Does anyone know how to go about obtaining permission to use a copyrighted work?
(just realised that I’m thinking about material published in print, but if it’s on the Net and nowhere else that means the author’s still around and so you contact them). I would do the following: 1. If it’s a big publisher, it would be a good idea to get onto their website and discover which person manages that particular category of book (a follow-up phone call will firm it up). 2. Write asking for permission to include (and here you quote the section(s) that you want to use). It’s best to state the publication that you propose to include it in, and a little about said publication to give the publisher a flavour of where it will appear and the proposed audience. If you want to use the whole work – say, one piece of music in a whole concert – similar considerations apply, i.e. state the context in which it will appear. 3. State whether it’s going to be a commercial publication or not, and a brief summary of your publishing plans – e.g. do you have a publisher lined up. It’s worth sayi
