|
|
Joined: 3/13/2011
Posts: 244
|
No, not plagiarism. I'm not that sort of person. Anyways.
Earlier today on Twitter I put a question to the collective. (Bonus points if you get that.  *looks for her nerd card*)
"If there's a poem that's important to the book is it better to put it at the start of the chapter as an epitaph, in the scene as my character reads it or at the start of the book?"
I asked it mostly because it's not a super well-known poem. (Read that as you'd probably only recognize it if you had interest in poetry, had written poetry, had studied it, etcetera.) It plays a rather large part in my book as far as it being something which the MC uses to remind himself of why he is trying so hard to be different from his parents.
One response was to put it where it felt natural. One said beginning of the book. But then our lovely Danielle and Colleen (or whomever was tweeting under the Book Country moniker) reminded me of the whole little issue about securing permission to do so from the copyright holder. I hadn't been thinking about that because this is a long way from ever being published. I am revising at the moment and was trying to figure out a placement for it since beta readers had mentioned having no idea what I'm talking about so they get lost in this scene.
So then I just gave up and said I'd keep it to the title and poet reference for now, since I'm pretty sure that's allowed.
Danielle suggested I start a discussion for this here in the forums. So I did. Weigh in, if you like, and also if you think this should be moved to a different section of the forums. I couldn't really pinpoint an ideal spot for it.
|
|
|
|
Yeah, citing someone else's work can definitely be tricky! If it is integral to your story and there is no way around it, I agree that you should just stick to the poet and title.
You can also look into fair use laws at http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html--there are laws in place that allows a certain number of words/lines/etc. to be used legally depending on the type of work the source material is. There might be a section of the poem that fits the fair use requirements, that you can use without fear. 
If not, you'd technically need to get permission from the author to use it in your work. In my experience, most people are pretty lenient as long as the material is cited accordingly--they often just ask for a permission line to be included on the copyright page, in addition to whatever citation exists in the text.
But this kind of thing always begs the question---how imperative is the source materially REALLY? Is there something you yourself can create that would be just as significant and play the same role? Is there an object or another art form that could serve the same purpose?
These are questions writers need to ask themselves at a variety of moments, not just when it comes to permissions. It feels like killing your darlings, I know. But more often than not, there's an alternative if you open your mind to it. And a lot of the time, the new idea is even better than the original! It's amazing when that happens too. So inspiring and empowering.
It may be, of course, that what you've already imagined is the best way to go, so then you hit the books and get ready to write some permission requests.
|
|
Joined: 3/7/2011
Posts: 55
|
I wrote a short story in which I used exact lines from a pop song. My first reader happened to be familiar with, and pointed me to, the rules regarding that... which would have cost me significantly more than I would ever make from the story.
Needless to say, I changed that part of the story.
|
|
Joined: 2/27/2011
Posts: 353
|
When I was an agent, I frequently got manuscript submissions that contained copyrighted song lyrics. The writers were always surprised when I told them that they would have to obtains (and pay any fees associated with) permissions BEFORE a book was published because your publisher won't do it for you.
My two cents? Leave it out or find a public domain source.
Cheers!
Colleen
|
|
Joined: 3/13/2011
Posts: 244
|
I tried to figure out if it's in the public domain and I think it's at least a decade before it will be. Thanks for the feedback, y'all!
|
|
Joined: 3/11/2011
Posts: 156
|
Okay, I used to work in Communications with Disney. Yep, you'd need to obtain permission before using any Disney material (and you probably won't get it) but many writers don't understand the type of questions they're likely to be asked if they have to obtain permission from a corporate entity (with songs, you often have to go to the company that produces the music, not the band.) But unless you're able to deal directly with a private individual, which might happen with a poet, it will be almost impossible to answer the questions to get permission to use something.
- What work will this be used in?
- What percentage of the work does the copyrighted material take up?
- How will the work be distributed?
- What is the distribution size (number of copies) and the reach (locations) of the distribution?
- Will this work be distributed in other media? (ebook, film, broadway stage)
- Who will own/distribute this work?
The problem is that until an author is working directly with a publisher, they are unlikely to have the answer to more than the first couple of question. And the question do get far more detailed. Oh, and since the publisher is the answer to that last question, Disney would then be likely to require negotiations directly with them because that's a competitor. So, really, you just can't get there from here, and they really don't want you to.
|
|
Joined: 3/12/2011
Posts: 376
|
I considered starting a new thread, but this is sort of related: what about trademarks? I've had some readers go all wide eyed at the idea of a character drinking a Coke, or driving a Land Rover.
Assuming the reference is purely a setting thing, i.e. not making any value judgments about the product, is that likely to be an issue?
|
|
Joined: 3/11/2011
Posts: 156
|
With trademarks there's the simple answer and the long answer. The simple answer is that the use of trademarked products in fiction is dealt with by capitalizing the name: Coke, Jeep, Pepsi. So Patrick in my mystery novels drives a red Jeep and drinks Dr. Pepper.
You do have to be careful not to use a trademarked name incorrectly, which happens when some names become verbs. For example "I Photoshopped the picture" can get the Photoshop people upset. The same with Rollerblading and Xeroxing.
Of course, using trademarked names and defaming a trademark or corporation are different issues and much more complicated legally. There are process to protect journalists, but in fiction you probably want to use fictional names and companies if you're going to be poisoning people off with a product.
Now, going back up to the first part about capitalizing names. Sometimes you need a longer answer on that one to explain why that's the approved process. I go to a local writing group where one gentleman keeps insisting that we have to use trademark symbols in fiction because the companies took out ads in Writer's Digest saying that. Well, the United States Patent and Trademark Office is probably surprised to hear that laws can now be changed by taking out an ad in Writer's Digest. I'm including a link to a long article explaining the details around trademark law and how it applies to use in commerce. But creative writing and fiction aren't generally considered to be use in commerce.
http://hubpages.com/hub/Trademark-Use-in-Writing-Answering-Questions-on-Use-of-Trademark-and-Registered-Trademark-Symbols-in-Writing
|
|
|
|