Stacey from Edinburgh
sent in the follow question: In my
debut novel I have quoted some song lyrics, just a few lines, but some of my
friends who have read the book say I should delete the words because I’m
breaking the copyright law. I don’t see how I’m doing anything wrong because
I’m not playing the music, just using some lines to illustrate a point, but are
my friends right? Am I breaking any law?
The easy answer to this question simply doesn’t exist. There
is such a thing as ‘fair use’ which entitles you to use a few lines without
transgressing copyright. However, there is no hard and fast rule over what
constitutes ‘fair use’ of song lyrics and you could find yourself in a deep
financial hole if you use someone’s lyrics without first gaining permission to
do so. http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/copyright/p09_fair_use
You would need to contact the copyright holder (or their
agent) and ask for permission to use the lyrics. You’ll be charged (usually
quite a hefty fee) and will need to include certain information in your book
covering details regarding the copyright.
If the song is deemed to be ‘in the public domain’ then the
situation changes: http://copyright.cornell.edu/resources/publicdomain.cfm
Buying permission to use song lyrics is never cheap, but
using them and being taken to court afterwards will be even more costly, so
it’s best to avoid including them unless they are absolutely essential to your
novel.
The following links are all worth reading as they could save
you a great deal of money.
One other thing to bear in mind is that song titles are not subject to copyright and
can be used freely, unless they have been protected by trademark or other
registration.
Critique Service for Writers
Flash 500 Flash Fiction Competition
Flash 500 Humour Verse Competition
This is incredibly useful, thank you. I just did not think that you'd need permission to use lyrics when the music is not involved, but having read this, it makes perfect sense.
ReplyDeleteI presume songs such as national anthems are considered in the public domain?
Helena
Hi Helena, I'm afraid you cannot assume anything is in the public domain. It's necessary to do a bit of checking. My golden rule is this: if in doubt, don't take a chance as it could be expensive!
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