{"id":2193,"date":"2022-08-10T01:01:20","date_gmt":"2022-08-10T09:01:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/treehousewriters.com\/wp53\/?p=2193"},"modified":"2022-07-28T10:07:46","modified_gmt":"2022-07-28T18:07:46","slug":"auntie-deborah-is-still-giving-writing-advice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/treehousewriters.com\/wp53\/2022\/08\/10\/auntie-deborah-is-still-giving-writing-advice\/","title":{"rendered":"Auntie Deborah is Still Giving Writing Advice"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dear Auntie Deborah…
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\n<\/span><\/p>\n

I wrote a story using another person’s characters, even though they\u00a0said not to. Can I publish it since their book isn’t copyrighted?<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

If the author has published their story in any form, it\u2019s copyrighted. That, however, is beside the point. It\u2019s just plain unethical to do what you suggest. It\u2019s a great way to make enemies in your genre and create a horrible reputation that will haunt your career, assuming you still have one after such a bonehead move.<\/span><\/p>\n

Create your own characters. Write your own stories. Treat your colleagues and their work the way you would like to be treated. Pursue your career with integrity and generosity.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Are self-published books inferior to professionally published books?<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n

It all depends.<\/span><\/div>\n

\nNot that long ago, self-published or vanity press books were assumed to be of inferior quality, that is to say, unpublishable by \u201creal\u201d (traditional) publishers. There were exceptions, of course, but that was the conventional wisdom.<\/span><\/p>\n

\nToday, however, many self-published books go through the same rigorous editing and quality standards as traditionally published books. Some genres, like romance, are especially friendly toward self-pubbed projects.<\/span><\/p>\n

With modern publishing technology (ebooks, POD printing), there are many reasons why a pro-level author might want to self-publish, including:<\/span><\/p>\n