Can You Use Quotes in a Book Review

when you need permission - fair use guidelines — Andrea Costa Photography / Flickr

Note from Jane:This is a cornerstone post of my site, regularly updated.

Whenever you decide to directly quote, excerpt, or reproduce someone else's work in your own—whether that's a volume, blog, mag commodity, or something else—you have to consider, for each utilise, whether or not it's necessary to seek explicit, legal permission from the work's creator or owner.

Unfortunately, quoting or excerpting someone else's work falls into one of the grayest areas of copyright law. There is no legal dominion stipulating what quantity is OK to apply without seeking permission from the owner or creator of the fabric. Major legal battles have been fought over this question, simply there is still no black-and-white dominion.

Even so, probably the biggest "rule" that you'll find—if you're searching online or request around—is: "Ask explicit permission for everything beyond X."

What constitutes "X" depends on whom you ask. Some people say 300 words. Some say one line. Some say x% of the discussion count.

But any rules y'all find are based on a general institutional guideline or a person'south experience, as well every bit their overall comfort level with the gamble involved in directly quoting and excerpting piece of work. That's why opinions and guidelines vary so much. Furthermore, each and every instance of quoting/excerpting the aforementioned piece of work may have a dissimilar answer equally to whether you need permission.

So at that place is no 1 rule you tin apply, only principles. And so I hope to provide some clarity on those principles in this post.

When do you Not need to seek permission?

You practice non demand to seek permission for work that's in thepublic domain. This isn't always a simple matter to determine, but as of Jan. 1, 2020, it includes any work published earlier 1926. (As of Jan. 1, 2022, it will include any work published before 1927. And and then on.)

Some works published afterward 1926 are as well in the public domain. Read this guide from Stanford about how to determine if a work is in the public domain.

You as well do non need to seek permission when you're simply mentioning the title or author of a piece of work. It's similar citing a fact. Any time you land unadorned facts—like a list of the fifty states in the United States—yous are not infringing on anyone'southward copyright.

It's besides fine to link to something online from your website, blog, or publication. Linking does non require permission.

Finally, if your use falls within "fair use," you do non need permission. This is where we enter the trickiest area of all when it comes to permissions.

What constitutes "off-white utilize" and thus doesn't require permission?

At that place are four criteria for determining fair utilise, which sounds tidy, just it's not. These criteria are vague and open to estimation. Ultimately, when disagreement arises over what constitutes fair use, it'due south upwardly to the courts to make a decision.

The four criteria are:

The purpose and grapheme of the use.For example, a distinction is often made between commercial and not-for-profit/educational utilise. If the purpose of your work is commercial (to brand coin), that doesn't mean you're suddenly in violation of off-white use. Merely it makes your instance less sympathetic if you're borrowing a lot of someone else'southward work to prop up your own commercial venture.
The nature of the copyrighted work. Facts cannot be copyrighted. More creative or imaginative works by and large get the strongest protection.
The amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the entire quoted piece of work. The constabulary does non offer any percent or give-and-take count here that we tin can go by. That's because if the portion quoted is considered the most valuable function of the work, you may exist violating off-white use. That said, most publishers' guidelines for authors offering a rule of pollex; at the publisher I worked at, that guideline was 200-300 words from a book-length piece of work.
The consequence of the use on the potential market for or value of the quoted work. If your use of the original work affects the likelihood that people will buy the original piece of work, y'all can exist in violation of off-white use. That is: If yous quote the material extensively, or in a way that the original source would no longer be required, then you're mayhap affecting the marketplace for the quoted work. (Don't confuse this criteria with the purpose of reviews or criticism. If a negative review would dissuade people from buying the source, this is not related to the fair use word in this post.)

To farther explore what these iv criteria mean in do, be sure to read this splendid article by attorney Howard Zaharoff that originally appeared in Writer's Digest magazine: "A Writers' Guide to Fair Use."

In exercise, if you lot're simply quoting a few lines from a total-length book, you are most likely within off-white use guidelines, and practice non need to seek permission. Simply to emphasize: every case is different. Also, much depends on your run a risk tolerance. To eliminate all possible risk, then information technology's all-time to either enquire for permission or eliminate use of the copyrighted material in your own work. Here'south a flowchart that can help you evaluate what y'all might demand to ask permission for.

