Authoring & Playwriting

Register a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office (copyright.gov). Although not a legal requirement, it will protect you against any attempt to get to the underlying rights you acquire naturally through creating the written expression of your idea. Copyright registration is the definitive proof courts will accept that you own the underlying rights to the written expression of your idea. If you're looking for a publishing deal only, get an agent (a literary agent). They will seek out a publishing deal on your behalf. The publishing payout will be an advance in expectation of sales. Royalties will be earned once the publisher's advance is recouped. Self-publish if your intention is an eventual adaptation. Seek a film agent/adaptation agent for that. NEVER pay a publisher for anything., and never initiate communication with a publisher. Use your agent.In all likelihood, a publishing deal will force you to relinquish the rights. That's the key difference. Hybrid Publishing/Vanity Press are the entities out to take away your self-published rights. They cannot do this without your written consent if you approach them with a registered copyright in place, and if you do approach them at that point, they will likely refuse to help you get published. You will be devoured alive if you believe you can get an adaptation without a film agent or obtain a publishing deal without a literary agent. Don't collaborate with anyone without a registered copyright in place, including reputable agents.

Fantastic Jeff Gregory Make sure you put info like this in lounge posts so others can see it too. When you make a post it will go out to anyone who clicks on that lounge but not everyone see's the responses to this post unless they actively look for it. You have lots of valuable information - I'm sure the whole community would like to hear what you say! Thank you so much for always going into such detail with your responses. Glad to have you in this lounge!

Registering a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office at copyright.gov once the manuscript is ready to be given to anyone is your best protection against this from happening.

Great advice Jeff Gregory i forgot that one! Thank you for including that

Hi Anthony

As a fellow author, I am sounding the alarm about bookclubs. There is a massive amount of bookclubs springing up in the past year, offering to feature Writers to their vast following.

They are scammers!

The way legitimate book clubs work is the group decide on an author and novel as a group. They may or may not approach the author, but the group each buys your novel. They read it and then discuss the merits of the book together.

As an author, you actually make money on this type of book club. My books have been featured in a few book clubs and I have even met with the clubs via zoom for q & a. It's been fun and interactive.

With the scammers, you pay to be featured. There is no guarantee that anyone will purchase your book nor review your book. The scammers always promise huge numbers. And they do their homework. They use Kindle Unlimited to skim your book for plot and characters and they study your bio, so it sounds like they've read your book, but you'll never see a purchase invoice from the platform that hosts your book.

You get nothing.

And the scammer walks away with your money..

All the major writing groups in North America have put out warnings about these vermin, so please do your homework.

Dave

Hello Dave

I will take your alarming accusation as a direct message to my previous comment. Understanding your concern about scams, and it’s important for authors to be cautious. However, most of the claims in your post are misleading and i might consider libel. Not all book clubs operate in the way you describe, and lumping every new book club under “scammers” is unfair and could damage legitimate groups and authors’ opportunities.

Many book clubs, especially those with representatives or curators, have the right to select and feature books, sometimes even reaching out to authors proactively. In these cases, authors do pay nothing to participate and can benefit from exposure and engagement, including Q&As, discussion, and even increased sales.

Before raising alarms publicly, it’s helpful to verify facts , do your home work properly and distinguish between legitimate book clubs and actual scams. Otherwise, we risk spreading fear and uncertainty, which isn’t productive for the author community.

As authors, we all want to support one another while protecting our work and that includes doing due diligence and sharing accurate information. Thank you!

Beckham David Hi Beckham. Please accept my connection request and send me more information. Thanks

This is a potentially red flag post from Beckham David, a reversal of soccer star David Beckham. Beware those who stumble across your work in such a manner, everyone.

once again Jeff, I’m not impersonating no one. you’d clearly see my profile and my image so what does your accusation really mean? I have authors on here Stage 32 who can vouch for me and my work so far

Thank yo debra That’s great advice. I’m actively working on crafting a strong logline for my novel adaptation and studying the Stage 32 resources to sharpen it. I truly appreciate the guidance.

You're welcome, Saad Hmaidawi. I second what Debra said. Christopher Lockhart has a great webinar on loglines called “How To Make Your Logline Attractive to A-List Actors, Producers, Directors, Managers, Agents, Financiers and Development Execs.” www.stage32.com/webinars/How-To-Make-Your-Logline-Attractive-to-A-List-A...

Thank you, Maurice. I truly appreciate the recommendation. I’ve refined my logline and would love to hear your thoughts:

After escaping a ruthless political regime that destroyed his past, a haunted exile must decide whether to rebuild his life in silence — or risk everything to confront the system that still controls his future.

