That is a really good question and not one that I knew the answer to until I went through the process with McCall's. I never lose my copyright, McCall's never owns it. I sign a contract saying that they have permission to publish it, but you will notice that not only does McCall's give us credit for the design, they include our pictures and give credit to the maker and quilter. I retain the copyright and they have provided quilters with my Email address so that the okay to show the pattern in a fair or use it to raffle off to raise money is mine to give They do that because I own the right to do that and the answer without exception has been yes. I can't publish the pattern for 4 months after it is released. I always buy at least 50 magazines to use as patterns if I teach a class on the quilt. Thank you for the question.