Angela,

A competing newsletter, (name removed), has been republishing your stuff. Thought you’d want to know. Aside from waiting for someone else to notice your material has been stolen, what’s the easiest way to catch copyright infringers?

Thanks for the heads-up!

You can use copyscape.com, a free service, to search other websites for phrases appearing on an entire web page of your own content. It’s quick, easy, and effective.

I also use Google.com when I’m searching for copyright infringers. Typing just a phrase or two from my original work is enough to find my work appearing illegally elsewhere.

Finally, I also use Google Alerts, which sends me an email whenever a website uses a specific phrase from my materials. This is especially helpful for writers and others who have had one piece stolen repeatedly by others. This sort of thing isn’t unusual when somebody has created outstanding web copy. Nasty competitors can (and probably will) steal it as their own, hoping they’ll never get caught.

Thankfully, with services like copyscape.com and Google Alerts, it’s never been easier for writers to protect their work.