Customer Reviews

Author Law A to Z: A Desktop Guide to Writers' Rights and Responsibilities (A to Z Legal Series) (Capital Ideas)

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This book should've been called Entertainment & Media Law A to Z. It is both informative and extremely thorough in its description of the legal and business affairs of the publishing industry. It also provides basic information on recording industry practices as well as copyright & trademark law. This book does a terrific job of informing authors of many valuable resources that exist to assist them. As an attorney, I was impressed with the case law cited by the author. However, this book is written in plain English, and written in a way that people of all backgrounds could easily understand. I would say, to aspiring authors or literary agents alike, this book is a must have.

You've finally received a book contract. Yeah! Congratulations and what excitement. Yet when you study the contract it is 15 or 16 pages full of legalese that you can't understand. What do you do? Sign it?

Here's a great tool to increase your understanding of the issues related to the legalese of contracts. It's not black and white but often in between and the words on the page make a huge difference. It's the author's responsibility to understand these words.

I love what these authors wrote in the final paragraph of their section on how to use the book: "Remember that no book can be a substitute for the advice of a good lawyer. But this book and others like it can--and should--help you better recognize the need to get good legal advice and help you better understand the advice you get. It can help make you a better consumer of legal services and a savvier provider of writing services. But it can't--and shouldn't be expected to--replace solid professional advice."

Here's a carefully written and researched book which explains complex terms in plain, easy-to-understand language. Get this book--and read it. If you do, you will be much wiser about legal matters in the world of publishing.

The latest installment in the "A-Z Legal Series" from Capital Books, Author Law A-Z: A Desktop Guide To Writers' Rights And Responsibilities packs the collective wisdom of author-lawyers Sallie Randolph, Stacy Davis, Anthony Elia and Karen Dustman into plain terms for lay readers - and writers! Author Law A-Z is organized like an encyclopedia, with A-Z entries of common legal and writing industry terms or issues that every author should know, from "abridgement" and "acceptable manuscript" to "young adult books" and Zapruder film", which denotes a landmark legal case about film rights concerning the home video film that accidentally documented the assassination of JFK. In addition to the entries, numerous tips, tricks, techniques, and warnings for the aspiring author in a legally complex world, from a sample demand letter (as written to a vanity print-on-demand publisher masquerading as a traditional publisher) to a sample complaint for copyright infringement, advice for what to say when one's editor calls, and much more. Enthusiastically recommended for spot research or simple cover-to-cover reading in order to grasp valuable basic lessons of the writing and publishing business.

I found Author to Law to be highly informative and full of take-away.This book is a must-read for any author, from the novice to accomplished. I initially wanted more information about copyright laws but discovered there were concessions to negotiate along with royalty rates I hadn't even considered.I wish I had read this before I signed my contract. Now I feel I have tools to work with. And this book is in my toolbelt.