
View Full Version : submitting a new ebook


bobcdy
07-02-2009, 12:11 AM
I've been scanning a few of my old mystery books, and a few are almost ready for reading and I'd like to share them. I wondered about submitting them to MobilRead; the problem is that I don't know anything about the copyrights of these old 1930s mystery stories. Is there any way to check on this, or should I simply submit them (I suppose all I need to do is give a link for the books?) and they can be withdrawn if anyone objects?
Bob

Nate the great
07-02-2009, 12:15 AM
If they're from the '30s then you'll need to check if the copyright was renewed in the US. Here is a good place to check:
http://collections.stanford.edu/copyrightrenewals/bin/search/simple;jsessionid=F0961DD7587B17EFEE1A53459D8CD4A9

HarryT
07-02-2009, 03:25 AM
Please do NOT simply post them without rigorously checking their copyright status first. It is your responsibility to ensure that the books that you post are either in the public domain, or are posted with the permission of the author.

If the author died in 1958 or earlier, the books will be in the public domain in Canada, and can safely be posted to our Canadian server.

Thanks,

HarryT
07-02-2009, 07:15 AM
Further to my previous post: the best single source of information about books and authors that I know of is:

http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk

If you look up an author there, you should be able to find their dates of birth and death, unless they are really obscure.

Remember, 1958 or before is the important date. Before that, and we can host the book on our Canadian server.

bobcdy
07-02-2009, 07:08 PM
Thanks for the info, HarryT and Nate - I'll check the two sites
http://collections.stanford.edu/copy...1A53459D8CD4A9 and
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk
Yesterday I checked stanford and found that two are not on the copyright list but that one other one was still in copyright (renewed).
Bob

bobcdy
07-02-2009, 07:25 PM
This seems pretty simple except for reprints or copyright renewals - suppose an author died in 1950 but his books have been reprinted. For example I have a reprint book, originally published in 1927 but reprinted in 1988. On the back of the title page, it states "All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced...without the prior permissions of ..."

Does this mean that the copyright has been extended and the book cannot legally be made into an ebook and distributed from Canada? If so, then any old book that has been reprinted might well still be protected and it will be difficult to know its status without contacting the reprint publisher (and that might be difficult to do because the reprint publisher might no longer exist because it went out of business or might have been bought by another publishing company).
Bob

Patricia
07-02-2009, 07:31 PM
If the author died in 1950 then the Canadian copyright has expired and you may safely upload it.
I have uploaded 1930s detective stories whose copyright has expired and which have been reprinted a lot. Some are still in print.
HarryT has uploaded all of Dickens, and he is still regularly reprinted.

bobcdy
07-03-2009, 03:43 PM
Thanks Patricia,
I have a book I like to submit: 'Death Points a Finger' by Will Levinerew (pseu. of William Levine) who was born in 1881 but whose death date I can't verify. His books are not listed on Stanford's Copyright Renewal Database, but I still don't know if it's ok to submit this book because his death date is uncertain. What is the general opinion of submitting such a book?

Also, I'm still not sure about how to upload an ebook. I don't see any directions about how to do this; also HarryT suggested Proj. Gutenberg not MobilRead- does this mean that submissions are not welcome from new registrants?

Bob

DaleDe
07-03-2009, 04:11 PM
Thanks Patricia,
I have a book I like to submit: 'Death Points a Finger' by Will Levinerew (pseu. of William Levine) who was born in 1881 but whose death date I can't verify. His books are not listed on Stanford's Copyright Renewal Database, but I still don't know if it's ok to submit this book because his death date is uncertain. What is the general opinion of submitting such a book?

Also, I'm still not sure about how to upload an ebook. I don't see any directions about how to do this; also HarryT suggested Proj. Gutenberg not MobilRead- does this mean that submissions are not welcome from new registrants?

Bob

Ebooks are welcome uploads from all registrants, new or old. To upload a eBook it is the same as an attachment. Just pick the eBook forum in the correct format and start a new thread. All of the eBook sections have instructions at the top. His pseudo name was Will Levinrew. (using that spelling may help google) the 2nd edition was published in 1945.

Dale

bobcdy
07-03-2009, 04:25 PM
Dale,
Thanks for the fast reply. I used the correct spelling of Levinrew for my google search but got it wrong in my post. I'll post the book soon both in mobi and html format, unless I see a post saying it should not be posted because of uncertain death date.
Bob

pdurrant
07-03-2009, 04:33 PM
I have a book I like to submit: 'Death Points a Finger' by Will Levinerew (pseu. of William Levine) who was born in 1881 but whose death date I can't verify.

