Ms. Marie. I teach students that in every instance they must give credit to both the copyright holder and the author for any passage they use.  Then too, by reason of the complexity of the "Fair Use" rules, those being beyond the comprehension of even lawyers without writing experience, I suggest they never quote or use passages of more than 25 or so words without permission.

That number is NOT the law, since there is no set number of words or paragraphs or even thoughts, nevertheless I personally have never seen any trouble arise from such minimal usage.  Might such a number of words one day bring problems?  Sure, but that is the risk of using the materials of others.

Though those are several years old, my articles, written in association with a well known CG, that appeared in Heritage Quest and in NGS Newsletter a half dozen years or more ago are still the state of the law concerning the questions you asked.

Finally, one cardinal rule to remember: paraphrasing is by definition plagiarism.     
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Marie McKinney 
  To: [log in to unmask] 
  Sent: Sunday, August 14, 2005 11:00 AM
  Subject: copyright laws


  Hello Listers,

  I am aware that many of you have published family history books. My book
  will be self-published at my expense and provided to family members,
  friends, and to libraries that 1) provided permission to copy and re-
  present materials/documents, and 2) requested copies in lieu of payment
  for those materials/documents.

  I am confused and concerned regarding copyright laws and need to know if
  there are specific issues I should address prior to completing my work,
  and whether I should be concerned with copyrighting my own book.

  Thank you,

  Marie

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