Digital Pubbing

Exploring the ins and outs of the publishing industry

Legal

Guest Post: Can Copyrights Be Inherited?

by

By Josh T. In the United States, a writer’s work is automatically copyrighted under their ownership once it’s in consumable form. The copyright lasts as long as the writer is alive and 70 years after their death whether it’s published or not, which is more than enough to establish someone’s claim to a work. What happens with a writer’s intellectual property after they’re … [Read more...] about Guest Post: Can Copyrights Be Inherited?

Legal Considerations for Authors

by

For writers and publishers, there are a lot of interesting things to consider when it comes to the law. For writers looking to go the traditionally published route, there's a lot to keep in mind contract-wise, including, according to Kristine Kathryn Rusch, control, fairness, and clout. She explains that you want as much control over your project as possible, though some … [Read more...] about Legal Considerations for Authors

Indie Authors: Book Rights

by

This month I've started working seriously on my passion project, I Know Dino. One of my goals is to get a few dinosaur ebooks out, starting with a picture book I've been working on for a while about how Brontosaurus is not a real dinosaur (even though it used to be my favorite). Last weekend, I found an amazing illustrator on Fiverr and have started work on actually … [Read more...] about Indie Authors: Book Rights

Intellectual Property and the Indie Writer

by

By Ron Glick This post was originally published on http://godslayercycle.wordpress.com/. Ron Glick, an indie author of 9 comic trivia books and 5 novels, shares his insights and experiences with intellectual property. Read his latest novel, Dorothy Through the Looking Glass. In recent months, the subject of intellectual property rights has become a very big issue for me … [Read more...] about Intellectual Property and the Indie Writer

Basics of Licensing

by

The legal aspects of publishing fascinate me. Sure, they're complicated and hard to understand at first, but it's interesting to learn what you can and can't do. Licensing is a very lucrative aspect of publishing. I don't really think of licensing when I think of publishing, but some companies, such as IDW Publishing, Bendon Publishing International, and Kappa Books have … [Read more...] about Basics of Licensing

Fun(ny) Copyright Cases

by

Learning about publishing law may be a lot of work, but it sure is entertaining. In my last class, we discussed a couple of particularly interesting cases, one of which involves the video you see above. South Park is no stranger to lawsuits. But their most recent one concerns copyright infringement upon a hit YouTube video from 2007. In 2008, South Park released an episode … [Read more...] about Fun(ny) Copyright Cases

Publishing and Law: Marketing

by

No that has nothing to do with publishing law. But it was the sign in the bathroom at HBO, where I had my class, and I thought it was kind of funny. And I do love a good sign. Anyway, this week we had a guest speaker: Rick Kurnit. He is an attorney at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz PC, and he is incredibly knowledgeable. But rather than recite my ten pages or so of notes, … [Read more...] about Publishing and Law: Marketing

The Social Network

by

Yeah I saw The Social Network. I pretty much had to. I've been on Facebook multiple times a day, almost every day for the past five years, so you see, given my current addiction, I had no choice. It was a really well-done movie, and it's received a lot of critical acclaim. But looking at it from a publishing perspective, which is how I'm starting to see everything these … [Read more...] about The Social Network