The Pocket Lawyer for Comic Book Creators

A Legal Toolkit for Comic Book Artists and Writers

Thomas Crowell, Esq.

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781135943370
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Digital Media
• Index: Computer Science

Focal Press' Pocket Lawyer series serves as a legal toolkit for independent producers and artists in the creative industries.

The Pocket Lawyer for Comic Book Creators is designed to help emerging artists and veteran professionals in the comic book industry build a solid foundation of business and communication practices that they need to thrive in today's ever-changing, uncertain world of indie comics. Readers will learn to protect their copyrights, negotiate publishing deals, hire artists so everyone wins, and learn the ins and outs of key contracts with this helpful resource.

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Start Here

• This book has a lot of stuff. How do I find it all? See The Structure of the Book, p. 6

• This book has unique formatting, how do I use it? See How to Use This Book, p. 9

• Who is that comic hero flying through the pages of this book? See Our Heroes, p. 5

Copyrights

• How do I register my copyright? See Protecting and Registering your Copyright, p. 330

• What is work for hire? See Work Made For Hire, p. 308

• What can I protect through my copyright? See Copyright Rights, p. 297

• I was inspired by someone else’s work. How do I determine whether I can be sued for copyright infringement? See Copyright Infringement, p. 318

• I want to use somebody else’s copyrighted work. How do I do that? See Licensing and Assigning the Copyright, p. 311

• How do I find out if somebody still has a registered copyright in their work? See Copyright Searches, p. 338

Ideas & Concepts

• How do I copyright my idea? You can’t

• Okay, Mr. Smarty-Pants, how do I protect my idea? See Protecting Ideas Through Contract, p. 347

• Where’s the line between concept and something that can be protected by copyright? See Ideas vs. Expression, p. 342

Trademarks

• How do I trademark my character? See Trademark Registration, p. 373

• What does a trademark protect? See What Can Be Trademarked?, p. 362

• Someone is using my trademark in a way I don’t like. What can I do? See Injuries to a Trademark, p. 365

• Can I use a company’s trademark without its permission? See Defenses to Trademark Injury, p. 370

• How do I get a company’s permission to use their trademark in my comic? See Trademark License Letter, on the companion website: www­.fo­cal­pre­ss.­com­/cw­/cr­owe­ll

Right of Publicity

• Can I base my character on a real-life person? See The Right of Publicity and Other Privacy Rights, p. 382

• Don’t I have a First Amendment right to draw anybody I want? See First Amendment and the Right of Publicity, p. 383

• How I get somebody’s permission to use their likeness? See Depiction Releases, www­.fo­cal­pre­ss.­com­/cw­/cr­owe­ll

Contracts

• Help—Legal mumbo-jumbo!!! How do I understand my contract? See Appendix G: Contract Anatomy for Comic Book Creators, p. 402

• I just got a publishing contract—I don’t understand it! See The Comic Book Publishing Agreement, p. 224

• I want to make a comic book with another artist; what kind of contract do we need? See The Collaboration Agreement, p. 100

• Someone wants to hire me to draw his or her comic book. How do I know if I have a good contract? See Illustrator Work for Hire Agreement, p. 139

Making a Comic

• How do I form a company? See Setting up Shop, p. 83

• I’m working solo. See The Solo Creator, p. 78

• I’m collaborating with someone. See Collaboration, p. 97

• I want to pay someone to work on my comic. See Hiring Other Artists, p. 130

• Someone is paying me to work on his or her comic. See Working for a Publishing Company, p. 219

• How do I get the word out about my comic? See Blog it! Tweet it! Post it! Promote it!, p. 202

Exploiting Your Work

• How do I get my comic published? See Landing a Publisher, p. 207

• How do I self-publish my comic? See Self-Publishing, p. 263

• How do I digitally publish my comic? See Digital Distribution, p. 272

• Someone wants to turn my comic book hero into an action figure or other merchandise. What I do? See Merchandising, Online Supplement, www­.fo­cal­pre­ss.­com­/cw­/cr­owe­ll

• Somebody wants to turn my comic into a movie; how I do that? See Movie Deals, Online Supplement, www­.fo­cal­pre­ss.­com­/cw­/cr­owe­ll

• I just got an angry letter from a lawyer; I think I’m being sued! What do I do? See What Happens When Something Goes Wrong? p. 278

GETTING STARTED

Introduction

Superman creators, Siegel & Shuster; Capt. America’s Creators Joe Simon, & Jack Kirby; the creators and contributors of Batman, Capt. Marvel, and Spawn—all have something in common with their comic book characters: they’ve all fought mighty battles against tough odds to decide the fate of their heroes.

But unlike their ink and newsprint heroes, these comic book artists were often defeated by the most powerful adversary any creator can face: the gavel-wielding legal system and its labyrinth of precarious contract and copyright laws. One false step and your rights are doomed!

Yes, the history of the comic book is littered with the broken bodies of artists who’ve lost the rights to their creations: artists who have died virtually penniless either because they never owned their creations, or because they sold off their heroes too cheaply.

. . . And I don’t want that to happen to you.

There are a lot of books that that will show you how to create wo...