April 04, 2007

Letters To The Editor For April 4th
printable version

Angela, I just read your response to the woman whose articles were published in Questia and other websites without her permission. I agree that the newspaper which first published her articles must have given permission for reprints. As a writer, I am repelled by the practice, but it may not be illegal. It depends on what agreement she had with the newspaper. If she is legally a writer for hire, then she has no recourse. The newspaper owns the copyright. Questia sells excerpts from my first book, The Despised Poor, which was published by Beacon. But it asked permission first and offered a contract, which I signed. I have found it to be upright in its dealings.

Joseph P. Ritz
I NEVER LOOKED FOR MY MOTHER and Other Regrets of a Journalist

EDITOR'S NOTE: The writer confirmed she owns the rights to her articles, not the paper. In these situations, writers usually discover the original publisher of the article has resold their article(s) without permission. If you find your articles posted at a variety of sites online, your first step should be to contact the original publisher to see if they resold your articles.