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4

Permissions

Permissions

4.01 Introduction

It is the author’s responsibility to obtain permission for the use of material (text or illustrations) copyrighted by others. Because obtaining permission often takes several months and may delay the production of your book, we urge you to send out permission requests as early as possible, well before you submit your final manuscript. Keep records of all correspondence. If you are unable to contact the rights holder of a particular piece of copyrighted material for permission to reprint, consult with the Press regarding the best course of action. All permissions should be on file at the Press by the time you submit the final manuscript.

Determining Whether Permission Is Required

4.02 Journal Articles or Book Chapters

If any of your chapters have been previously published in journals or anthologies (or contributed volumes), you must seek permission to reprint the material unless it has been extensively revised for republication. For example:

• A revised piece that follows the same thread of an argument but is simply abridged for republication or expanded to reflect new research or ongoing developments requires permission.
• Use of the most substantive, vital portions of a previously published piece, even if the sections are relatively short requires permission.
• Culling small amounts of material from a previously published work to advance a new line of thought does not require permission.
• Use of material that could be considered peripheral to the published piece, and which does not constitute a major portion of the new piece, does not require permission.

4.03 Prose Passages

Quotations from newspaper articles or other works of prose that are not the work of the author require permission if what is quoted amounts to more than 10 percent of the whole.

4.04 Poetry and Song Lyrics

Quotations from lines of poetry or song lyrics do not require permission as long as what is quoted is only two to four lines (or ten seconds of playing time transcribed) and never more than 10 percent of the whole.

4.05 Unpublished Works

Permission is required from the rights holder for any amount of unpublished archival materials quoted, such as private correspondence and manuscripts.

4.06 Photographs

Photographs other than the author’s own require permission. Exceptions are screen captures and promotional publicity stills for films, which are considered fair use under the justification that they are small parts of a much larger whole. If there is a credit line or copyright notice to the publicity photo, the Press must be consulted and will determine if it requires permission. Fair use does not apply to photographs of staged performances. Permission for material from websites follows the same guidelines as material from printed sources unless the content is explicitly designated as open access or public domain.

4.07 Artwork

Artwork, including paintings, drawings, and comics, require permission. Artwork produced prior to 1923 is considered public domain, but the author must abide by any agreement signed to gain access to the work.

4.08 Ephemera

Advertisements, posters, interior pages of newspapers or magazines, book and magazine covers, album art, and fliers will be considered fair use when reproduced in their entirety. No cropping can occur.

4.09 Tables, Diagrams, Charts, Maps, and Graphs

Visual representations of data are considered fair use as long as there is not a strong artistic element to the works, which will be determined by the Press.

4.10 Digital Rights

Whenever possible, make sure that reproduction rights granted include digital (e-book) usages. Images, prose, and verse for which digital rights are not specified will be omitted from e-book versions of your work.

How to Request Permission

4.11 Letter of Request

Send two copies of a permission request letter (see Appendix C for a sample letter) to each copyright holder, indicating the material for which you are requesting permission. Specify that you are seeking nonexclusive world rights in all languages and ask that your request be handled as quickly as possible.

4.12 Grants of Permission

OriginalsElectronic copies of all letters you receive granting permission, as well as letters returned by the post office as nondeliverable, must be sent to the Press with your final manuscript submission. In addition, maintain records of all e-mails and letters sent and phone calls made in the process of obtaining permission.

4.13 Fees

Unless otherwise agreed upon, you are responsible for paying all permissions fees.

4.14 Additional Resources

For more information regarding the use of copyrighted materials, as well as interpretations of fair use and information in the public domain, visit: http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/copy_and_perms.pdf.

Submitting Permissions to the Press

4.15 Review Agreements

Review all permission agreements you receive; keep in mind that we need nonexclusive world rights in all languages in order to distribute your book outside of the United States and to arrange for possible translations.

4.16 List of Material

Provide a detailed list of all previously published chapters, including:

• which chapters have been previously published and complete publication citations for these articles;
• whether the material has been revised and if so, exactly how it differs from the original work. This information is critical in determining whether permission needs to be sought;
• whether you or the publisher controls the right to reprint. If you believe that you hold the rights, substantiate this with a copy of your contract for the previous publication. It is not enough that material is copyrighted in your name. Authors are often given the right to reprint their material in a second work written or edited by the author. This does not allow material to be reprinted in an edited collection by someone else without permission.