Guest guest Posted December 16, 2008 Report Share Posted December 16, 2008 Hi Jacqueline, I'm sorry - I may be the one who opened this up to a larger discussion by sharing that recipes are shared everywhere else I post and read. I didn't mean to offend. I'm a writer for a living, too, and the way I look at it is with trust for people and for the fact that I will make as much money as I need to make (and it works most of the time). :-) I figure that people should credit the author when using their work, and I trust/hope that they will with my writing (and I always do with other's writing) - and I figure that using my writings and crediting me is a free endorsement. I can afford that kind of marketing. :-) And I don't know about other folks, but seeing one wonderful recipe, endorsed and cited from a cookbook, will guarantee I'll buy that book. :-) I don't condone copying a whole book, and in that case, I do see it as an issue of ethics for the person copying the book - but I see the casual sharing of one recipe, citing the author and book, as really a different gig. I think sharing a recipe is, indeed, sharing that a book is good and worth buying. But then again, as mentioned above, it takes very little to talk me into buying a new vegetarian cookbook. :-) Have a great day, Lorraine On Behalf Of Jacqueline Bodnar Tuesday, December 16, 2008 8:49 AM RE: recipe copyright You can read about copyright as it pertains to recipes here: http://www.copyrigh <http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl122.html> t.gov/fls/fl122.html Here's some more links for info: http://www.copyrigh <http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html> t.gov/help/faq/faq-protect.html It states that someone just listing ingredients is not a copyright violation. However, copying the explanations or directions is, or if it is in a cookbook. Copyright when it comes to recipes has been a subject of debate for years. The courts have not made a firm decision on it and I suspect this will change when there is finally someone who brings a case before them. It only makes logical sense that someone's work would be protected by law, whether it be a novel, poem, song, or recipe. So if someone wants to type up a list of ingredients and use their own words to tell what to do with, then yes, you would be correct that it's not a copyright violation. But if they open the Joy of Vegan Baking and copy word-for-word the entire recipe, including directions, it may be a copyright violation, because most likely that book has been copyrighted. If this were not the case you could buy 10 recipe books, copy every recipe word-for-word onto your own Web site and start a collection of recipes by favorite authors. Take The Joy of Vegan Baking and do that with each page (typing it all up, ingredients and directions) and put them all on a site and let's see how fast the author or publisher doesn't request it be removed for a copyright violation. Or, someone could take Robin Robertsons new cookbook, type up all recipes and slap their own title and name on the cover and sell as their own. True enough, copyright is a tricky area. But as a writer I take it seriously and I'm the one that said if you post a recipe in it's entirety without the author's consent that you are in copyright violation. After reading the government information regarding recipes I still hold this to be my opinion. I believe in protecting one's written work, regardless of what they are writing. Furthermore, if you like there being vegan/vegetarian cookbooks on the shelf at the store then it's in your best interest to not post recipes. This hurts the authors because less people will buy the books. If you want there to be books available and authors to continue to write them, then support the authors by buying the books, not merely spreading their work around for free. Tell people about what recipe books are good and worth purchasing. If people buy, then publishing companies will produce more titles. Those creating recipes deserve to be paid for their work, spreading them around may end up leaving them to go hungry (pun intended). :-) Jacqueline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 17, 2008 Report Share Posted December 17, 2008 As a freelancer myself, Jacqueline, I agree with what you wrote. I do have a good friend who is a " famous " vegan cookbook author and she has gotten some flack within the community for not making her copyrighted recipes available at request. I know that she does not earn much from the sales of her books - which, I think is confusing for people, who might see her name everywhere and presume that this means she is wealthy - and she works very hard to perfect her recipes, testing them dozens of times. She does offer some of her recipes to the public, just not many. I think that we should support these dedicated vegan authors by respecting that copyright. There are plenty of good recipes available online. Respectfully, Marla Rose > Lorraine, > > I respect your opinion, but I do disagree. " Free endorsements " by > someone using your work without compensating you does not pay the bills. > There are SO many people out there who would love to just use the works > of writers and simply give them credit or " free marketing. " In no other > profession do people think like this. Any time I catch a magazine using > my work without having compensating me I bill them, or if it is online, > I ask them to remove it promptly. And it has happened on several > occasions. I make a very good living from the writing that I do, but I > wouldn't if people took my work and used it for free to " help " me with > my marketing. That's not the type of marketing I need, it will harm, not > help. Whether it's one article or a dozen, I don't want someone using it > without my consent. This opinion could also differ depending on if > someone is a writer employed by a company or organization (who would > probably like the marketing help), or who is a self employed freelancer > such as myself (who does not like it). > > Again, I would prefer to buy the books to support the authors. I am sure > there are probably some cookbook authors on this list. I would love to > hear them chime in with how they feel about people freely posting their > recipes. Maybe they also don't mind one, alongside an endorsement. Maybe > they don't care all. I'd love to know either way. But maybe they do > care. And how do you keep it to one? And what if it's not an > endorsement, but rather a " this is the only good recipe in the whole > book " type of review...? The bottom line is that no matter how > convenient or nice someone may think they are being, it is using someone > else's work without their permission or compensating them. If they give > permission I'm all for it... > > I'm going to refrain from posting more on this topic. I think everyone > understands my position and where I come from in having it. No reason > for me to keep saying the same thing over and over again... > > Jacqueline > > > > - > > > > --- > > For more information about vegetarianism, please visit the VRG website at > http://www.vrg.org and for materials especially useful for families go to > http://www.vrg.org/family.This is a discussion list and is not intended to > provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a > qualified health professional. > > edical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health > professional. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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