Congress, for example, will assign a control number before the book exists, through a presubmission program, if the publisher applies at the right time. That's a wonderful thing to know in month three and a useless thing to learn in month eleven.

So this guide answers two questions for every identifier: what does it identify, and whose job is it?

Quick comparison

If you like database analogies, here's the one that made it click for me. The ISBN is the product SKU. The LCCN and the OCLC number are record numbers in two different libraries' catalogs. ISNI is your creator ID. The authority record is the library world's official spelling of your name. VIAF is the lookup table that joins every national library's version of you together. Nothing in that list does more than one job.

ISBN: the book product identifier

ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number.

An ISBN identifies a specific publication product. A hardcover, a paperback, an ebook, and a revised edition can each have their own ISBN because they're different products. The U.S. ISBN Agency confirms that a new edition gets a new ISBN, even when the title stays the same.

Most editions and formats sold through the book trade need their own ISBN. Some platforms let you publish a platform-specific ebook or audiobook without buying one. If you assign an ISBN, use a different number for each separately available product format and edition that the ISBN rules treat as distinct.

An ISBN doesn't register copyright, identify you as a person, guarantee Library of Congress cataloging, guarantee that retailers received correct metadata, or prove the book is available through library suppliers.

Whose job is it?

In traditional publishing, the publisher assigns an ISBN from its own block. Wiley assigned mine. If you're acting as the publisher, you or your publishing business get the ISBN from the national agency. In the United States, that's Bowker.

What should you record?

For every ISBN, save the format, edition, publisher and imprint, publication date, price, page count, language, territory, cover, and the retail and library links.

Don't keep one unlabeled list of ISBNs. Six months later, a thirteen-digit number without a format isn't especially helpful.

Official source: U.S. ISBN Agency (opens in a new tab)

LCCN: the Library of Congress record number

LCCN stands for Library of Congress Control Number.

It identifies a bibliographic record created by the Library of Congress. Librarians use the number to find and reuse that cataloging record.

The Preassigned Control Number (PCN) program can assign an LCCN before publication to eligible titles. That's why you'll see the number printed in books that haven't reached stores yet, and it's the "presubmission" program I mentioned above.

An LCCN isn't an ISBN, a copyright registration number, a promise that the Library of Congress will keep a copy, or an author identifier.

Whose job is it?

The publisher applies through the Library of Congress PrePub Book Link system. Eligible self-publishers can create an account and request an LCCN for qualifying titles. If you're traditionally published, ask the publisher whether the title received or will receive one, and ask early enough that the answer can still be yes.

Official sources:

• Preassigned Control Number Program (opens in a new tab)
• How to apply for an LCCN (opens in a new tab)

CIP: cataloging data created before publication

CIP stands for Cataloging in Publication.

The Library of Congress CIP Program creates a prepublication bibliographic record for books it expects U.S. libraries to acquire widely. Publishers print the cataloging data in the book, which helps libraries process and catalog it.

An LCCN may be part of the CIP data, but having an LCCN doesn't mean the book received full CIP cataloging. They're cousins, not twins.

Whose job is it?

Eligible publishers apply through PrePub Book Link. The CIP Program has its own participation requirements. Don't assume every book or every publisher qualifies.

What should you check?

Did the publisher apply? Was the title eligible? Does the final copyright page include the supplied data? Did a major title or contributor change after the record was created? Was the finished book supplied under the program's requirements?

Official source: Library of Congress CIP Program (opens in a new tab)

OCLC number: the WorldCat bibliographic record

WorldCat is the cooperative catalog run by OCLC. When a bibliographic record is created or added in WorldCat, it gets an OCLC control number.

One book can appear in more than one WorldCat record because formats, editions, cataloging choices, or plain duplicates differ. That's why searching only the title gets confusing.

What should you do?

Search by title. Search by each ISBN. Check the author name, publisher, date, format, and edition. Record the OCLC number for each correct record. Review the listed library holdings. Report factual problems through the appropriate OCLC or library process.

You can't upload a book into WorldCat yourself, and you can't edit a record. For a correction, OCLC's guidance for authors says to contact the publisher or the institution that owns the work first, because those sources supply much of the metadata; for the library record itself, ask the cataloging staff at a holding library. For a work that has never been cataloged, OCLC advises working through an OCLC member library. On the day I checked, 92 systems reported holding my book in WorldCat, and I'd contacted almost none of them. The catalog fills in whether you're watching or not. WorldCat shows holdings reported by participating libraries, so it is useful evidence, not a sales total or a complete adoption count.

Official source: OCLC information for authors (opens in a new tab)

LC/NACO authority record: the library identity for the author

Libraries need a reliable way to tell apart people with the same or similar names. A name authority record establishes an authorized form of a creator's name and may include variants or details that help catalogers pick the right person.

NACO is the cooperative program through which participating institutions contribute authority records to the LC/NACO Authority File.

