Unscrambling Fair Usage

The doctrine of fair usage says that you can use a small amount of material out of another authors writing as long as you give credit. Fair usage for a book length manuscript is generally considered to be fewer than 500 words.  Some uses however get preference over others; copying for non-commercial research teaching comment and news reporting. Inclusion in an article or book is generally considered okay if you use only a small portion of the original material.

            Unfortunately the courts have made this general rule hard to follow. Some have ruled that using less than 200 words in a particular book to be an infringement of copyright. The courts look to see if the use has deprived the original author of the commercial value of the work.  Using 200 words directly out of an article or poem would probably not be a fair use.

So what should an author do? Here are some general rules.

·        Get permission whenever possible. Some publishers require this. A few even provide a permission form.

·        Ideas and facts in non-fiction are not copyrightable just the style. But if you use them put them in your own words.

·        If you include someone elses work give credit and use as little as possible.