What do dragons dream about? For this dragon, it's copyright. If you've ever wondered whether the doodles alongside your class notes are copyrighted, the answer is yes! You'd be surprised at how much copyright you already own. If it's original and tangible, it's covered by copyright. This includes classwork!
According to Title 17, Section 102, of the US Code, copyright protects "original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression." What counts as an “original work of authorship” is purposefully broad and covers everything from diary entries to emails to that novel you are totally writing for National Novel Writing Month right now ;) It also covers song lyrics, choreography, sculptures, videos, computer programs... And these lists aren’t even close to be exhaustive. Basically, if you created it and it exists outside of your head, it is covered by copyright.
Notice that I said that it is covered and not that it can be covered. Copyright protection is automatic. You do not need to register it, and you don’t even need to label it as copyrighted! Labeling and registering are good practice, because registering creates a record if you ever need to prove that you came up with something first, and labeling reminds people that they shouldn’t reuse your work without permission. But neither labeling or registration is required.
So, congratulations! You are the proud owner of A LOT of copyright!
Keep in mind, this also means that works created by other people are automatically copyrighted too. It’s easy to assume that just because you found something online without a clear author or any note of copyright that it’s free to use… but that is the exact opposite of the truth. All of those Instagram posts and Google image search results have copyright attached to them. The only exception is if the creator has marked their work with a creative commons license, signaling that it is free to use. But, even if something is creative commons, the copyright still belongs to the creator. They’re just saving you the step of asking them if it’s okay to use their work for free.
What’s not covered by copyright? Mostly things that don’t count as ‘creative’ or ‘original’. Facts, news, and government works aren’t covered. Neither are recipes, although the particular write up of a recipe might be. It’s usually better to assume something is copyrighted and ask for permission to be safe. Unless, of course, your use is going to be covered by Fair Use, but that’s a topic for another day.
Want to read up more on copyright now? Check out our Copyright and Fair Use research guides.
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