A pulp magazine with a story by William Levinrew was republished in 2008 by Girasol Collectables, Mississauga, Ontario, claiming "with full permission of the copyright holders." It might be worth contacting them for more info.

You certainly shouldn't upload to Mobileread unless you're sure the author died in 1958 or before. Well, unless it's out of copyright in the US, in which case ask the mods about the US server.

Please do persevere - uploads from members are one of the highlights of Mobileread.

Patricia
07-03-2009, 05:31 PM
I have some bad news about the copyright.

I did some Googling, and the Browne Popular Culture Library has a box of correspondence betweem Margaret Millar and Will Levinrew for the period 1911 - 1976. This rather suggests that Mr Levinrew was alive in 1976 (given that authors tend to stop writing when dead). If so, all his works are still in copyright everywhere.

Therefore, it would not be a good idea to upload the book here. This is a pity because it sounds interesting. We shall just have to wait till some time after 1 January 2027.

Here's the link:
http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/pcl/page39334.html
Go towards the bottom of the page. The correspondence is the first item in box 4.

bobcdy
07-03-2009, 07:44 PM
Patricia,
Thanks for the info; you're certainly right, it would be difficult for a writer to correspond from beyond with a still-living author. Strong evidence as to the copyright still being in force.
Bob

bobcdy
07-03-2009, 10:56 PM
I've been researching copyrights with Google and found a site http://copyright.cornell.edu/resources/publicdomain.cfm
and I'm confused about what is still copyright protected in the USA. According the cornell site, works first published in the USA in the period 1923 to 1963 with copyright notice but with no renewal are no longer copyrighted. If true, then the 70 year rule in the USA (or the 50 year Canadian rule) does not apply to Levinrew's books because according to the Stanford copyright database, none of his books were renewed.

Am I missing something that should be obvious?
Bob

Nate the great
07-03-2009, 11:02 PM
I've been researching copyrights with Google and found a site http://copyright.cornell.edu/resources/publicdomain.cfm
and I'm confused about what is still copyright protected in the USA. According the cornell site, works first published in the USA in the period 1923 to 1963 with copyright notice but with no renewal are no longer copyrighted. If true, then the 70 year rule in the USA (or the 50 year Canadian rule) does not apply to Levinrew's books because according to the Stanford copyright database, none of his books were renewed.

Am I missing something that should be obvious?
Bob

You have your information correct. If the work was published before 1964 and the copyright was not renewed then it is in the public domain in the US.

bobcdy
07-04-2009, 12:00 AM
I'll wait a few days for other posts, and then I'll try an upload if none object to the submission of the book.
Bob

bobcdy
07-04-2009, 10:52 PM
Well, I've been researching copyrights more by studying the material on Project Gutenberg and at the US Copyright Office, and I am thoroughly confused and uncertain. Apparently, the only way to determine renewal for books in the period 1923-63, apparently, is to visit the US Copyright Office and search in their reading room OR pay $35.00 for a copyright search. Neither option is feasible, so one can't rely on the publication date of 1923-1963 of a US book and an internet search for renewal (such as the Stanford copyright site) as being sufficient for proof of public domain status. I think the only safe way for books where little if any info about the author is available on the internet is for them to be published before 1923; otherwise public domain status cannot be demonstrated. Likewise, for a US citizen to submit an ebook to MobileRead for any US book published after 1923 is probably unwise because public domain in the US cannot be established unless it already is available on Project Gutenberg (or Archive.org ?) in some form. The US does not recognize the date of author's death as relevant.

I'd appreciate help on this matter from anyone who has experience in determining copyright renewal.
Bob

Nate the great
07-04-2009, 11:13 PM
I don't know about the other staff here at MR, but I've found the Stanford archive to be reliable.

BTW, books published between 1950 and 1964 have renewal notices that can be checked at www.copyright.gov. So really the only years that should worry you is 1923 to 1949.

Jill74
07-05-2009, 11:48 PM
If they're from the '30s then you'll need to check if the copyright was renewed in the US. Here is a good place to check:
http://collections.stanford.edu/copyrightrenewals/bin/search/simple;jsessionid=F0961DD7587B17EFEE1A53459D8CD4A9

Alright, I'll check this Nate.

bobcdy
07-07-2009, 03:28 PM
Nate,
Thanks for the info. I think I finally understand the Stanford database significance: Proj. Gutenberg has a text version of data from the pertinent U.S. Copyright Office records for the years 1950-1993, and Stanford's database is based on the same files. According to U.S. law, renewals for the important period 1923-1963 must be filed 28 years after the original copyright was granted; thus for the Levinrew book, first copyrighted in 1933, renewal should have been requested in 1933 + 28 = 1961 - the record would be in the card catalog of the Copyright Office reading room if renewal was requested. The Pro. Gutenberg texts and the Stanford database covers renewals for all these years so that a search of either of these online record sources SHOULD be the same as searching the Copyright Office reading room records and the web searchable Copyright Office database that starts in 1978. Not finding renewals in the Stanford database should be sufficient to justify submission of an ebook, because the database (or the Proj. Gut. text files) is the best record source available.

