Copyright and Publish?

Question

What is the process of Copywriting my novel so that no one else can steal my idea (cause I don't trust anyone with it)

and after that how do I get It published?

Answer 1

technically whenever you make a work, whether if its a book or a song, it is copyright automatically. of course, you want proof of this. I highly suggest sending an envelope to the copyright office enclosed with your book (a copy of it), a $45 payment to "Register to Copyrights", and a form to:
Library of Congress
Copyright Office
101 Independence Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000

For more information go to copyright.gov and click on literary works.

Answer 2

Don't bother mailing it to yourself like the other answerer suggested. Do you seriously think all the writers in the world, published and unpublished, mail their work to themselves and then not open it, in order to copyright it? Every piece of work they write? And do you think they copyright every piece of their writing, at $45 a shot, through the copyright office? No, they do not.

The true sign of a novice is when your first concern is protecting your writing to the point where you're overly paranoid. Once you put pen to paper or type a story that is original, in your own words, then you ALREADY OWN THE COPYRIGHT. You can do as the other answerer suggests by adding your name, the date and the word and/or symbol Copyright. However, be sure to REMOVE that from any manuscripts you submit to agents and editors because it's the true mark of an amateur.

Edited to add:
To address the second part of your question, obtain a current copy of Writer's Market, which is a good foundation in researching where to publish your work (which is hopefully already written and POLISHED at this point, otherwise you're wasting your time worrying about any of this.) You can also do a topic search right here at Yahoo Answers and you'll discover this "How do I publish my book?" question has been asked and answered a hundredfold or more, with some very helpful information provided.

Good luck.

Answer 3

To copyright yourself is considered amateur when you send to publishers. If your work ends up published, that will be taken care of for you by your publisher as a part of your contract. Putting "Copyright 2007" on your manuscript immediately tells an editor, publisher or agent that he is dealing with a complete amateur who hasnt done his homework and learned how the publishing business works. It's generally a guaranteed form letter saying "thanks but no thanks."

Technically you own your words the moment you write them, however you cannot copyright titles or concepts and ideas. Most lawsuits today involve not plagerism but authors who feel the ideas in their manuscripts were copied. Most of these lawsuits are terribly expensive and lost by the original author at great expense. The winners are the lawyers. Ask Dan Brown. If you write a story that takes place in Chicago in 1900 and I write a similar story that takes place in New York in 2000, it is a different story - even if the concepts are similar. The best way to protect your material is not to share it on the internet or with others. When it is ready, send it to a small publisher or an agent. They will not steal it.

As for getting published, go to the Resolved Questions here - the question gets answered 50 times a day or more and there is a wealth of information hiding in the Resolved Questions. Pax - C.

Answer 4

You can copyright it just by so declaring. "Copyright [sign] 2007 by Doofus Dingus. All rights reserved." The next step (and it adds a lot of security) is to register the work with the Copyright Office (http://www.copyright.gov/register/literary.html). It costs $45, but it makes infringing on your copyright a criminal offense, and you don't have to prove damages to cost the thief a lot of money.

Answer 5

Mail it to yourself and don't open the envelope. The cancelled postmark would be proof.

As for publishing, you have to read Writers Digest and submit the book to publishers EXACTLY the way they want. Hopefully they will decide to publish you. Remember Gone with the Wind was rejected 42 times.