Hey friends, I have a question for you, how important is it for you to share your work with others and even if you've got a copyrighted piece from the library of congress, or even a "poor man's snail mail copyright" How careful are you or leary rather when sharing your work, do you ever share your work with the public, or do you fear others may steal it? Although a copyright is protective, it's not bulletproof, I was just wondering in kind of a light hearted way what your opinions were when it comes to sharing your work. To share or not to share, that is the question! LOL! And how much caution or what caution should you practice when sharing your work? I'll thank you early on for your time and consideration. I just appreciate you all so much!
My view is I have a blast writing something, I love people to read. Someone who steals my ideas is just going to cheat themselves of the fun of writing alongside, Socrates, Angus, The Abbot, Uncle Tom, Iris, Gus, Reverend Allsopp etc - they are not going to have the joy I have had of discovering the plot twists and they are never going to manage to write the many sequels I have in mind. My work is written to entertain and be read and I am happy to share it with anyone. I don't want to steal anyone's work, have too many ideas of my own to be bothered with someone else's. I am busy for at least the next four or five years with the novels I have planned. Most other writer's don't want to steal it..
I hate sharing Only one person in the entire world is allowed to read what I write, and no one else. Possibly ever. Not because I'm afraid they'll steal it (though that's why I never mention the plot of my "baby"), but because I feel like they're getting into my head, and I'm not comfortable with that.
Whether or not you share is entirely up to you. You don't need a copyright from the Library of Congress. Just snail mail a copy to yourself. That is sufficient to prove the work was originally yours. I'm on a few forum sites & I've yet to hear of someone's work being stolen from them. I share specifically to get an outsider's take on what I'm writing. &, not just a family or friend's take. They won't be as objective as complete strangers.
i understand the point of spklvr, i feel about the same way, except for the fact that i would like to be published one day when i feel what i write is good enough. right now there's only one person who gets to read my work too. and i dont even like the idea about telling people what im writing about when they ask me to reveal something, but not for the terror of being "stolen", just because i sort of lose the enthusiasm for it if i go around telling everyone i know about it, it wouldnt seem fresh anymore and i need that feeling while working on it.
I like sharing my work because it shows me how other people see situations in my stories. Everyone sees things differently so sometimes there are surprising results from feedback.
I love sharing my work with other writers, whether it be online friends here from WF or with writers in real life. I have a really cool friend/mentor who's got books published and has made decent money off them, and we bounce ideas around all the time. On the other hand, I don't feel comfortable sharing my unfinished work with non-writers, no matter how well I know the person. It makes me feel vulnerable and weird.
I want to share, and think is very helpful. I just didn't do it yet because my work isn't finished and because my friends and family are not really into fantasy novels. I would love my husband,mom and friends to read my words (although I think when it comes to that I'll feel terrified to think they might not like it), but they're not my public, so to speak. And about people stealing... Man, ideas are in the air. Maybe someone is writing something very similar to what you are right now and you don't even know it. If it's registered, then relax and enjoy the feedback.
That may be a little better, particularly if you can get the info from the server itself when needed. Otherwise, it is easy enough to fake. You're probably better off printing out the document, signing and dating each page, and then having a couple of witnesses who would be willing to testify in court also sign and date each page. In general, it seems the risk of theft is pretty low, however.
Wow great replies friend... I've got to applaud the great responces here, I have to say the snail mail or "Poor man's copyright" seems pretty secure, they do cite it on the official "Library of Congress" web page, they also do say copyrights aren't important so to speak, they pretty much confirm that your work is protected upon completion, but copyrights are great use for people who fear their work being stolen, etc. because a copyright will recoup (in most cases) attorney's fees / legal fees to the victim. Just some food for thought, I'm enjoying ALL your posts, so much! What great insightful conversationalists.
The snail mail method is so easy to fake it wouldn't be worth too much in court. I can mail myself an empty envelope tomorrow and put whatever I want in it two years from now. As for copyright, you actually have the copyright as soon as your work is written down or otherwise embodied in a "tangible medium of expression." You don't have a Registration for the copyright, but you do have copyright. A registration is generally necessary to bring an infringement action in court, and if you register soon enough after completing the work you can also get additional damages. BTW: here's what the Copyright office saws about the "poor man's copyright:" A registration isn't that expensive.
I share some of my work online, be it writing or music. I have various compositions/songs online for people to listen to. I doubt anyone would bother stealing them. I've freely posted short stories or poetry on forums at times. The novel I hope to publish in the future I have shared with close friends only, mainly to get feedback and advice. I'm not planning on putting it out on the Internet.
Agreed! I like sharing my stories after they're finished, generally just with friends and family members, as I write for the fun of it rather than for the goal of getting published (though it certainly would be cool if I did get published one day!) If I share them before they're finished, it feels like why write them when they've already been told? As for theft, I'm not too worried. I think keeping drafts of your work is a good idea if you are concerned. I've got a bunch of handwritten drafts of all my projects as well as piles of notes.
the best way to prove you wrote something [and have it be admitted as evidence in court] is to save all your first idea notes, plus your first rough draft and an interim one, to show how you progressed from idea to finished work... no snail mail or email sendings have any standing in us courts, though they may work in the uk... neither will dating/signing pages with witnesses, notarized or whatever, as that doesn't prove a thing other than that it was you who signed your name, and can be so easily faked, anyway... go to the source and learn what's what! www.copyright.gov
