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Is it Public Domain or isn’t it?
True or False: If an image, poem, essay or short story is posted on the internet, it’s in the public domain and anyone can use it. False, but so many people seem to forget that, especially with images....
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From Astronauts to Van Goghs: Little Known Sources for Public Domain Images
Ryan Hagerty of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services Looking for a photograph of a bull elk? Or a 1890s baseball card? Or a space shot from the Apollo moon launch? Perhaps you have searched Creative...
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How to Get Permission to Use Images Without Paying a Fortune or a Lawyer
You have probably heard the old joke, What do you call 1000 lawyers at the bottom of the ocean? A good start. Okay, that’s unfair (unless, of course, I get to choose which lawyers), but I do think...
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What do Shakespeare and Jane Austen have in common?
Their works have spawned countless remakes and retellings. Stately manor houses have been transformed into zombies hideouts. Characters have been transported to New York tenements. Star Trek’s Klingons...
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Sources of Public Domain Lyrics
My recent post on Joel Friedlander’s TheBookDesigner.com about getting permission to use lyrics has been a big hit. But a few writers have asked me for sources of public domain lyrics. I have a list...
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Law 101 for Bloggers
Today’s writers wear many hats. We are Tweeters, Pinteresters, YouTube-ists and most of all, bloggers. Maybe we have heard about privacy policies and COPPA, but we don’t know whether they apply to us....
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How to Handle Unauthorized Use of Your Blog Content
If you are putting blog content on the internet, then at some point you will have to decide whether to lock up your content and give it away. Some bloggers protect all their work. They post a copyright...
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The Problem of Orphan Works
This photo of my father and his brother Bob (circa 1932) is probably an orphan work. Last week, I had lunch with a writer who is deep into revising her memoir. She showed me a stack of photos from her...
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Answering Questions About Copyright
I love my readers. Not because they buy my books. I like that. I love my readers because they ask interesting questions. I read your emails, sit back and give an audible hmmmm. Your questions...
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