Intellectual Property Issues

Wednesday News: Ways to Contribute to DA

Wednesday News: Ways to Contribute to DA

There are a couple of ways that you can contribute to DA.  We will also be developing a reader interview questionnaire. I would love some help on developing that interview sheet.  (Note that these links will always be in the sidebar) Write a guest review. From time to time, we post guest reviews of books(…)

Q&A with Professor Rebecca Tushnet

Q&A with Professor Rebecca Tushnet

      Thanks for having me!  I’m happy to take follow-ups, but I’m in the middle of a busy teaching semester so may not be as fast as I’d ideally be. From Ros: Have there been any test cases where fanfiction authors have been sued for breach of copyright (or other related issues)? In(…)

Are Fictional Characters Copyrightable?

Are Fictional Characters Copyrightable?

Short Answer: It depends. Longer Answer: The courts have constructed a two part test to determine if characters enjoy copyright.  This test has been unevenly applied across the circuit courts (the courts just below the US Supreme Court).  The first test is to determine whether the character is capable of copyright.  In other words, a(…)

Fan Fiction, Plagiarism, and Copyright

Fan Fiction, Plagiarism, and Copyright

Introduction: The issues of plagiarism and copyright overlap in fan fiction (and fiction in general) causing a great deal of confusion and misunderstanding.  Wholesale copying without attribution (giving credit to the source) is plagiarism but not always copyright infringement.  Copyright infringement can happen even when credit is being given.  This piece attempts to talk about(…)

Master of the Universe versus Fifty Shades by E.L James Comparison

Master of the Universe versus Fifty Shades by E.L James Comparison

Introduction On Saturday, March 10, 2012, New York Times reported that Vintage, a literary imprint of Random House, had won the rights to republish on a large scale the ebook bestseller trilogy: 50 Shades of Grey, 50 Shades of Darker, and 50 Shades of Freed. The first in the series was number 1 on the(…)

News and Deals: Attention! Possible Infringement Alert on Amazon

Linda H emailed me today to let me know she stumbled across a group of people (possibly the work of just one person masquerading as many) republishing works that appear to be copies of others’ legitimate work. Three examples include Kate Rothwell’s Something to Cherish, Rebecca Abbott Miller’s Save Me, Payton Lee’s, Novo Arkhangel’Sk. Kate Rothwell,(…)

Thursday News and Deals: Growing Number of Academics Unhappy with Elsevier

News Brenda Novak’s auction will take place from May 1st through the 31st. They are looking for donated prizes. I’m thinking of donating a 100 page critique but honestly I don’t know whether that would be something someone would want. I can’t offer an ad as I’m sold out for the year. What do you(…)

Friday Links: Strange Alliances, CDC study on sex, Kobo problems

Friday Links: Strange Alliances, CDC study on sex, Kobo problems

First up, no deals today, just the news. I don’t publish this to promote this deal but to share with the reading audience one of the strangest things I have received in my inbox (and trust me, I see a lot of crazy stuff there from more books about dumpster love to velvet Elvis loving).(…)

Wednesday Links and Deals: IP Listing of Your Fave Sites & Authors Attack Ep 1, 2012 (YA Edition)

Wednesday Links and Deals: IP Listing of Your Fave Sites & Authors Attack Ep 1, 2012 (YA Edition)

NEWS Apple is hosting a media event in New York later this month and according to various websites, the focus is on books.  There is some speculation that Apple will be rolling out a more full fledged self publishing platform.  It already accepts self published books and Pages, Apple’s word processor, has a “save as(…)

Friday Midday News and Deal Links: Ebook Sales Up and Down

Friday Midday News and Deal Links: Ebook Sales Up and Down

News Google has filed its motion to dismiss in the Google Book Settlement.  The motion is based on a legal term known as standing.  Not everyone can sue anyone else.  You must have “standing” and Google is arguing that only the individual authors and artists have standing, not groups such as the Authors Guild. In(…)

Thursday Midday Links: What’s a Little Cover Art Copying Between Friends?

Thursday Midday Links: What’s a Little Cover Art Copying Between Friends?

Author LK Rigel’s self published book, Spiderwork, has a gorgeous cover. So gorgeous that HarperCollins contacted the artist to purchase it from her. The artist refused. No matter, thinks HarperCollins.  (Updated: the cover art for Bewitching will now be changed) In an email, Nathalie Suellen, the artist, shared she was originally contacted by writer LK(…)

Monday Midday Links: Joplin Missouri Needs Help

Monday Midday Links: Joplin Missouri Needs Help

Joplin Missouri was hit by a tremendous tornado yesterday. The American Red Cross has sent out a call for donations and for medical help. On CNN, it is reported that 75% of the city has been destroyed by the tornado. ****** I feel a little awkward about transitioning into books after this but this post(…)

DABWAHA and other news

DABWAHA and other news

Don’t forget to vote. http://dabwaha.com/!!! **** The White House has come out with a strong statement in support of stricter copyright laws primarily focused on combatting live streaming. I understand that sports organizations are having a very difficult time with this.   Because of the money behind this endeavor (primarily funded by movie studios, record labels,(…)

Monday Midday Links:  How the King James Bible Has Shaped Our Language

Monday Midday Links: How the King James Bible Has Shaped Our Language

Kwana emailed me to let us know that Macmillan publishing has launched a new Facebook and twitter account called The Loft. Kwana is the moderator and it is a place to talk about contemporary women's fiction, romance and chicklit.   It’s interesting that publishers like Macmillan through Tor.com and now, The Loft, are attempting to create(…)

How Do We Solve a Problem Like Geographic Restrictions

How Do We Solve a Problem Like Geographic Restrictions

Probably once a week, I get a question by (generally) non US readers asking why a certain book isn’t available to them that they KNOW is out there because they have seen it on the torrent sites. Geographic rights have become more complicated since the growth of ebooks. There are books that were removed from(…)