Questions tagged [copyright]
Questions involving matters of copyright, encapsulating parody and level of similarity questions, reprinting and publishing of copyrighted works, public domain, attribution, fanfiction, legality, and fair use questions. Any question involving copyright law in the U.S. or abroad should be given this tag.
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Publishing Copyright with Regard to Novel and Comics
I wasn't sure where to post this, but I have a couple of questions about copyright law regarding written and illustrated works.
If I traditionally publish a novel and maintain the copyright, can I ...
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Too much like Harry Potter
I am designing a magical world for which I have plenty of ideas but I am worried if they are too much like Harry Potter.
Please look through this list and tell me which ideas are too much like Harry ...
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International post-publicaton copyright
I have an unusual question. My husband wrote a non-fiction niche book which is unlikely to ever have any monetary value and which was self-published in Canada. He is recently deceased. I am not sure ...
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Correct authorship attribution for online resource published under usernames
I am currently writing my PhD thesis and found a very helpful illustration of the human brain which is distributed under a CC license. I made some minor changes to the image, but of course I still ...
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What if I have a story with some characters from another story by a different author and don't want to be copyrighted?
I am writing a story with some of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson characters in it like, Percy, Annabeth, Grover,Leo, Hazel, Piper, Jason, and much more other characters in his story. I wanted to make a &...
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How to copyright my deceased brother's book
When I apply to copyright my deceased brother's book, do I do it in my name?
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Can there be fan fiction of a public domain universe?
Fan fiction generally occupies a gray area of the law - widely tolerated under "fair use" for noncommercial sharing, publication, and performance, but almost never acceptable for profiting ...
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should I insert a copyright notice into my Kindle Direct Publishing Vella publication?
Is it a good idea to have a copyright notice at the beginning or end of each episode, or in my Vella story's Description section?
I'm thinking maybe:
"COPYRIGHT 2022 BY ALL RIGHTS RESERVED"
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Copywrite/patent issues
I am writing a children' book. The main character is an animal that has a name and characteristics that are very identifiable to a human actor's character.
For instance, let's say the animal was a ...
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What can I do so my work isn't closely similar to others?
I'm writing romance right now. I'm on the part where it's like a really good poem or a scene. You know, the one where you'll see it posted/quoted everywhere in Instagram or some other, but everything ...
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Are you allowed to use sci-fi terms you get from the internet?
I’m working on a sci-fi project for a major franchise and it focuses heavily on sci-fi tech terms and science concepts and terms. Lots of the terms I invented but some I found on Internet forums like ...
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Can fan fiction be licensed under a free license that permits commercial use?
Most fan fiction are not freely licensed, but can a fan fiction/story be licensed under a free license, e.g. a CC BY license (or other Creative Commons license that allows commercial use)?
Does this ...
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Can I take the text of my own already published book (ebook & POD), amend & improve it, add new title and cover pic, and self-publish as a new book?
I have a published (ebook & paperback) novel which was published in 2015 by a UK publishing house. The text was never carefully or properly proofed and there were many printing problems. Net ...
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Is it possible for an author to publish an online course based on their published book?
I know that a publisher usually demands exclusive publishing rights for a period of time. However, if that author creates an online course based on the book, would that typically be restricted by the ...
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How do Fair Use and Copyright laws apply to allusions in writing?
I'm working on a novel where one of my main characters is young, and supposed to be obsessed with anything under the brand name "Star Wars"(Especially pertaining to the movie.) When talking ...
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Can I quote lines from a tv show in my book? [closed]
I am writing a memoir and I want to know if I can quote some lines from some of my favorite TV shows from the 50's and 60's in my upcoming book.
For example:
Superman: "look up in the sky! It's ...
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Writing a story based on parts of greek mythology
I'd like to write a story that uses bits and pieces from the myth about Ambrogio. Can I do that legally? I have my own version of this so-called myth and don't want to get myself in trouble if I use ...
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Can a story have a monster called the "Venomancer"?
The name "Venomancer" is taken from the Defense of the Ancients series of video games, where it is a monster capable of poisoning targets.
Now I am asking: can a fantasy story have a monster ...
user55751
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I want to name a fantasy species something, but it's the name of a similar species in WoW. Is that okay?
I came up with a name for a species in my fantasy world, and looked it up to see if it had been used already. Turns out it's the name of a species in WoW. They are both big cats. Am I infringing on ...
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Can you avoid getting sued or copyrighted for using products you don't have permission by changing their names?
So I was browsing on Tv Tropes (don't judge me) and found out this trope called A.K.A.-47 which authors or creators use to avoid getting lawsuit from companies. They change the names or tweak some ...
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Are book designs copyrighted?
I finished writing a book, and was planning to publish, but decided to go a self-publishing route so I can maintain better ownership of it. It's a children's textbook, so it needs to look professional,...
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Republishing (with illustrations) a copyrighted book with permission
I am a high school teacher and would like to approach the publisher of a copyrighted translation of a classic book about republishing it, this time with (public domain classic paintings as) ...
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Protecting a POV in visual adaptation of a novel
I’m considering allowing a film adaptation of my novel but want the “frame story” message maintained. What would this device technically be called in the agreement?
Example:
The original Planet of the ...
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Is it possible to keep a pen name's identity anonymous today?
Given that a copyright application protects an author and has the "Pseudonymous" option, the legal claimant is always required in the form if you intend to have any legal protections, ...
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Do I need copyright permission to rewrite an old classic?
