
It happened again. Another author (I’ll call her Karen) abandoned an entire book she’d spent months writing, editing, tweaking, etc. Why?
Copyright infringement…with a little invasion of privacy and potential libel thrown into the mix.
At BookLocker, we often see manuscripts that have entire strings of real text conversations and/or emails in them. Most authors don’t understand that the person who WROTE those text messages and emails owns the copyrights to them, NOT the recipient of those messages and emails.
It’s astounding now many “authors” think this is a unique thing to do, and an easy way to write a book.
NOTHING IS EASY IN AUTHOR LAND, MY FELLOW SCRIBES!
When the author sent her manuscript to me, I saw right away that it was non-fiction. And, huge portions of the manuscript were copied and pasted text messages between her and another individual. Sighing deeply, I wrote to the author, explaining the laws regarding this topic, and including a link that explained it further.
I gave the author two options:
1. Obtain written permission and a legal liability waiver from the individual who sent those messages.
2. Change the book to fiction, anonymize EVERYTHING (change places, names, locations, descriptions of events and people, etc.), and create her own fictional text messages to replace those written by the other person.
The author was, understandably, upset. I’ve had authors who submitted similar books ask me to publish their books as-is, insisting that the person who originally wrote the material would never know. BookLocker is an ethical, law-abiding company and we would never infringe on the rights of another to make a buck, even if that person isn’t a professional writer or photographer, and even if that person may never know their words or image(s) were used by someone else illegally. That’s the ethical concern.
Then, there’s the legal concern. Copyright infringement damages can be astronomical if the infringement was willful. And, copyright infringement might not be the only problem. Invasion of privacy and libel accusations might come into play as well.
It’s simply not worth it for a company to take such a risk for one author. You’d be surprised how many authors beg me to bend or outright break laws for them just so they don’t have to do a re-write. I never bend or break the rules – moral, legal, or otherwise.
This author in particular chose to do what many authors do when they realize they need to start over from scratch. She abandoned the book. It will never be published. She spent months writing, editing, tweaking, editing, re-writing, adding text, removing text, etc…all for nothing.
So, what’s the lesson for today? Don’t be Karen! Research publishing laws BEFORE writing that book!
HAVE AN OPINION ON THIS TOPIC? PLEASE SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS IN THE COMMENTS BOX BELOW!
RELATED
- WritersWeekly Invoices Competitor Anne Wayman $38,250 for Copyright Infringement
- Today’s Copyright Infringement Hall of Shame Inductee!
- Can a Ghostwriter Be Sued for Libel or Invasion of Privacy?
- Can Your Publisher Get YOU Sued For Copyright Infringement? Yep!! By Angela Hoy
- More So-Called “Writers” Committing Copyright Infringement
- Tracking Down Copyright Infringers – A Painful But Necessary Task
Got questions about Print On Demand and Self-publishing? Ask Angela Hoy.
About The Author

Angela Hoy is the publisher of WritersWeekly.com, the author of 19 books, and the co-owner of BookLocker.com (one of the original POD publishers that still gets books to market in less than a month), PubPreppers.com (print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish), and Abuzz Press (the publishing co-op that charges no setup fees).
Angela has lived and traveled across the U.S. with her kids in an RV, settled in a river-side home in Bradenton, FL, and lived on a 52 ft Irwin sailboat. Angela now resides on a mountaintop in Northwest Georgia, where she plans to spend the rest of her days bird watching, gardening, hiking, and taking in all of the amazing sunrises.
WritersWeekly.com - the free marketing ezine for writers, which features new paying markets and freelance job listings every Wednesday.
BookLocker.com - According to attorney Mark Levine, author of The Fine Print, BookLocker is: "As close to perfection as you're going to find in the world of ebook and POD publishing. The ebook royalties are the highest I've ever seen, and the print royalties are better than average. BookLocker understands what new authors experience, and have put together a package that is the best in the business. You can't go wrong here. Plus, they're selective and won't publish any manuscript just because it's accompanied by a check. Also, the web site is well trafficked. If you can find a POD or epublisher with as much integrity and dedication to selling authors' books, but with lower POD publishing fees, please let me know."
Abuzz Press offers FAST and FREE book publication, but only accepts a small percentage of submissions, and only works with U.S. authors.
PubPreppers.com - "We Prep, You Publish!" Print and ebook design for authors who truly want to self-publish. Offers formatting and design services only, and then provides simple instructions for authors on where to sign up to have the print and ebook editions printed/listed/sold. Cut out the middle man. Keep 100% of what bookstores pay for your book!
Angela's POD Secrets Revealed Series can be found HERE.
Have a POD Book with another publisher? See if BookLocker can give you a better deal. (BookLocker offers "disgruntled author discounts" to those who want to move from other POD services.)
See BookLocker's publishing packages HERE.
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Read More Of Angela's Articles HERE

