Publisher Bankruptcy
Q. My publisher just went out of business. Can I get my rights back? A. You may be able to terminate your publishing agreement and – perhaps — get your rights reverted to you. The keys words are “may” and “perhaps.” A lot depends on whether the publisher just became insolvent or actually filed for bankruptcy protection. First, look at your publishing agreement to see whether you have a...
Read MoreInheritance of Copyrights
Because of the death of writer Tom Clancy and artists such as Tom Clancy, Robin Williams, Prince, Whitney Houston, and Michael Jackson, this issue often is in the news. Intellectual property (copyright, trademarks, and patents) can be bequeathed upon your death just as any other type of property. First, however, you must understand the difference between the PHYSICAL ownership of your...
Read MoreRepublishing Public Domain Works
Q. If I republish a public domain work, can I copyright the new version? A. No, not unless you add new original material. Public domain works are anything NOT protected by copyright. Such works may be used freely by anyone without permission from the author. The numerous changes Congress has made to the term of copyright duration, however, have made it difficult to determine the copyright...
Read MoreWhen Is A Royalty Not A Royalty?
The wide diversity in publishing channels has a dramatic effect on the royalties received by novelists. Digital, audio, and print-on-demand (POD) methods all have different compensation provisions, leaving many authors wondering if there still is such a thing as a “standard” royalty provision. Unfortunately, “industry standard” is a diminishing concept. Traditional royalty provisions have been...
Read MoreCo-authors and Copyright
Q. I wrote a novel with a co-author that now is out of print. My co-author is writing another novel using the characters from our novel. Can she do this without my permission? A. Presumably you and your co-author didn’t have a collaboration agreement (or that agreement didn’t cover the issue of derivative works). Unfortunately, joint authorship without such an agreement can cause major...
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