Three of import caveats about this chart

Nothing tin cease someone from suing y'all if you use their copyrighted work in your published work.
The only way your use of copyright is tested is by way of a lawsuit. That is, there is no full general policing of copyright. Therefore, how you handle copyrighted content depends on how take a chance averse yous are. If you lot make up one's mind not to seek permission considering you plan to employ a off-white use statement, be prepared with the best-possible instance to defend your use of the copyrighted content in the event that you lot are sued.
If you lot intend to produce material that is attainable worldwide and in digital form (such every bit content on the internet, ebooks, etc), and if yous are using content considered in the public domain in the United States, you should double-check whether the content is also in the public domain in other countries. You can learn more than about this issue in The Public Domain past Stephen Fishman.

If y'all're concerned about your risk, you can also search for the rights possessor'south proper noun and the keyword "lawsuit" or "copyright" to see if they've tried to sue anyone. Nevertheless, just because someone hasn't sued even so doesn't mean they won't sue you lot.

If y'all seek permission, yous demand to identify the rights holder

Once y'all've decided to seek permission, the adjacent job, and one of the nearly difficult, is identifying who currently holds the copyright or licensing to the work. It will not ever be clear who the copyright holder is, or if the piece of work is even under copyright. Here are your starting points.

Showtime, verify the actual source of the text. Sometimes writers use quotes from Goodreads or other online sources without verifying the accurateness of those quotes. (As someone who is misattributed on Goodreads, I can confirm: people are misattributed all the time.) If you don't know the source, and you don't know the length of the source work, and you lot don't know if what you are quoting is the "heart" of the work, and so you are putting yourself at run a risk of infringement.
If you're seeking permission to quote from a volume, look on the copyright page for the rights holder; it's usually the author. However, assuming the book is currently in print and on auction, commonly you contact the publisher for permission. You tin too try contacting the author or the writer's literary agent or manor. (Generally, it's best to go to whomever seems the most attainable and responsive.)
If the book is out of print (sometimes yous can tell because editions are only available for sale from third parties on Amazon), or if the publisher is out of business or otherwise unreachable, you should endeavor to contact the author, assuming they are listed as the rights holder on the copyright page.
You tin can also check government records.Well-nigh published books, too as other materials, have been officially registered with the U.s. Copyright Office. Hither is an excellent guide from Stanford on how to search the government records.
For photo or image permissions: Where does the photo appear? If it's in a newspaper, mag, or an online publication, you should seek permission from the publication if the photograph is taken past one of their staff photographers or otherwise created by staff. If you lot've establish the photo online, you demand to figure out where it originated from and/or who it's originally credited to. (Endeavor using Google Prototype Search.) When in uncertainty, seek permission from the photographer, keeping in mind that many photographers piece of work through large-scale agencies such equally Getty for licensing and permissions. Photograph permissions tin go complex rapidly if they characteristic models (y'all may demand a model release in addition to permission) or trademarked products. Here is an excellent, in-depth guide if yous demand it: Tin can I Utilise That Paradigm?

Generally, y'all or your publisher will want nonexclusiveworld rights to the quoted textile. "Nonexclusive" means you're non preventing the copyright owner from doing any they want with the original material; "world rights" means y'all accept the ability to distribute and sell your own work, with the quoted material, anywhere in the world, which is most always a necessity given the digital globe we live in.

Too, permission is by and large granted for a specific print run or period of fourth dimension. For example, if you seek permission for a 5,000-re-create print run, you'll need to secure permission a second time if you go back to press. (And if you publish a 2d edition, you lot'll need to seek permission again.)

A possible solution for some authors: PLSclear

PLSclear, a U.k. business firm, tin can aid secure permissions. It is a free service; here is the list of publishers that participate.

If you're under contract with a publisher

Simply nearly every traditional publisher provides their authors with a permissions course to use for their project (be sure to enquire if you lot haven't received one!), merely if you lot're a cocky-publishing author, or you're working with a new or inexperienced house, you lot may need to create your own.

To help you go started, I've created a sample permissions letter yous can customize; it will be especially helpful if you're contacting authors or individuals for permission. Information technology will be less necessary if y'all're contacting publishers, who often accept their ain form that yous need to sign or complete.

To request permission from a publisher, visit their website and wait for the Permissions or Rights department. Hither are links to the New York publishers' rights departments, with instructions on how to request permission.

Harpercollins permissions information
Penguin Random House permissions portal
Macmillan permissions
Simon & Schuster permissions
Hachette permissions

Will you be charged for permission?

Information technology'south difficult to say, simply when I worked at a mid-size publisher, nosotros advised authors to be prepared to pay $1,000–$iii,000 for all necessary permissions fees if they were quoting regularly and at length. (Publishers don't embrace permissions fees for authors, except in special cases.) If yous're seeking permission for use that is nonprofit or educational in nature, the fees may be lower or waived.

