Two years ago, when I revised my book, In the Company of Elves, CreateSpace, the publishing company, informed me to show
proof that the book in question is in fact my personal work. I was beside
myself. Of course there wasn't a problem. They just wanted me to show them proof of copyright. I
copyrighted the original book back in 2009 long before I revised it. I had no
problem sending poof, however after finding out that another author, had
published a book under the same name and she or should I say someone who she
knows, complained-- I was irked!
The author passed away back in 2015, that is
what was posted but her sister in law or someone who is in charge of her
written work really should have done their research.
I am the original author
who thought up the title, In the Companyof Elves, many years ago. But as I had mentioned in my book, The Other Sideof Things Part 1, you cannot copyright titles. Below is a list of what can’t be
copyrighted. This is for the people who get triggered over seeing
their name or title in a book. If your name is Julie or Vic and you see it in a book, remember the names are common and can be used.
There
are many things that cannot be copyrighted, they either don’t fall under the
jurisdiction of copyright or don’t qualify for its protection. There are also
exemptions and that place some content immediately into the public domain. So,
if you’re wondering about the things you can’t copyright, here is a short list
of five of the more important ones.
Public domain images, written work, et cetera:
Is in reference to creative materials such
as patent drawings that are not protected by copyright, trademark, patent, or
any other intellectual property laws. A public-domain work can be
used without cost. The written work or image has not been
copyrighted.
Titles and Names
Copyright
protection does not extend to titles, names, slogans or short phrases, the
Copyright Office has made that very clear. You cannot copyright your name, the
title of your post or any short phrase that you use to identify a work. The
reason is that copyright is designed to protect works of creative authorship,
it is not designed to protect how that work is identified in the marketplace,
the same goes for people and places. Furthermore, such short phrases rarely
meet the requisite level of creativity to be considered for copyright
protection.
Caveat: Titles may not be
copyrighted.
Recipes: recipes also fall
under this category. Specifically, the listing of ingredients (even if it's
your own recipe ingredients) is not protected by copyright. This applies to
formulas, compounds, and prescriptions as well. There are exceptions however,
such as when recipes are compiled in a cookbook for instance or if the recipe
is accompanied by “substantial literary expression,” a term that refers to text
such as directions, or when there is a combination of recipes, there may be a
basis for copyright protection.
Ideas: Ideas, methods,
and systems are not covered by copyright protection, because they are not fixed
into a tangible medium of expression. For
a work to be copyrighted, it has to be written down, saved to a hard drive or
somehow otherwise fixed. For example, if you give a speech but fail to write it
down first and it isn’t recorded, there is no copyright protection. Likewise,
if you tell an idea to a friend, you don’t receive copyright protection if they
run with it and use it for themselves, that is, unless you write it down. However,
even ideas that are fixed do not receive protection in and of themselves.
Rather, it is the expression of the idea that is protected.
Commonly Known
Information: This category includes items that are considered common property and
with no known authorship. Examples, include standard calendars, height and
weight charts, telephone directories, tape measures and rulers, and lists or
tables taken from public documents. A phrase such as “The sky is blue” also
falls under this category since there is no known authorship associated with it.
Fashion: Contrary to what
you might think, fashion (that is, a shirt, dress, or other article of
clothing) is not protected by copyright law. Despite the fact that copyright
law protects such things as architectural design works (Circular 41) or works
of the visual arts (Circular 40), fashion is all about clothing and
accessories, which under copyright law are considered “useful articles."
It is possible however, to copyright a specific fabric pattern (Burberry plaids
for example), but not the actual dress. It should be noted that while designs can't be copyrighted,
they can be patented.
Protected by the First Amendment
Expressive Use: Using someone’s name, image or life story as
part of a novel, book, movie or other “expressive” work is protected by the
First Amendment, even if the expressive work is sold or displayed. Therefore, using
a person’s life story as part of a book or movie will not be deemed a
misappropriation of the Right of Publicity.
NOTE: I’ve never used
an actual person’s life story, but I grant permission if someone wanted to
write about me, after my death. By that time, I’ll be dead and won’t really care except maybe my children or grand-children. Of course, it depends on the content of the
written work.
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