You're welcome, Saad Hmaidawi. That sounds interesting. The first part of your logline is strong, but I suggest not using "must decide" in a logline. I suggest telling the goal and the stakes instead. I also think "that still controls his future" is vague. How do they control his future?

Register a copyright before sharing, please.

I'm in exactly the same situation right now, except I'm writing a screenplay, not a novel. And here, the third act has no right to be weak.

The climax is the moment the audience endured the first two acts for. If the ending doesn't hit, doesn't make them hold their breath — everything that came before loses its value. You can write brilliant characters, craft sharp dialogue, build atmosphere, but if the third act falls flat, the screenplay becomes just a well-written story that no one will remember.

That's why I'm sitting here obsessively polishing every scene of the finale. Because I know: either it explodes, or it was all for nothing.

---

This is absolutely true. In my actual case, I have so many ideas, and I am still struggling to write the first one. It has been over a year, and it is not finished yet. I’m so exhausted.

Setting a goal and deadline helped me finish my latest script, Kat Spencer.

And “finishing” is a misnomer as the editing process can easily take just as long, if not longer.

After crossing the finish line, register a copyright through copyright.gov before proceeding further.

Thanks for sharing the article, Amanda Toney. I saw Starship Troopers in theaters as a kid and loved it! One of the things that stood out in the article is "And while it pays deference to some of the book's big ideas, it doesn't concern itself with all that weighty lore and backstory." Sometimes a character, adaptation, or screenplay doesn't need a lot of lore and backstory. It depends on the story.

Start with registering a copyright through copyright.gov for the written expression of your movie idea before reaching out ti anyone.

You don't.

Greetings Beckham,

​Thank you very much for your kind words. These stories come straight from my heart, and I am truly touched that they resonated so deeply with your readers at Luminleaf Books.

​My goal is to share these stories with as many people as possible, and I would appreciate your help in bringing them to a wider audience. I am very interested in exploring how we can collaborate to make this happen.

​I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the next steps.

​Best regards,

Gihan Asanka Bandara

Typo in poster.

This is a potentially red flag post from Beckham David, a reversal of soccer star David Beckham. Beware those who stumble across your work in such a manner, everyone.

Gihan Asanka, register a copyright immediately before any further engagement with anyone.

Jeff E. Gregory

once again I am condemned on by my name . I never claimed to be anyone else other than who I am . just cause unfortunately some old football star go by the same name doesn’t mean I’m impersonating. Don’t be so quick to judge any book by its cover

I would be wary of using AI for book covers. You never know if AI is scraping copyright-protected images to achieve your goal. You're on the hook for any creator if so.

Great list Lauren Hackney - it also helps to make sure that the editor is a reputable one with reviews as a legitimate business. Great editors are really hard to come by.

Leonardo Ramirez Thank you - I forgot that one! Thanks for having my back and including it in the responses! You're the best!

You are very welcome Lauren Hackney. And as we use to say in response in grade school..."I know you are but what am I?' LOL

Wonderful information Lauren Hackney!

Register a copyright first through copyright.gov before disseminating to anyone.

This is exciting! I always start with a character description and arc planning and drafting a beat sheet for Act1 Act2 and Act 3. Hope this helps!

thank you

This is awesome. Keep writing. I sometimes forget when inspiration strikes.

Once you have completed a draft or final copy of the written expression of your idea, proceed as follows: Say nothing/post nothing; otherwise proceed with the following. Register a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office (copyright.gov). Although not a legal requirement, it will protect you against any attempt to get to the underlying rights you acquire naturally through creating the written expression of your idea. Copyright registration is the definitive proof courts will accept that you own the underlying rights to the written expression of your idea. If you're looking for a publishing deal only, get an agent (a literary agent). They will seek out a publishing deal on your behalf. The publishing payout will be an advance in expectation of sales. Royalties will be earned once the publisher's advance is recouped. Self-publish if your intention is an eventual adaptation. Seek a film agent/adaptation agent for that. NEVER pay a publisher for anything., and never initiate communication with a publisher. Use your agent.In all likelihood, a publishing deal will force you to relinquish the rights. That's the key difference. Hybrid Publishing/Vanity Press are the entities out to take away your self-published rights. They cannot do this without your written consent if you approach them with a registered copyright in place, and if you do approach them at that point, they will likely refuse to help you get published. You will be devoured alive if you believe you can get an adaptation without a film agent or obtain a publishing deal without a literary agent. Don't collaborate with anyone without a registered copyright in place, including reputable agents.