📚 The Paper Problem: Why This Post Is All About Trim Size and ISBNs

Published on 10 October 2025 at 12:00

This is my second blog this week! I normally post every Wednesday, but I thought an end of the week update was necessary. Since transferring to my website, Swimming Upstream feels like it's becoming more of a personal diary that now and again, a few curious people open and read.

So why two blogs in one week? Because I am having a new cover designed, and the complications involved are endless! Quite frankly, the things I’ve been researching and contemplating get me down as I keep making mistake after mistake—mistakes that cost me time, and sometimes money. As I've said before, hobbies sometimes cost a lot, and we all spend money on things we later regret, thinking, "Why didn't I think this through first?"

📏 The Publisher's Legacy: Size and Paper

I paid a 50% deposit for a new book cover designer last week, and I have high expectations based on our initial discussions. The only hold-up? My book's existing formatting.

I used a self-publishing service for my first book, and they designed everything: the internal layout, formatting, and cover. As a new author with no experience, you trust what they do. I think we produced a professional-looking book, but... there's always a but.

The "but" is the trim size and paper. The book is 6 x 9 inches, which is a standard size for self-published authors, and I quite like the bigger format. The bigger "but" is that it was produced with white paper. Until I got my own physical copies, this never really registered. Now, five months on, I feel the white paper should have been cream. To me, white paper is more suited to Non-fiction, and cream paper is standard for Fiction. What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments.

🔒 The ISBN Dilemma: Why You Can't Just Change the Paper

My next mistake was with the ISBNs. I had assigned three ISBNs, one for each of my book's variants (Paperback, Hardback, and Ebook), with the intention of uploading them to sites like IngramSpark for wider distribution.

The problem with a physical book is that once you assign an ISBN or Amazon's ASIN, the book is largely locked in. The only things you can easily change are the cover (if it's the exact same size and spine thickness), the blurb, and the price.

Changing from white paper to cream paper changes the thickness of the book:

White Paper: Page Count \times 0.0572 \text{mm}
Cream Paper: Page Count \times 0.0635 \text{mm}

Since the spine width changes, the original ISBN and cover can no longer be used. This is the Physical Book Problem!

🗺️ The Plan: Targeting the World Market

I have a plan to manage this without losing my valuable existing Amazon listing and reviews. My goal is to align the series so the current 6 x 9, white paper version becomes exclusive to North America. Then, I will create a new version for the UK, Europe, and Commonwealth countries.

My idea involves three steps:

Immediate Update: Have the new cover designed for the current 6 x 9, white paper version. I will update the cover on Amazon and D2D (for the ebook) so the book is at least up-to-date everywhere.
Reformatting: I need to purchase a program like Atticus to reformat my book into the UK-friendly B-Format (for paperback) and possibly Royal (for hardback) with cream paper.
New Edition Creation: Once the reformatting is done, I will upload a brand new edition to KDP using a new ISBN, explicitly targeting the UK and European territories.

This is what I have read is the correct approach for managing two different-sized paperback editions on KDP. The key steps are:

Restrict the Original 6x9 Book: Change the territory rights on KDP from "Worldwide rights" to "Individual territories," selecting only the US and Canada.
Create a New UK Edition: Start a new paperback title, use a new ISBN, upload the B-Format interior and cover, and set the territory rights to only the UK, Europe, and other non-restricted markets.

By doing this, I will have the 6x9 format that is more commonly distributed in North America and the B-Format that is more common in the UK, all without losing any of my ASIN or ISBN numbers—that's the theory, anyway!

🤷 The Other Options

I have a lot of decisions to make, and none of them are truly easy:

Option 1 (The Easiest): Just stay with what I have! Get the new cover, keep the 6x9 size and white paper, and just run with it.
Option 2 (The Mid-Way): Unpublish all my e-books and redesign all of them (even the ebook) to align with a 6x9, cream paper version.
Option 3 (The Complicated Way): Proceed with my two-market, two-size plan above.

Do you think 6x9 with white paper is a major stumbling block when buying or selling a book? What would you do in my position?

📚 What Am I Reading?

I'm continuing to dive into Everybody Lies by L.J. Breedlove and am now 43% through it! I'm really enjoying the journey. This book isn't what you expect after reading the first chapter, which is a testament to the author's compelling storytelling. The writing is highly descriptive, and I love the rich mix of conversations and internal thoughts that keep the pace moving. The mystery is definitely strong enough to keep me guessing, and I truly cannot see where the plot is heading next! I'll be sure to keep you posted on my progress next week.

If you want to see my reading progress, along with all my past reads, reviews, and progression, you can always follow me on Goodreads or Fable (or both!):

What thriller or mystery is keeping you guessing this week? Let me know in the comments!

About Me:

Hello and welcome to Swmming Upstream the home of my blogs. I am D.C. Salmon and I write pulse-pounding adventure thrillers that blend real-life unsolved mysteries with modern-day action.