View From the Publishing Trenches

You know you need CIP data in your books. (If you don’t know this, read my previous post “Why CIP Data Is Important.”) But you may wonder why you should pay a professional to construct your CIP data. Can’t I do it myself, you may ask, and save a few bucks? Here are five reasons why you should say No, no, no! to the do-it-yourself impulse:

1. AACR2. What does this acronym stand for and why is it important? If you can’t answer the question then you lack the knowledge to properly construct CIP data.
2. Subject Headings. What are they, and how do you choose them? If you think the answer is They’re phrases I make up out of thin air to describe my book, stop! Call a professional cataloger right now.
3. Call Numbers. What purpose do they serve, and how do you select them? No, a call number is not a phone number. If you can’t explain the difference between the Dewey Decimal Classification and the Library Of Congress Classification then under no circumstances should you construct your own CIP data.
4. Authority Records. What are they, and why should I care? Once again, if you can’t answer the question then you lack the knowledge to properly construct CIP data.
5. CIP Publisher’s Manual. What is it, and why should I read it? The Library of Congress’s CIP Publisher’s Manual instructs you how to format the CIP data for publication (among other things). If the instructions seem way too complicated for you then you should not construct your own CIP data.

If you don’t understand even one of the items above, you need a professional cataloger’s help. Having CIP data that is correct and accurate makes your books look professional. Having CIP data that is improperly formed makes your books look amateurish. When a librarian opens up your book, which impression do you want to give?