A great resource about US copyrights is the NOLO Press Book, The Copyright Handbook What Every Writer Needs to Know. It will show you how to register a copyright for your book and the book also goes over the "fair use" doctrine, which is a sticky part of the law that I am not qualified to discuss-- BUT NOLO is!

Let's go over United States copyrights and trademarks briefly. Copyright protects original works of authorship, while a patent protects inventions or new discoveries. A trademark protects words, phrases, symbols, or designs identifying the source of the goods or services.

You can copyright a book or an essay.

You can trademark a book series or a logo.

You can patent a new type of book binding or an invention described in your book.

See the difference?

All My books are protected by copyright. My book series, the Passkey EA Review, is protected by a trademark. This means that, although another author may write a book about the enrolled agent exam, no one else may use the name; "Passkey EA Review." You can register a trademark yourself online for $275 at the US Trademark office website.

You are automatically granted copyright when you produce your book. Copyright exists from the moment the work is created. The copyright protection is automatic. However, you may prefer to register your copyright with the US copyright office. Registration is voluntary. Authors may choose to register their works because they want their work to be registered in the public record and have a certificate of registration. You must register your work before you bring a lawsuit for copyright infringement.

An online registration of an original work of authorship costs $35 at the US copyright office website. Go to the US Copyright office to register your copyright.

You can do it all yourself with the help of Nolo press. Check out the US Copyright office's website (the information from this post is directly off the US Copyright and US Trademark websites).



Christy Pinheiro, Author of: *The Step-By-Step Guide to Self-Publishing for Profit*

A great resource about US copyrights is the NOLO Press Book, The Copyright Handbook What Every Writer Needs to Know. It will show you how to register a copyright for your book and the book also goes over the "fair use" doctrine, which is a sticky part of the law that I am not qualified to discuss-- BUT NOLO is!

Let's go over United States copyrights and trademarks briefly. Copyright protects original works of authorship, while a patent protects inventions or new discoveries. A trademark protects words, phrases, symbols, or designs identifying the source of the goods or services.

You can copyright a book or an essay.

You can trademark a book series or a logo.

You can patent a new type of book binding or an invention described in your book.

See the difference?

All My books are protected by copyright. My book series, the Passkey EA Review, is protected by a trademark. This means that, although another author may write a book about the enrolled agent exam, no one else may use the name; "Passkey EA Review." You can register a trademark yourself online for $275 at the US Trademark office website.

You are automatically granted copyright when you produce your book. Copyright exists from the moment the work is created. The copyright protection is automatic. However, you may prefer to register your copyright with the US copyright office. Registration is voluntary. Authors may choose to register their works because they want their work to be registered in the public record and have a certificate of registration. You must register your work before you bring a lawsuit for copyright infringement.

An online registration of an original work of authorship costs $35 at the US copyright office website. Go to the US Copyright office to register your copyright.

You can do it all yourself with the help of Nolo press. Check out the US Copyright office's website (the information from this post is directly off the US Copyright and US Trademark websites).

Attorney Stephen Fishman's THE COPYRIGHT HANDBOOK: WHAT EVERY WRITER NEEDS TO KNOW, here appearing in its 9th updated edition to reflect the latest law and copyright regulations. Internet works are covered here, as blogs: a cd-rom provides over thirty updated legal and copyright forms, while chapters handle how to avoid infringement, handle infringers, and get permission to use copyrighted work.

Attorney Stephen Fishman's THE COPYRIGHT HANDBOOK: WHAT EVERY WRITER NEEDS TO KNOW, here appearing in its 9th updated edition to reflect the latest law and copyright regulations. Internet works are covered here, as blogs: a cd-rom provides over thirty updated legal and copyright forms, while chapters handle how to avoid infringement, handle infringers, and get permission to use copyrighted work.