there is a thread somewhere about copywriting. I will try and find it for you. Or you could PM mammamaia as she knows a great deal about this sort of thing. Torana
Here are some links to different copyright questions. I hope that they help you. https://www.writingforums.org/showthread.php?t=5015&highlight=copyright https://www.writingforums.org/showthread.php?t=7302&highlight=copyright https://www.writingforums.org/showthread.php?t=4999&highlight=copyright
Copyright is a complicated issue, and the laws governing it change in different countries. Ring your local writers centre of writers guild, and they will give you good local advice.
There are forum threads on copyright in the forum, and there are also a couple links in the Writing Resource Links thread.
for the real skinny on all things to do with copyright, go to the source: U.S. Copyright Office if you want to self-publish with lulu [or anyone else], it's best to register your already existing copyright with the gov't office, though lulu may do that for you [check with them, first], as traditional publishers do... the main thing you need to know is that you already have a copyright on your work... you don't 'get' it anywhere... it exists from the moment you have a completed work in any reproducable form... after that, all you do is 'register' it... you can also do that with wga, the writer's union... hope that helps... if you want more specific info or help with anything, feel free to email me any time... love and hugs, maia maia3maia@hotmail.com
Any artist's work is automatically copyrighted, so you don't need to do anything for that. But perhaps there's also a way to "register" it in some way, for your own (well, your work's) security?
Yes. It's important to know the specifics in your country. For the most part, copyright exists for you when you complete the work, but registrationprovides a legal record that makes it easier to prove you properly own the copyright. Registration fees are not exorbitant, but are probably only worth investing in under certain circumstances, discussed in detail in other threads. The Writing Resource Links thread in this General Writing subforum contains a couple of relevant links, but does not contain a comprehensive list for all countries.
One concern that tends to cross all boundaries is proof of prior authorship. If you can establish your authorship of the work prior to what anybody else can prove, it's hard to shake you off it. There are lots of ways of doing this, and actually placing pieces on the internet is one way to do it. Others might be leaving a copy with an attourney, showing the work to a group of solid witnesses, etc. Actually, it's well to keep in mind, theft of manuscripts is a pretty rare event. It very seldom happens to new writers.
writers register their copyright/work in the us either at U.S. Copyright Office or www.wga.org or www.wgae.org... or both wga and gov't... beyond that, the best way to prove you wrote something is to save your first idea notes/outlines and a couple of progressive drafts, to show the development from idea to completed work... a 'thief' won't have such a paper trail...
Or dozens of other places. Paper trail doesn't matter. If they can present a manuscript, they can easily present a bunch of notes and such. If you can show authorship earlier than they can, you win. In the US you have to be Library of Congress registered to bring suit, but we're talking about world here, not U.S. The people who worry about this the most are those with the least to worry about.
If you're writing a story with lines thrown in there from a specific song by a specific artist. It's not actually involved with the writing though. Say if someone started singing the lyrics to "artist" and you had that in dialogue, that wouldn't be plagerism would it? I see this often in various novels and always wondered if the authors ever had to get permission to do so. Any help would be great, thanks.
It wouldn't be plagerism because you aren't using someone else's work precisely as your work. Instead you are just making an allusion to another work, which is something often used in stories as you said. Still, with copyright laws you may just want to be careful what song lyrics you place in your story, but as long as you don't claim it is yours it should be allright.
Mordecai, You might want to read this link: Copyright-Fair Use For a specific literary/fiction example, if you've ever read The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom, there is a song's refrain (You Made Me Love You), that is used several times in the novel. The most the author used: You made me love you I didn't want to do it (repeat this line) (Repeat first line) And all the time you knew it (repeat this line) Thus, the author used 6 lines maximum. If one reads the copyright page/publishing info at the beginning of the novel, the song is listed separately by name, Copyright 1913 (Renewed) and then goes to list the composer, who currently owns the rights, etc. Then states: All rights reserved. Use by permission. Hope this info helps point you in the right direction. Terry
All identifiable elements copied from another source must be properly attributed. Fair Use identifies when you can (and cannot) use such material within your own work without having to obtain prior written permission from the original author. Regardless of whether the included content constitutes fair use, you still must acknowledge the source.