HowMaster: The Writer's Guide to Beautiful Word Crafting

Author Linda M. Gigliotti draws from years of practice as a private
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writing that pulls readers into their book. She explains with instruction
and samples of published works how to craft writing that come to life in the reader's mind.
HowMaster is a wise choice for the writer who wants to weave words around the reader’s heart.
Author Linda M. Gigliotti draws from years of practice as a private
writing tutor in the guidebook that teaches writers how to format visceral
writing that pulls readers into their book. She explains with instruction
and samples of published works how to craft writing that come to life in the reader's mind.
Read more here:
http://booklocker.com/books/2304.html
Just how stupid can someone be? Beyond understanding.
Hi Angela,
I published several books through Amazon. Because Amazon has been sending me 1099’s on which I have had to pay taxes but has NOT paid me for the past 3 years, I want to transfer my books to another publisher/distributor. Amazon is holding the books hostage and refusing to allow the transfer to go through. Can I publish them with a new publisher/distributor by putting on a new cover and a new title? If so, do I also need a new ISBN number and or a new copyright date on the books.
Hi Elaine,
We will be happy to add you to the BookLocker family under our disgruntled author special, which is $158 less than our regular fee, and includes original cover design, interior formatting, basic epub/mobi (ebook), distribution, etc. HOWEVER, we are currently running a sale where you can get $219 off. See: https://newsletter.booklocker.com/25percent
And, yes, you can republish. Amazon’s publishing division (which we, too, have seen lots of complaints about) has a non-exclusive contract. Yes, a new ISBN is required but we’ll assign one of ours at no extra charge. Re: copyright – If you aren’t changing the interior drastically, that’s really not necessary but we also have a $99 copyrighting service. 🙂
Angela
Hi Ang!
Thanks to you and your firm for the high level of ethics that pervades BookLocker. It is truly a joy working with you.
Zack Carden (author of A MEMORABLE THING)
We LOVE working with you, too, Zack!!! 🙂
Big hugs!
Ang
Once again, cheers to BookLocker for maintaining high standards.
You have given honest, straightforward, do’s and don’ts in the publishing world — as I often have read in here.
Would-be authors should simply say ‘Thank You’ from the bottom of their hearts and not hand you verbiage.
Our entertainment attorney is brutally honest and expensive — your statement (real a** saving words) came free of charge.
I’ll add some additional advice. A friend of my wanted to do what this author did, include in her book someone else’s emails without the bother of getting permission from him. She even had a lawyer tell her that’d be OK. I had to tell her that was utterly wrong.
If you need advice about copyright issues, consult a lawyer that specializes in the field not just any lawyer.
When I wrote An Eye In Shadows, I only named the guilty and didn’t name family but I had to name the real locations and real publishing outfits because they related the rape scandal played up in 1993 and my classmate committing murder in 1993 then tried in 1994. I wrote the book ultimately in the spring of 2007 then published the summer of 2007. I revised it once in 2008 then again in 2014 to keep with the revisions. This one never written creative nonfiction or had the means to get it out there.