Do poets and novelists normally copyright their work before submitting to publisher?

Question

and how much does publishing a work of 200-300 pages cost?

last and not least...how long does copyrighting process take?

Answer 1

The work is copyrighted immediately upon placing it in a tangible form such as in print.

Should a publishing house or a literary agency accept your work then they will usually get the manuscript copyrighted for you at the Library of Congress.

You can always submit your work to the Library of Congress to obtain a certificate of registration if you wish. Log on to www.copyright.gov, click on the appropriate URL, read all the instructions for copyrighting literary art manuscripts, and fill out the TX form. I believe the cost is now up to $35 for either one manuscript or as many as you can include in the form.

From the day you mail in your manuscript copy and the completed TX form the usual wait is eight months before you receive your certificate of registration.

Clicking on the URL TX Form you will see at the top left hand corner a phone number to call with questions.
(202-707-3000) It appears you can fill out the TX Form, print it, and then mail it with your submission to the Library of Congress.

Answer 2

The minute you put an idea in print, it becomes your property. One way to protect your work is to make a copy of your work, put it in an envelope, and mail it to yourself. Once you receive it in the mail, DO NOT OPEN IT!!! Put it somewhere where it won't get lost or damaged. Do this before you send anything to a publisher, that way if there is a dispute later on, you can take your unopened envelope to court as proof to when you wrote it. I repeat, DO NOT OPEN IT!!!

Answer 3

Here is a good site to check up on copyrights.

http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/bytopic/intprop/circ1.html

Answer 4

Only if they are tinfoil-hat-wearing paranoiacs.