A Publisher's Conversation with Authors: Someone stole my work! What do I do?
It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. This week's conversation continues to look at copyright issues. Last week, the conversation was about what can and cannot be copyrighted . This week looks at the next, sad, step -- what if someone steals your work, anyway. Can you do anything about it? Yes, you can. Here are some ways to deal with this, from inexpensive to expensive. The Author of the Stolen Work If your words appear verbatim, without citation in the work of someone else, then that person is in violation of copyright law. Are more than 100 words or lines cited, even with credit, then perhaps you or your publisher should be receiving payment? Graphics, too, must be credit