Can you create one directly?

Not through a public form. A participating library or institution creates and maintains the record under cataloging rules.

You can search the Library of Congress Authorities (opens in a new tab), gather authoritative identity information, contact a participating cataloger when there's a genuine need or factual problem, and keep your name consistent across the book, publisher metadata, website, and profiles.

Don't email random librarians demanding an authority record as a promotional badge. It exists for identity control and cataloging, not marketing decoration.

Official source: About NACO (opens in a new tab)

ISNI: the public identity identifier

ISNI stands for International Standard Name Identifier.

It identifies a public identity connected to creative, scholarly, publishing, performance, and related activity. It helps systems tell one creator from another and connect information about the same person across datasets.

ISNI identifies you, not a particular book.

How do you get one?

Search first. An ISNI may already exist because a publisher, library, rights organization, database, or other contributor supplied information about you.

If no correct record exists, you can go through one of the official ISNI registration agencies. The ISNI International Agency itself doesn't register individual users.

Official sources:

• What is ISNI? (opens in a new tab)
• Get an ISNI (opens in a new tab)

VIAF: the connection among authority files

VIAF stands for Virtual International Authority File.

VIAF combines and links authority data supplied by national libraries and other participating organizations. A VIAF cluster may connect versions of your name and identifiers from different countries and systems.

Can you claim a VIAF profile?

No. VIAF isn't an author-profile platform. The data flows in from the contributing authority systems.

If a VIAF cluster is missing or wrong, the practical route is to find the underlying authority source that needs correcting. Fix that, and the cluster eventually follows.

Official source: Search VIAF (opens in a new tab)

How the pieces fit together

Think in layers.

The book layer

ISBN identifies the edition or format. LCCN identifies the Library of Congress bibliographic record. CIP supplies prepublication cataloging for an eligible book. The OCLC number identifies a WorldCat bibliographic record.

The author layer

The LC/NACO authority record establishes a library-controlled version of your identity. ISNI identifies your public identity across participating systems. VIAF connects the authority records supplied by participating institutions.

The metadata layer

ONIX carries commercial book information through the supply chain. BISAC and Thema classify the book by subject. Retailer, library, search, and publisher pages display selections from those records and feeds.

No single identifier does all three jobs. That's the sentence I wish someone had said to me in month three.

What traditionally published authors should do

1. Ask the publisher for every ISBN and its format.
2. Ask whether the title received an LCCN and CIP data, and ask before the book goes to print.
3. Inspect the final copyright page.
4. Search WorldCat after publication.
5. Search Library of Congress Authorities for your name.
6. Search ISNI before requesting a new identifier.
7. Search VIAF after authority records begin appearing.
8. Save every correct identifier in one Book Identity Sheet.
9. Report errors through the organization that controls the underlying record.

What self-published authors should do

1. Decide whether to use a platform-provided identifier or become the publisher of record with your own ISBN.
2. Assign a different ISBN where the format or edition requires one.
3. Verify eligibility for the LCCN or other national cataloging programs before publication.
4. Follow the deposit and program requirements.
5. Make the book easy for a member library to catalog through accurate metadata and distribution.
6. Search the author-identity systems before creating anything, so you don't end up with duplicates.

Frequently asked questions

Is an ISBN the same as copyright registration?

No. An ISBN identifies a publication product. Copyright registration creates a public record of the claim and can provide important legal benefits, including evidentiary advantages when the statutory timing rules are met. It is separate from the copyright notice, mandatory deposit, CIP, and an LCCN. In the United States it is filed with the U.S. Copyright Office (opens in a new tab).

Is an LCCN the same as CIP?

No. An LCCN identifies a Library of Congress bibliographic record. CIP is prepublication cataloging data created for eligible books. An LCCN can exist without full CIP data.

Does an author need an ISNI?

Not every author needs to get one immediately. Search first, understand how you'd use it, and avoid creating duplicates. It becomes more useful once you have records across publishing, library, rights, scholarly, or creative systems.

Does VIAF prove that an author is notable?

No. VIAF is an authority-data service, not a prize, a verification badge, or a judgment of literary importance.

Why are there several WorldCat records for one title?

Different formats, editions, cataloging records, and duplicates all create separate records. Compare the ISBN, publisher, date, language, and format before deciding which one is yours.

Keep the identifiers straight

Use the free Book identifiers directory and Author identifiers directory, or create a free Author Profile and add your book, one payment, to keep the work in one place.

Sources

• U.S. ISBN Agency (opens in a new tab)
• Library of Congress publisher services (opens in a new tab)
• Library of Congress PCN Program (opens in a new tab)
• Library of Congress CIP Program (opens in a new tab)
• OCLC information for authors (opens in a new tab)
• NACO (opens in a new tab)
• ISNI (opens in a new tab)
• VIAF (opens in a new tab)