In Star Wars, Obi-Wan Kenobi refers to Mos Eisley spaceport as a “wretched hive of scum and villainy” and adds, “we must be careful.” Obi-Wan’s wisdom applies to the Internet also. Regardless of your publishing path, if you write for publication, you should take steps to protect your copyrighted work against Internet-based infringement. No single post can cover all of the ways to protect your work online–and it’s admittedly impossible to completely stop all Internet-based piracy of an author’s work–but here are some tips on things all authors can do to protect and enforce their copyrights: Perform Regular Copyright /
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Quit Worrying: It’s Cheaper for Agents to Sign You Than to Steal Your Works
Today’s publishing legal post answers a question I received last week by email. Here’s the relevant portion: “I’m following your posts, and worried about my copyright in my [unpublished] novel. I’m going to several conferences this summer, and wonder if I should register copyright in the manuscript before I pitch it to agents, in order to protect my rights?” I answered the email directly, but here’s the answer for the rest of the world as well: No. You do not register copyright in unpublished manuscripts if you intend to seek an agent and pursue traditional publication. Under U.S. law, copyright protection attaches automatically to
Read moreProtecting Your Copyrights Online
In Star Wars, Obi-Wan Kenobi refers to Mos Eisley spaceport as a “wretched hive of scum and villainy” and adds, “we must be careful.” Obi-Wan’s wisdom applies to the Internet too. Regardless of your publishing path, if you write for publication, you should take steps to protect your copyrighted work against Internet-based infringement. While no single post can cover all of the ways to protect your work online, here are some tips on things all authors can do to protect and enforce their copyrights: 1. Perform Regular Copyright / Infringement Searches. Search the Internet regularly (at least once a month)
Read moreCopyright Ownership in Derivative Works
Under U.S. Copyright law, “derivative works” are creative works based on a pre-existing work (either copyrighted or in the public domain) which incorporates elements of the original along with new elements, concepts, or ideas. Sequels, unrelated works based in a pre-existing created world, film scripts, and radio plays are all examples of derivative works. The copyright owner of the original work has the exclusive, discretionary right to create or authorize derivative works. Unlicensed derivative works made during the copyright term of the original–including fanfic–are copyright infringement. Many people are surprised to learn that fanfic which simply copies the characters and situations from someone else’s copyrighted work is copyright infringement, because so
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