I'm planning to rewrite some old classics such as "Oliver Twist", "David Copperfield", "Jane Eyre", etc. in simple English. They will be abridged adaptations (with due ...
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Copyright if I continue someone else's work
I am writing a book - continuing someone's book series. They were finished but I'd really like to see the other characters' lives. I need to quote (I wouldn't say really quote but let's call that ...
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How do you posthumously credit the authors of public domain content in your adaptation?
My question concerns the author Ben H. Winters who has recently published several books with himself listed as Jane Austen’s co-author. Sense and Sensibilities and Sea Monsters is one such novel ...
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How are news articles copyrighted? Or how are the claims of copyright infringement made?
A news article (assuming no photo is used) is the description of an event. News agencies quickly send their journalists/reporters to the scene to write about the event.
If a news outlet re-writes the ...
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Copyright permission for use of song lyrics
Do I need to have copyright permission for song lyrics if I am doing a written review of a concert that contains those lyrics and I quote the lyrics in my review?
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How to release one's work into the public domain?
How can I show that my self-published work is in the public domain? Simply by stating something like "Released into the public domain"? Or using the public domain symbol 🅮?
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What is the point of creating original content when it's just stolen immediately? [closed]
I stopped writing articles long ago now because as soon as it was published, it was copied by bots and published on ad-filled webpages which instantly started showed up above my original page in ...
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Should you include all documents when you send a script to the writer's guild for copyright protection?
If you're writing a movie script and you want to protect that script as a copyright, should you send other documents along with it, or is the movie script more than enough? I am thinking whether other ...
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How can I contact JK Rowling for permission to publish my sequel for the Harry Potter series?
I recently watched the entire Harry Potter series in December 2021. I really loved the Harry Potter world and all the characters.
Even after days, I couldn't stop myself from thinking about it and I'm ...
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What are the exact steps for requesting permission to quote and attribute a book excerpt for a novel?
What are the exact steps for requesting permission to quote and attribute a quote of one sentence to one paragraph in length for a novel? I am self-publishing and on a limited budget.
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What are the exact steps for requesting permission to quote and attribute a song lyric for a novel?
What are the exact steps for requesting permission to quote and attribute a song lyric for a novel?? I am self-publishing and on a limited budget.
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What are the fair use rules in the USA for short quotes from books or song lyrics in a novel?
What are the fair use rules in the USA for short quotes from books or song lyrics in a novel when they are explicitly quoted and attributed to their source? I'm looking at self-published work (...
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Can authors work with a different publisher for a derivative work?
Suppose an author created a book "Learning Mandarin", which contained a bunch of readings and assignments in English and Chinese for learning the language. The problem is, they have to work ...
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Giving credit when quoting
I know that, when a work, person or thing is directly quoted, word for word, the author has to be cited, for example:
"It always seems impossible until it's done" - Nelson Mandela
or
&...
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What are the copyright laws on writing books about living artists?
I was wondering if I wanted to write, illustrate, and publish children's books that is about an artist and their life (their journey as a child to an adult but in a simple whimsical childlike story), ...
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Permission for a quote?
Someone (not a particularly famous person,) said something during a podcast that I found would make a good quote, used in my upcoming book.
Do I need to get permission from the speaker or the podcast ...
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Can I mention a character and/or name of a famous author in the subtitle of my book? [duplicate]
Can I mention the words "Conan" and/or "Robert E. Howard" in the subtitle of my book? They are certainly well-known. Please note that they won't appear inside the book, only in the ...
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Paraphrasing an ancient proverb, but has been recently translated copyright in a novel question
Ok, so this is originally attributed to Chuang Tzu who was around in the BC era. However, all the sources I can really find on it are from a translation in 1965. So what are the rules on this one? Is ...
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Copyright of newer weapon designs used for a novel?
What is the status on using a newer designed weapon, like the cyclone M48 knife, in a novel? Would I run into copyright/trademark issues? The spiral design is what I am interested in more than using ...
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How can I get permission to use an illustration from an old book where the author is dead and the publisher closed?
I am translating a book published in 1961. The author has been dead for more than 50 years. I would like to use the same illustrations, but do not know who to ask. The painter is dead, and he did not ...
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A location for a big event
My novel I am writing has a Queensland, Australia castle in it, Paronella Park. I did research and I’m using facts, except my characters paid extra to stay inside the castle (which I understand that’...
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Are your submissions to the writer's guild protected from unwanted readers?
Can people read your submission when you use the registration system for registering scripts? I am wondering if people can read your submissions within the writer's guild, or if the documents are ...
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Is it possible to copyright my great grandfather's unpublished book of handwritten poetry written in the late nineteenth century?
In the latter half of the 19th century, my great grandfather wrote a series of handwritten poems that he compiled in handbound poetry book, along with two of his penciled drawings. The book was never ...
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Should you mention your sources of inspiration somewhere?
Should you mention your sources of inspiration somewhere? Let's say you borrow a lot from Greek mythology, Shakespeare, and take some world-building ideas from some famous author. Should you mention ...
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Will using "Jeep" as a character name cause copyright issues?
As the title says I have a character named "Jeep" and I would like to know if it will cause any copyright problems for me or not.
(P.S: By the way, it's for a script for a game.)
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I gave my main character the same first and last name as in another book - is this fine?
I am writing a book and had nearly finished half of it and gave it to my friend to read, but she told me there is already a character in a book with the same first and last name. Would it be okay if I ...
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