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University of California Press

About the Book

Everything a writer needs to know about the law.

This accessible, reader-friendly handbook will be an invaluable resource for authors, agents, and editors in navigating the legal landscape of the contemporary publishing industry. Drawing on a wealth of experience in legal scholarship and publishing, Jacqueline D. Lipton provides a useful legal guide for writers whatever their levels of expertise or categories of work (fiction, nonfiction, or academic). Through case studies and hypothetical examples, Law and Authors addresses issues of copyright law, including explanations of fair use and the public domain; trademark and branding concerns for those embarking on a publishing career; laws that impact the ways that authors might use social media and marketing promotions; and privacy and defamation questions that writers may face. Although the book focuses on American law, it highlights key areas where laws in other countries differ from those in the United States. Law and Authors will prepare every writer for the inevitable and the unexpected.

About the Author

Jacqueline D. Lipton is an internationally recognized professor of law, a consultant, and a literary agent who has published widely on contract, copyright, and trademark law, cyberlaw, privacy, and defamation issues, with an emphasis on laws relating to the publishing industry. She is the coauthor of multiple editions of leading cyberspace casebook Cyberspace Law: Cases and Materials and coauthor of The Criminal Law of Intellectual Property and Information. She also authored Rethinking Cyberlaw; Internet Domain Names, Trademarks, and Free Speech; and Security over Intangible Property.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments 

Introduction 
Setting the Stage: A Primer on the Law for Writers

1. Copyright Basics 
Ownership, Registration, the Public Domain, and Creative Commons
2. Know Your (Copy)Rights 
Understanding Your Rights and Protecting Your Work
3. Writing for Someone Else 
Ghostwriting, Freelancing, “IP,” and Works for Hire
4. Fair Use Basics 
5. Specific Fair Uses 
Parody, Fanfiction, and Educational Use
6. Contracts with Agents and Publishing Houses 
7. Self-Publishing Contracts 
8. Protecting Your Author Brand 
Trademark Basics
9. Writing about Real People 
Privacy Law
10. Damaging Someone’s Reputation 
Defamation Law
11. Marketing and Social Media 
Websites, Blogs, Book Trailers, Social Networking, and More
12. Photographs, Illustrations, and Other Artwork 
13. Finding Additional Help 

Notes 
Index

Reviews

Law and Authors is a very well-written book that should satisfy the needs of most writers in understanding the basics of publishing law.”
Publishing Research Quarterly

"Law and Authors is a very well-written book that should satisfy the needs of most writers in understanding the basics of publishing law."

Publishing Research Quarterly

"An excellent resource for authors seeking to understand their legal rights and responsibilities. Jacqueline Lipton explains complicated legal doctrines in simple and clear language, using relatable real-world examples. Lawyers should add this book as recommended reading for their clients."—Lydia Pallas Loren, Professor of Law, Lewis and Clark Law School

"A comprehensive guide for anyone writing in today's market. This necessary resource will help writers navigate the legal intricacies of the publishing world. Lipton's down-to-earth examples make this handbook easily accessible to any reader. It will set the writer at ease, answering so many of the legal questions about the publishing process."—George Brown, Executive Director, Highlights Foundation

"An essential resource for writers. Lipton has a gift for distilling complex legal terms and concepts into language that not only enlightens, but empowers. Smart, entertaining, and extremely useful, this is a guide you will turn to time and again, whether you're writing your first book or publishing your seventh."—Bree Barton, author of the Heart of Thorns trilogy

"Lipton's comprehensive, clear, and eminently approachable handbook is essential reading for authors who want to navigate their rights and responsibilities as writers."—Brianna L. Schofield, Executive Director, Authors Alliance

"Exactly what every author needs—a clear and friendly guide through the wilds of publishing. Lipton explains complex legal concepts like copyright, contracts, and trademarks, mindful of authors' practical, real-world concerns. You'll want a copy of this book on your shelf."—Laurie Kincer, William N. Skirball Writers' Center, Cuyahoga County Public Library

Media

Jacqueline Lipton with Jane Friedman, at the Virginia Festival of the Book