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    Rights and Copyrights
    Rights and Copyrights
    Rights and Copyrights
    Ebook53 pages26 minutes

    Rights and Copyrights

    By Stephen Goldin

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    About this ebook

    Theodore Sturgeon called THE BUSINESS OF BEING A WRITER "the second best reference book a writer can have,after the dictionary." Harlan Ellison said, "It may not make you a better writer, but it will keep you from being a poorer one." Isaac Asimov said, "Read [this book]. It will tell you everything clearly and interrestingly."

    Published in 1982, before the widespread use of personal computers, the Internet, and electronic publishing, the book concentrated on writing and selling to the print media--books and magazines. Updated excerpts are now being reprinted on various topics--still focused on those primary areas, but still applicable to the current-day writer.

    This excerpt discusses the different kinds of rights available an author can license, as well as the basic ins and outs of copyright law in the United States.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherParsina Press
    Release dateMay 25, 2010
    ISBN9781452446608
    Rights and Copyrights

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      Book preview

      Rights and Copyrights - Stephen Goldin

      The Business of Being a Writer:

      RIGHTS AND COPYRIGHTS

      Stephen Goldin

      Published by Parsina Press at Smashwords

      Copyright © 1982 by Stephen Goldin. All Rights Reserved.

      Cover image copyright © Paul Moore.

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Table of Contents

      Rights and Copyrights

      Subsidiary Rights

      What Can Be Copyrighted

      Copyright Law

      Recordation

      Duration of Copyright

      Work for Hire

      Termination of Transfers

      Infringement

      Other Provisions

      About Stephen Goldin

      Other Books by Stephen Goldin

      Free Ebook

      Connect with Stephen Goldin

      Rights and Copyrights

      AUTHOR’S NOTE: The Business of Being a Writer was originally published in 1982, before the widespread use of personal computers, the Internet, and electronic publishing. While this excerpt has been updated, it is still largely oriented toward publishing in the print media. I hope you’ll find it useful anyway.

      Beginning writers are often paranoid. I’ve been asked on many occasions, How can I protect my ideas? How do I know an editor won’t steal them and either write about them himself or give them to one of his pet writers?

      Bluntly speaking, there are no new ideas. Everything you’re likely to think of has been done many, many times before and is part of the common background we all share. What the writer really means is, How do I protect my particular expression and combination of elements from being stolen? It’s only the way old ideas are uniquely expressed that gives your work its originality.

      I’m told that theft is a fairly routine occurrence in the movie and TV industry. Two writers of my acquaintance, Harlan Ellison and Ben Bova, successfully sued a producer and a film studio for appropriating their concept. But such theft is very hard to prove, simply because ideas are so common. Theatrical movies are a director’s medium; the director is the person who finally shapes what is seen on the screen. Different directors can take the same exact script and make two vastly different movies from it. Consequently, the writer’s words and ideas aren’t highly valued because it’s the director whose expression makes the work unique. (If you don’t believe me, try listing the writers of Hitchcock’s or Spielberg’s movies.) The producer and director feel they can get a writer anywhere to come up with a script; the director is the superstar.

      Television, by contrast, is a producer’s medium, particularly episodic TV. On a regular series, the show may have a different writer and director every week; it’s the producer who has the overall vision to maintain quality and consistency. Unless you’re in the industry you probably can’t name

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