by Mark Monlux, markmonlux.com
Dear Mark,
I am not a cartoonist by profession, but drawing cartoons is my hobby. I developed some unique features for my cartoons like anyone else. My cartoons are just jokes, but not stories. In case, I want to present them to some magazine for consideration, what is the security that they will not copy the ideas?And in case, I print a book out of cartoons and have a copy-right for the cartoons (without distributing the copies), will the magazine guys be interested in publishing my copy-right cartoons. Or will they be insecure for any reason as they are already published.
Kindly suggest your opinion.
Regards,
Cartoon Curious
.
_________________________________________________________________
.
Dear
Cartoon Curious,
It
is great that you recognize
that even amateurs must
act like professionals once
they enter a professional
marketplace. The first and
foremost step you need to
take to protect your work
from infringement is to
file for copyright. Go to www.copyright.gov
and
read Circular 44 which
specifically talks about
copyrights for Cartoons
and Comic Strips.
And it is very important to understand that you are not selling your work, you are licensing it. Licensing means you can grant rights of your work several times, to several people, for several amounts, all depend on the licensing agreement.
Most magazines and newspapers go with a standard one-time use agreement. Which means they get to show the cartoon, article, whatever, once and only once. If they want to use it again they need to contact you.
Most folks submit their cartoons for copyright in a collection. But, this does not mean they are not protected by copyright when used individually.
As far as infringement of you work is concerned, registering for copyright is the most effective deterrent. It is also the strongest route for legal recourse should there be an infringement. And filing for copyright is DIFFERENT than just announcing you have copyright. I can put © 2004 Mark Monlux on everything I create, but for enforceable legal protection it is required that you pay the fee ($30) for a copyright submission. And copyright fees are just part of the cost of doing business.
Licensing applies to all copyrighted material, and while there are some things that cannot be copyrighted (graphs for instance, check Fair Use at copyright website) almost anything else can receive a copyright. Be sure to check as there are different forms of copyright depending on your media and media use, and each has its benefits and procedures (most of which are basically the same) for you to follow.
Additional information on Cartoons, Comics, price ranges, contacts, etc. can be found in the handy dandy Graphic Artists Guild?s Pricing and Ethical Guidelines Handbook.
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© 2005 All Dear Mark materials are copyrighted by Mark Monlux, and may not be reproduced in any way without expressed written permission.