Does anyone know howto copy write a pattern. I have several I'd like to get out there and I'm new at this. How do you go about it.

I will be "listening" - and how do we find a publisher??

Just put copyright material owned by __________ and put the usual do nots on the package. That's all blogger do that design patterns to sell on their blogs. If there is a picture of the pattern anywhere online it can be duplicated in EQ7. This is where the instructions and piecing methods are the key to getting someone to buy a pattern.

I would check with a lawyer who specializes in copyright law. Or at least look on a legal web sight to see what it says.

All you have to do is to claim a copyright on your intellectual property. To do this, put the following notice on each page of your pattern:

Copyright © 2010, [yourcompany or name]. All rights reserved.

You'll want to update your notice each year. The "All rights reserved" part covers all those "do not do this, and do not do that" things that some people are fond of putting all over the place. Those are really just wastes of space unless you feel your audience needs an education about what they can and can't do with your pattern.

Copyright notices and copyrights are only as good as your ability to enforce them, however. If you see your work being copied you can do anything up to and including a lawsuit to try to get justice, but you won't find any law enforcement agency to help you when there is a violation of your copyright.

ha ha unless you are Disney!

Don't quite know what you mean, but Disney, and every other large company that deals in intellectual property, keeps teams of researchers and lawyers on staff to enforce their copyrights, patents and trademarks.

There is no government agency that does that, for Disney or anyone else. The only exception is for counterfeit goods, which is a different subject...

I just copyrighted my Swish! bargello pattern. You can go to the U.S. Copyright Office website to get all the information. Here's the link:

http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/

It is actually pretty simple to do. It costs $35.00. You fill out an online application, pay through a government place (alot like Paypal), and then submit pictures of your completed pattern and item. I applied 2 months ago and just got my Certificate of Copyright Saturday in the mail.

The application is actually pretty simple. There is a tute on it, explaining how to do it, and then it also explains every step along the way as you are doing it. I was nervous for nothing. Let me know if I can help you in any other way.

Good Luck!
Marilyn

I just posted about this for you.

I don't know about this one. I'll see what I can find out from a friend who has published a book of quilt patterns that lives here.