Copyright for Authors | Self-Publishing Review

Should You Fight Back Against Ebook Pirates?

The first time you find your work stolen is a strange situation.

On the one hand, your pulse is racing. You think back to the hours of blood, sweat, tears and, well, coffee, you poured into a project in order to see it through to completion. The fact that someone else has stolen it, for whatever purpose, can drive you crazy.

On the other, it’s somewhat flattering. Think about the rock stars of the world. Is their work not pirated all the time? The fact that someone has stolen your work means they see something of value in what you […]

Dave Chesson2020-04-30T05:28:46+02:00July 10th, 2017|Categories: Member Blog|Tags: Copyright for Authors, Dave Chesson Articles|

Authors – Use This Cunning Trick To Protect Your Book From Plagiarism!

There’s a clever way to find your pirated book online if you follow this simple trick, sometimes used by dictionary and reference book publishers. All you have to do is use a Mountweasel.

Yes, that’s right. A Mountweasel. A Mountweasel is a made-up word that is unique to you, and makes it entirely easy to Google your book’s contents to see if has been pirated or plagiarized. Lillian Mountweasel was a fountain designer and postbox photographer whose fame was eternalized in the 1975 New Columbia Encyclopedia. The thing was, she was fake, and entirely a Mountweasel herself!

The word Mountweasel […]

Cate Baum2016-12-13T08:20:51+02:00December 13th, 2016|Categories: Features|Tags: Book Editing Tips, Copyright for Authors|

What To Do When Your Book Is Pirated Online – 5 Easy Steps

Every author should read this article!

Pirating is a massive issue right now and one that all authors should be aware of. Like movies, as soon as your book is made publicly available you are facing someone making it into a FREE PDF and sticking it on one of the many download systems available, with thousands of readers downloading your content. Here’s what to do, following the example I have here for my husband Henry Baum’s book, “Oscar Caliber Gun” – out now for its 25th Anniversary!

1. Check your book title for piracy on Google

Search for […]

Cate Baum2016-06-12T11:17:59+02:00June 11th, 2016|Categories: Features|Tags: Copyright for Authors|

Don’t Fear The Pirates

Damien Walter, blogging for The Guardian, explains why piracy not only need not be a concern for independent authors, it may be just what they need.

Genre writers exist, by and large, in the publishing mid-list, where mediocre sales might seem most easily eroded by the spectre of illegitimate downloads. SF, fantasy and horror are also the literature of choice for the culture of geeks most likely to share their favourite authors’ works on torrent sites.

This is not as much a problem as an opportunity, Walter explains:

Novelist, blogger and digital rights activist Cory Doctorow

[…]

Avery Hurt2020-02-21T06:44:54+02:00April 2nd, 2013|Categories: Features|Tags: Copyright for Authors|

Why I Nuked My Writing Career Before it Even Started

On Friday, September 9th I uploaded my eBook to Amazon.com, iBooks, and Barnes & Noble for $2.99

A week later, I uploaded it to The Pirate Bay for free.

I know what you’re probably thinking. “Well, that was stupid.” That’s exactly what my girlfriend, a few of my friends, and the voice in my head all said.

It took me two stiff drinks to work up the courage to prep the file. I wrote up a half page letter to the reader. This has been uploaded by the author. It took ten years and countless hours to create this […]

Andrew Van Wey2020-02-21T06:44:57+02:00September 21st, 2011|Categories: Features|Tags: Copyright for Authors|

Important Questions to Ask Before You Self Publish (and sign on the dotted line)

So many self-publishing houses; so many empty promises…

In the past year since my own self-published book, The Victor, was released, I have met many authors who have gone the self-publishing route and have learned many important things that they should have given thought to but didn’t even know to ask and are now kind of “stuck” after having spent A LOT of money. There are good companies to self-publish with and some horrible ones, so “buyer beware”! There are quite a few important things you need to ask and consider before deciding on which company to go with […]