My brain hurts. I’ve just spent the last several hours pouring over website pages and downloadable files trying to figure out what forms I need to file, what bar codes I need, in what order to make applications for the numbers, etc. The evening started with a simple plan to purchase my block of ISBNs. Haha. It was anything but simple. Now I have to decide: do I want an EAN Bar Code? Is a UPC also necessary? Should I add an SAN to the order? It says it’s 50% off if I order it when I order my ISBN, but do I really need it? Numerous on-line searches yielded little in the way of helpful advice.

Since I was stuck, I moved on to the next task – figure out what exactly I need to do to register here in the state of Kansas. I know that if I set up the publishing company as a sole proprietorship (which is the most logical step at this point) that I don’t need to register the business with the state, but since I’ll be selling products, I’m pretty sure that I need to register something in order to pay sales tax on those orders. So, is that the Business Tax Application that I found and downloaded? If so, the application form indicates that I need an FEIN from the IRS. But the IRS information leads me to believe that perhaps an FEIN is not necessary after all. And just being on the IRS site reminded me that I’ll have more bookkeeping and tax filing to do with the formation of this new business, providing I can figure out when and what to file and whether I have to send in quarterly reports or payments, etc.

If I sound confused, it’s probably because I am. Tonight’s hours of work yielded far more questions than answers. But I’m determined to sort through all of this and put together a step-by-step guide for self-publishers covering all these things once I’ve got it all figured out. And if anyone knows of such a guide already in existence, please have a heart and tell me where I can find it…then perhaps I can still preserve a measure of my sanity. 🙂