If anyone has different opinions please let me know.
Bob

DaleDe
07-07-2009, 03:56 PM
If anyone has different opinions please let me know.
Bob

I believe this to be the case, however there was a second edition published in 1945. I am not sure as to the status of a second edition's effect on a copyright date. But that edition, if it changes the date would also be in the Stanford database if renewed.

Dale

bobcdy
07-07-2009, 10:22 PM
Dan,
I don't know the effect of the 2nd edition, either, but as you indicated, renewal of either edition should be in the database so I think it's safe to submit the book to MobilRead. I'll do this as soon as I check it over again.
Bob

Patricia
07-07-2009, 10:24 PM
If you upload it, Bob, then please use the "report post" button and ask a moderator to move it to the US server.

bobcdy
07-08-2009, 12:29 AM
Patricia,
Yes, I'll do that (as soon as I figure out exactly how to upload - I believe there are some posts about this that I'll look at before trying anything).
Bob

Patricia
07-08-2009, 07:28 AM
Just start a thread in the relevant book upload section.
Try and follow the guidelines for naming the thread (so that it appears properly in the upload section and can be searched for).
To attach the book, click on the manage attachments button at the bottom of the thread that you have just started, and follow the instructions.

bobcdy
07-09-2009, 12:27 AM
Patricia,
I just uploaded the book 'Death Points a Finger' but I'm not sure that I requested it be moved to the U.S. server in the correct way. I did not see a 'post button' anywhere so I used the 'contact' link that was given in the 'manage attachments' screen and requested the move. I hope this works ok.

Also, thanks for the info on how to upload. I was a bit confused until your post came through.
Bob

HarryT
07-09-2009, 05:07 AM
Hi Bob,

When you look at any message in the forum, on the left side, below the poster's name, is a small button with "!" on it. This is the "Report Post" button. When you upload a file which needs to be moved to the US server, after you've uploaded the book, please click this button on the resulting message in the forum and say "Please move this book to the US server" or something similar.

I have moved this book for you.

Thanks,

bobcdy
07-09-2009, 01:55 PM
Thanks, HarryT. I would never have found the post button on my own.
I assume that any US book whose lack of copyright is based on absence of renewal in the Stanford database should be moved from Canada to the US, and I'll do this for any other such book I upload.
Bob

SensualPoet
12-09-2009, 09:05 PM
No one mentioned in this entire thread that Will Levinrew (aka William Levine) was born in 1881 and his last known work at Library of Congress is from 1945. That would make him 128 years old already and 77 in 1958. In the absence of proof he seriously lout-lived his peers born in 1881, this is a low-risk for violation.

Patricia
12-09-2009, 09:58 PM
No one mentioned in this entire thread that Will Levinrew (aka William Levine) was born in 1881 and his last known work at Library of Congress is from 1945. That would make him 128 years old already and 77 in 1958. In the absence of proof he seriously lout-lived his peers born in 1881, this is a low-risk for violation.

Ah, but a fair number of people do live until their eighties and nineties. I wouldn't want to take the risk. And in my post #12 in this thread I established that Mr Levinrew was alive in 1976.

We can't host any of his work on our main Canadian server because it is still in Canadian copyright. But any works that have fallen into the US public domain (either because they are pre-1923, or later publications whose copyright was not renewed) can be put onto our US server.

HarryT
12-10-2009, 05:32 AM
A quite surprising number of authors did write pre-1923, and then go on to live into the 1970s. Two well-known examples are Agatha Christie (died 1976) and P.G. Wodehouse (died 1975).
http://www.mobileread.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-50096.html
www.mobileread.com
crawl=CC-MAIN-2015-11
24036
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:7MAH4SHLC7CV7HLTQ2UQSTIUO5JDAY3I
<urn:uuid:23cc99b6-2e9a-46ca-8dec-e64f8816c512>
2015-03-05T04:16:29Z
66.55.128.228
sha1:SFELWY3BBTDXVLRGLOONRVGVVKM6IRZ6
<urn:uuid:5581689b-c994-4a10-9231-a58866f9572c>
http://www.mobileread.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-50096.html
length
response
<urn:uuid:d8972cc7-f292-483d-8a3f-f1646643b778>
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-28-5-156.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2015-11
operator: CommonCrawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for February 2015
publisher: CommonCrawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf