Copyright help *please*

[-Red XIII-]

I made a 8-+ page story that I wanna copyright. now, do I need to send in the whole 80+ pages to the copyright place (chamber of commerce, i beleive), or can I send in a disc with the memory of the story on it? I really wanna send in a disc, because 80+ pages is alot on our printer. And I've already gone to official sites and they have no info. does anyone know?

[Dr Unne]

What country do you live in? I think you automatically have a copyright on anything you create, if you live in the US.

[-Red XIII-]

US. You get a copyright on anything you make?

[Dr Unne]

I'm no lawyer, but that is my understanding. If you're really concerned, there are lawyers who deal specifically with copyright law.

[rubah]

You own the copywrite to something that you create when you have created it.

However, if someone can prove beyond a reason of a doubt that they had your material before you can (uploading to a website and having it on your harddrive are dismissed because they can be tampered with. Beyond a doubt means stuff like writing it to a disc then having a government agency (usually people will mail it to themselves and leave the envelope sealed) verify the date) then they will be honored as the copywrite holder, even if you really did make it. You have to have a way to prove you did *when* you did.

Don't bother wasting $25 on filing a copywrite claim unless you're *really* paranoid

[eestlinc]

yea you have the copyright now. Just put a copyright symbol and the date on the first page. Unless you are trying to get it published I wouldn't worry about anything more than that.

[Endless]

If you are in the US:
http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/


Gotta love their sense of humor, too:

<b>How do I protect my sighting of Elvis?</b>
Copyright law does not protect sightings. However, copyright law will protect your photo (or other depiction) of your sighting of Elvis. Just send it to us with a Form VA application and the filing fee. No one can lawfully use your photo of your sighting, although someone else may file his own photo of his sighting. Copyright law protects the original photograph, not the subject of the photograph.