Hi and a few silly questions

Hi

I am new to the board, have had a few articles published and have a few really dumb questions to ask,

1.When you use links to another article in your
article, do you need to contact the other person for
permission. I am guessing yes. Has anyone done it and
what did they do?
2. If you mention a known company like for instance,
Coke, is there some sort of permission you need to
take? Say you're writing an article on soft drinks and
you say Coke is a soft drink, it is black in
color,blah blah. Should it be accompanied by a trade
mark?
3.During e-interviews, When people give you information, on the lines of "This site works this way", do you always have to attribute it to them as a direct quote or something similar?

Any help would be appreciated.Thanks in advance

no question is silly, if you need an answer, right?

1. when mentioning an article, book, song, or anything else that's copyrighted, you only need to give the author's name... you don't need permission... just be careful what you say about it!

2. all trademarked names of products MUST, but law, be shown with the 'tm' symbol... it's a real pain in the you know what for writers and the pros usually avoid it by using generic terms like, 'cola' for coke and 'tissues' for kleenex... i don't have to do it here, because this isn't for publication...

3. whenever quoting someone, no matter where it appears [in print, or on the net] you have to attribute the quote... doesn't matter what they say... put it in quotation marks and tell who said what, if using their exact words... you don't have to use quotation marks if you generalize what was said... but you still have to mention who said it...

i'm not really advising on the boards these days, but i saw your questions went unanswered for quite a while, and couldn't bear to see you just waiting here, twiddling your thumbs... hope this helps...

love and hugs, maia

Free writing help/mentoring now available at: www.saysmom.com

Thanks. That helped a lot. I had one more question along the same lines and if you could find time to answer, I would be eternally grateful
When you e-interview people about their experiences etc, what proof do you have that they are telling you the truth? Do you need to have any?
Thanks again

e-interviews

I usually make initial contact with the person by e-mail, but do a follow-up by phone for just this reason. But then, I started life as a journalist. People lie to journalists all the time (which is why you need confirmation from more than one source). They do it in person and on the phone and by e-mail. But at least when you talk to someone in person or on the phone, you know that they aren't a 13 year old girl masquerading as a 40 year old dog trainer or whatever. Your best bet is to research your subject before you interview (you need to do that anyway to ask intelligent questions) and if your interview subject seems way off from what your research turned up, then look for another one. You can also google your interview subject and see if they show up as a real, legit person.

Re: e-interviews

Thank you so much

Re: e-interviews

I think with the Coke thing, it depends what you're writing. For example, in a story or something, it's okay to say "We drove past a McDonald's." and you don't need a TM sign after it.

Re: e-interviews

it's not quite that simple... here's all the nitty-gritty:

www.publaw.com/fairusetrade.html

the main thing writers have to be careful about is using the proper spelling of the product, and not turning it into a verb or a noun... such as, 'we went roller-blading'... or, 'he gave me a xerox of the report'...or spelling 'McDonald's' without the apostrophe, or with a 'mac' instead of 'mc'

hope this clarifies the issue for all... hugs, maia