Your child has written a book and a number of friends who have read it have remarked that it is great, and should be published. Your child then tells you he or she has decided to become an author, and wants to have the book published. You quickly respond “okay,” and then, realizing what you said, you ask yourself a number of questions:
Can my child actually publish a book?
DISCLAIMER: I am not an attorney and this is not legal advice. This list contains my opinions after 17 years of accepting and rejecting memoir manuscripts as the Publisher and Co-owner at BookLocker.com (http://publishing.booklocker.com/packages.php). Always check with your attorney for any legal questions or concerns about your book. Memoirs are perhaps the riskiest type of […]
Handing over all rights, including copyright, of your work to another entity goes against the grain for many writers. Others, however, don’t bat an eyelid. You can always write more, right? So, in which situations does it make sense?
We were recently contacted by an author who was unhappy with BookBaby, and wanted to move his book to BookLocker. But, after sending us his files, and discussing formatting, etc., he asked about how to terminate his contract with BookBaby. I told him to read his BookBaby contract, find the termination clause, and follow the instructions there. He found his contract, read it, and wrote me back, not at all happy with what he discovered…
I’m seeking an Intellectual Property Attorney. Can you help me? Please.
The aphorism “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” is typically attributed to Charles Caleb Colton. If Colton studied law, clearly he was absent the day “Copyright Law” was discussed. When it comes to writing, imitation is frowned upon and there are many traps and obstacles for the unwary “fan fiction” author.
Could you give me your opinion? Last summer, I sold a short story to a publisher who put it into an e-book anthology. The contract I signed said that I retained the copyright, but the publisher had exclusive rights to publish the story in hardback BOOK form, paperback BOOK form, electronic BOOK form, and audio BOOK form. I found somewhere that pays well for previously published stories, and sells them as e-stories. My husband said it would be the same as an e-book, and would violate my contract. I say that it is like an old 78 rpm single–just one song from a record album. What do you think?
My son self-published several Christian books with (I think) Lulu and Amazon carries them. On June 24, my son died suddenly from a heart attack. My question is…is there some way I can get copies of his books made through your company, BookLocker.com??
My publisher inserted a disclaimer in my book. I got upset and asked that it be removed. They refused. I don’t understand why I have to admit to readers that I’m not a licensed financial advisor …
Could you, not your publisher, get sued for your book? What about fair use? How many ways can an author get sued???