What if you lot don't get a response or the atmospheric condition are unreasonable?

That's unfortunate, just at that place is little y'all can do. If you can't wait to hear back, or if y'all can't afford the fees, you should non use the work in your own. All the same, in that location is something known as a "good faith search" selection. If you lot've gone above and beyond in your efforts to seek permission, simply cannot decide the copyright holder, reach the copyright holder, or get a response from a copyright holder (and you have documented it), this will be weighed as part of the penalisation for infringement. This is not protection, nevertheless, from existence sued or being found guilty of infringement.

How to avoid the necessity of seeking permission

The best manner to avert seeking permission is to not quote or excerpt some other person's copyrighted work. Some believe that paraphrasing or summarizing the original—rather than quoting it—tin can get you lot off the claw, and in some cases, this may be acceptable. Ideas are not protected by copyright, but the expression of those ideas is protected. So, putting something in your own words or paraphrasing is usually okay, every bit long as it'due south non likewise shut to the way the original thought was expressed.

Y'all tin besides try to restrict yourself to using work that is licensed and available under Artistic Commons—which does not crave you to seek permission if your use abides by certain guidelines. Learn more than about Creative Commons.

What about seeking permission to utilize work from websites, blogs, or in other digital mediums?

The same rules use to work published online every bit in more formal contexts, such as print books or magazines, but attitudes tend to be more lax on the Internet. When bloggers (or others) aggregate, repurpose, or otherwise excerpt copyrighted work, they typically view such use as "sharing" or "publicity" for the original author rather than as a copyright violation, specially if information technology's for noncommercial or educational purposes. I'one thousand not talking about wholesale piracy hither, just nearly extensive excerpting or aggregating that would not be considered OK otherwise. In short, it'south a controversial issue.

Does fair use and permissions apply to images, art, or other types of media?

The same rules apply to all types of piece of work, whether written or visual.

Typically, yous have to pay licensing or royalty fees for any photos or artwork y'all want to utilize in your ain piece of work. If you can't observe or contact the rights holder for an paradigm, and it's not in the public domain, so yous cannot use it in your ain work. Y'all demand explicit permission.

However, more and more images are existence issued by rights holders under Artistic Eatables rather than traditional copyright. To search for such images, you can look under the "Creative Commons" category at Flickr or VisualHunt.

Annotation: If yous find "rights-gratis images," that doesn't mean they are free to use. Information technology simply means they are ordinarily cheaper to pay for and overall less of a hassle.

No permission is needed to mention vocal titles, motion picture titles, names, etc.

Y'all practice not need permission to include song titles, moving picture titles, Television set show titles—any kind of title—in your piece of work. You can also include the names of places, things, events, and people in your work without asking permission. These are facts.

Just: exist very careful when quoting song lyrics and verse

Considering songs and poems are so short, information technology's dangerous to use even 1 line without asking for permission, even if you call back the use could be considered fair. However, it'southward still fine to employ song titles, verse form titles, creative person names, ring names, movie titles, etc.

If you lot want to consult with someone on permissions

I recommend my colleagues at Copy Write Consultants, who have feel in permissions and proper utilize of citations.

For more assistance

12 Copyright One-half-Truths by Lloyd Jassin at CopyLaw—addresses mistaken beliefs usually held by authors; Jassin'southward entire blog is very useful and worth reading
Citizen Media Constabulary: Works Not Covered Past Copyright
Is Information technology Off-white Utilise? seven Questions to Ask Earlier Y'all Use Copyrighted Material past lawyer Brad Frazer
Copyright Part FAQ: very helpful—addresses recipes, titles, ideas, names, and more
Very helpful interview with Paul Rapp, an intellectual property rights expert, over at Huffington Post. Discusses vocal lyrics, mentioning famous people, what constitutes fair use, and much more.
Are You Worried Your Work or Ideas Will Be Stolen?

Sample Permissions Letter

Jane Friedman (@JaneFriedman) has xx years of experience in the publishing manufacture, with expertise in digital media strategy for authors and publishers. She is the publisher of The Hot Canvass, the essential newsletter on the publishing industry for authors, and was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Volume World in 2019.

In improver to beingness a columnist forPublishers Weekly, Jane is a professor with The Great Courses, which released her 24-lecture series, How to Publish Your Book. Her book for creative writers, The Business concern of Being a Writer (Academy of Chicago Printing), received a starred review from Library Journal.

Jane speaks regularly at conferences and industry events such equally BookExpo America, Digital Book World, and the AWP Briefing, and has served on panels with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Artistic Work Fund. Find out more.

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Source: https://www.janefriedman.com/sample-permission-letter/