"Poor Man's Copyright" is NOT recommended

I can't tell you how many posts I see asking about copyright. It surprises me that something so fundamental to our work as artists is so misunderstood. It actually is very very easy to copyright your works. But you do have to take the time to fill out forms accurately, prepare your 'deposit material', and enclose the correct fee.

Fact #1 - as soon as you create something in tangible form (written, audio, etc) it is considered copyright - but you need to be able to prove that you created it on a specific date.

Fact #2 - sending your work to yourself as Registered Mail is NOT copyright protection. The "poor man's copyright' has not held up in a court of law, because there is no way to prove the 'evidence' was not tampered with - one could even perhaps have sent oneself an empty envelope & put the stuff in later.

Fact #3 - You need to have your works held by a 3rd party. And it isn't that hard, or that expensive.

I've actually found it more cost-effective to register my works as collections with the US Library of Congress for one $45US fee, either:

- form PA to register Words & Music only (most common)

OR

- Form SR as a 'author of music, words & sound recording'. That registers both the underlying work & the master sound recording under my name. I would only use form SR if you have a master recording that you intend to try to place in film/tv.

NOTE - form SR can also be used to register JUST the sound recording. If, for example, I recorded a COVER song (with appropriate licencing, of course), I could register my PERFORMANCE of it as a sound recording.

COMPLETING THE FORM FOR A 'COLLECTION'

-in Section 1, under 'Title of this work' put in a name for your collection, and then list the songs - "Collected Works of Miss Vikki, Jan to Mar 05: #1-Hi, #2-Bye, #3-Aloha", etc. [by the way, unless you are a music publisher your work is "unpublished" (it will be "published by the recording company or music publisher that purchases performance rights from you)]

NOTE - if one of the songs in the collection is picked up, you need to specify, in the contract, that you are only licensing the use of that particular song and not the entire collection.

NOTE - you'll need to remember which collection each song was registed in. I personally make a file folder for each song. On the inside front cover, I write down the date it was created, the date the copyright form was sent, and the name of the collection the song was a member of for the copyright. I keep all the lyric notes & copies of the forms I've sent, etc, in that file.

IT IS WORTH-WHILE
The great advantage to filing with the Library of Congress is that, not only is your work copyrighted, but if someone does steal something from you and you win your case, you will get all your court costs & lawyers fees covered AND $100,000 to $150,000 for EACH infringment of your copyright.

By the way, if you live outside the US, don't send your country's postal orders to the Library of Congress, they won't accept them. It has to be a bank draft.