Yeah... agree with the comments above, but I think it would always be wise to either appropriate/take little bits, get permission, or don't do it at all... Just some friendly advice...
Hey gang...I'm not sure where to ask this, but I'm seeing so many great poems, songs, stories on here that people want advice on. I'd love to put some of mine on here, but what's protecting us from people stealing our work? I'm not seeing any copyright info at the end of most posts, and is that even enough to hold up if there is an issue? Thanks guys, ~Jeni
Well, there is nothing stopping anyone from stealing your work - whether there is a copyright statement or not. Those that steal don't usually seem bothered by such statements. However, technically they are not necessary, as the moment you pen something on paper (or the computer) it is protected by copyright. Proving it in a court of law may be difficult, but I doubt anyone would have the financial monies to take up the case. I guess that is why community is such a big deal on forums. We grow to know each other and trust that we are honest people all trying to improve our writing. Most writers know that plagiarism will come back to bit them eventually, so they don't do it. But I could be wrong.
I also looked for copyright on here when I joined, but didn't see it. On some other forums I've looked at and read things on, if you post it it's copyrighted, or so it says, but I agree that doesn't stop people from taking your ideas. Trust is just where you have to place your stories. If you post anything online it could be stolen. I also agree with flash in that I doubt people would take it to court to fight you for your story as their's. Question: If you type something on your computer and you pst it, let's say it gets stolen. Someone copies and pastes it to their Microsoft Word or whatever. Finishes the story themselves, prints it off and tries to sell it as their own. You, when you find out and are done screaming, go to court. Could officals come and look at your computer and see the date you typed your story and the day that the other person *copied* it onto theirs, to find out who typed it. This is just something my friends and I were talking about the other day.
Copyright Office. In some cases putting the work up in this forum is a means of public display of proof of date of creation.
No. The date on a personal computer is in high suspect as it can be modified by the owner of the computer. In fact showing a post on this forum that dates your story or poem would hold more weight in court as you can not edit the date you posted something. (This is what I have heard, this is NOT Legal advice, I am NOT a lawyer or a Copyright Specialist, The best course of action you can take it talk with a lawyer and see)
^ ^ True. Provided the thread doesn't get deleted and the forum doesn't close. Or you could always mail a hardcopy to yourself. I personally don't have a problem with copyright. I'm not planning to publish anything I write except for the journalistic novel I'm working on (which I won't be posting anywhere, anyway), and it's not likely anybody will make big bucks on the stuff I churn out, so I'm covered.
Any form of electronic data is editable, even the forum. I could probably learn how to do it in a weekend if I wanted to. Electronic dating is always going to be heavily scrutinized. However, even when you change the data, there is equipment that allows you to go back and find the real date the data was stored and created but it can be pricy and you probably won't be able to afford it. Rather, the important thing for protecting your work is too keep a record. Save your notes, your outlines, brainstorming (if you doodle or type it down), and keep all your drafts. Anyone who steals the work from this site (or anywhere else) will never have so much information on the piece and if it does come to court, you stand a better chance. Copyright belongs to you the moment the idea takes form. Also you can register a work with the Copyright Office. Ungood's link should have information about registering copyright, and having it registered makes court a lot easier. I wouldn't worry about that sort of thing here though. The review forums are closed to everyone but members, and most writers don't steal to make a buck.
Something like a poem or short story, I wouldn't worry about. Anyone who steals that won't make much cash anyways. As for posting a chapter of a novel, I wouldn't be worried at all. Even if someone was to copy your first chapter, their writing for the rest of the novel will be nothing like your writing. Ideas and the style of writing will be different. And to top it all off, I have never heard of a case where someone copies a story and tries to make money off it.
Humor me. You are saying you could in a week end. Figure out how to break into the database of this forum and change the date of someone else posts or even your own to be older or newer then it is? That seems a bit beyond belief to me.
