I have been a closet writer for years. I have received lots of praise for my stories, but have never attempted anything "serious". I have a favorite TV series and have written some outlines - more than outlines, but less than complete stories with scripts. Can what I have written be copyrighted? I would like to send one to the studio to see if I can get some positive feedback, and hopefully sell it to them. I have no intention of publishing this myself, whether in video or printed media.
-
To break it down, just think about the question "Can I stand losing those ideas and not being compensated in the worst case?" - Either "Yes", then try to advertise your work by sending it to the showrunner/publisher (the chance is high, that they will contact you before "stealing" from you). Or the answer is "No", then leave your work private to you and show only to people you trust 100%.– AntaresCommented Aug 21 at 13:52
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
You automatically own the copyright to anything that you have written and that meets the requirements for copyright (originality, creativity, and fixation in a tangible medium) from the moment you have written it. Registering the work is not necessary to own the copyright. Only in the USA is registration even possible and only in the USA does registering have some legal advantages (e.g. it allows you to file a lawsuit for infringement and registration serves as evidence).
You own the copyright to an unfinished work (such as an outline) and you may register the copyright for an unfinished work, if it meets the requirements mentioned above.
Copyright protects the expression of an idea (that is, a work, such as a song, a play, a painting, or a novel), not the idea itself (e.g. the story expressed in a novel). Anyone can use your ideas.
See also: https://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-general.html
