Copyrighting

In June 25, 2001 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that media companies must obtain freelance writers' permission to republish their articles in electronic format. The ruling arose from the lawsuit of Jonathan Tasini, president of the National Writers Union, against the New York Times. Mr. Tasini argued that online versions of freelance articles are in fact new editions. Therefore, they require their authors' approval. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the New York Times' position that online versions were simply "revisions," which are not subject to the authors' approval.

Here are some guidelines for copyrighting your publications on-line.

• Copyright legally exists in a writer's work.
  
  
• A writer's text can be marked with a copyright notice, "c" in a circle, followed by the year and name.
  
  
• Place the copyright notice conspicuously at the beginning of your text.
  

• Writing can be registered with the U.S. copyright office.
  
  
• Register it after its printing as a "published" work.
  

• Registration provides remedies under federal law in event of infringements.
  

• Copyright forms can be obtained from the Copyright Office's Web site at
  http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/. (Or copyright forms can be obtained free of charge from the United States Copyright Office, by writing to the Register of Copyrights, Library of Congress, Washington D. C. 20559 or by calling (202) 707-9100. To obtain a copyright, the writer must return the completed form and writing with a fee to the Register of Copyrights. Instructions accompany the forms and more details are available in a brochure entitled "Copyright Basics," which is free upon request of the Copyright Office.)
  
  
• A copy of the work can also be sent to the Library of Congress.
  
  
• Contracts with publishers should provide for the author's licensing rights and royalties. Authors should retain their copyrights at all times.

• Employ an intellectual properties lawyer familiar with publishing to negotiate contracts and to protect copyrights for future negotiations, printings, and uses of materials.

• A new ERIC Digest from the ERIC Clearinghouse on Higher Education (ERIC-HE) addresses some complex copyright questions related to distance education. "Copyright Concerns in the Age of Distance Education," by law librarian James H. Walther.
  
• Copyright laws

Computer-Mediated Publishing

Here are some basic tips for using computer-mediated technologies to send manuscripts to appropriate publishing sources and/or to publish on the Internet.

• Writers can use the Internet to investigate appropriate publishing companies and sources.

• To study publishing sources author, proposal guidelines, writers can go to the publishing sources' Web sites. 

• They can follow the publishing sources instructions and send material by e-mail.
   
• See sample process- writing & publishing a book.
  
  
• For self-publishing, they can find Internet resources such as
  http://writerexchange.about.com/arts/writerexchange/cs/selfpublishing/index.htm  

          http://www.lulu.com/

• Writers can publish on their own Web sites. (Observe Web site guidelines.)