Protecting Unpublished Work Before the Printing Press

[gbtreasures]

I don't mean to sound skeptical, but how does an aspiring writer protect his/her work before publication? Is it "safe" to post something for critique purposes on any forum for any reason wo fear that it will be pirated? This goes for writing competitions, sending work off to a publishing house for evaluation, etc.? I have wondered about this. Any thoughts on the subject?

[DrG2]

If you are JK Rowling or Stephen King, or another big-selling author, yeah, you have to protect your stuff.

The truth is, ideas are a dime a dozen.

The hard part is selling your work, if you are a nobody. The ideas come easy. The writing comes easy, if you are a writer. The selling is hard.

Everything you write is protected by copyright laws, if it is sitting on your computer, posted on a writer's website, or scrawled on a bathroom wall - - though the last might be hard to enforce.

[gbtreasures]

Thank you for your explanation. Not that I really think I have anything to worry about.... I probably couldn't give my stuff away! I stumbled onto a discussion on the forum regarding my question after I posted. I'm new here, and finding things everyday, so please bear with me.

[mammamaia]

anyone wanting to be a writer should familiarize him/herself with the copyright laws:

www.copyright.gov
www.uspto.gov

and posting complete works anywhere online can seriously hamper-to-kill its chances of being accepted for publication, so it's best to only post a brief excerpt or two...

[James A. Ritchie]

[Metilda]

[DrG2]

[gbtreasures]

This was posted in FAQ's: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=73757#p530320
Here is an example of a publishing company taking advantage of a relatively unknown published novel. The best "mistakes" are the ones that generate a profit. Its up to the author to be diligent once something has been published, or, for that matter, unpublished. Can there be those out there that would take advantage of a completed, half good work and also try to make a profit from it-when they find one? My thinking is, yes. Thank you for the copyright links and valuable insights. I'm one of those ppl that like to kick a subject around for awhile.

[updog]

[mammamaia]