Should Writers Register Their Work with the Copyright Office?

It's a question every new writer asks before sending their work to a publisher, or posting it online.

Do I have to register my work with the Copyright Office in order to own the copyright to it?

And the answer is no. The only thing you have to do to own the complete and legal rights to your fiction or nonfiction is write it. You automatically own the rights to every article, story, essay, song, and poem that you write, finished or unfinished, and no one else has the right to use it in any way without your permission.

And it's a good thing, too. It costs $45 to register your work with the copyright office. And, if you are a prolific writer, registering everything you write could get expensive.

Still, registering your work with the Copyright Office gives you added protection. If anyone does use your work without your permission, proving that the work is yours will probably be easier if it's registered.

But, before you fork over the cash to have your work registered, ask yourself these questions.

Am I Sending My Work to Reputable Companies?

If you're sending your work to reputable publishers and companies, the odds of it being stolen are very low.

The truth is, stealing your work would be more trouble than it's worth. Stealing a writers work means risking a legal battle that would take valuable time and money to fight. It also means risking a loss of reputation, which can be pretty damaging.

In the long run, it's just easier to pay writers for their work, or legally obtain permission to use it for free.

How Valuable Is My Work?

In this case, value is measured by how much time, energy, and effort you put into the work, as well as how much you can reasonable expect to earn if your work is published.

If you spent an hour writing an article that you might make $5 to $25 on, paying to register it wouldn't really be worthwhile.

However, if you spent two years writing a novel that, if published, could possibly mean thousands of dollars in your bank account, paying to register it with the Copyright Office might be worth the fee.

Can I Prove I Wrote It?

If someone did steal your work, would you be able to prove you actually wrote it?

If you've saved the early drafts of your nonfiction book on your computer, or you still have the notes you kept while writing your novel, the answer is "yes." Having proof of the work you actually put into the creation of your project (from brainstorming ideas, to doing research, to creating an outline) can go a long way towards proving that you really did write it.

If, after finishing your project, you decided all you needed was the final draft, so you threw away or deleted everything else, the answer might still be "yes." It just might make things a little harder.

If it ever became an issue, proving your case might be easier if you've registered your work with the Copyright Office.

You don't have to register your work in order to own the copyright to it. But there are some cases when paying to register your work with the Copyright Office might be worthwhile.