Getting Cocky:Trademarking Romance Titles:

Marissa D

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I think what she's thinking is that any publicity is good publicity. She's evidently about to embark on making a movie of one her books which she will not only direct but act in as well, and many think this was just a stunt to help boost her crowdfunding effort for that. Except innocent people are being hurt by this little stunt.
 

SepiaAndDust

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I think what she's thinking is that any publicity is good publicity. She's evidently about to embark on making a movie of one her books which she will not only direct but act in as well, and many think this was just a stunt to help boost her crowdfunding effort for that. Except innocent people are being hurt by this little stunt.

Which is why the authors who've been hurt should include a "dirty hands" challenge in their petitions. It's unlikely to be a successful challenge, but either way will put a hitch in Hopkins' getalong for any future trademark applications.
 

Jan74

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Wow...I'm flabbergasted!!!! I tried watching the video, but she annoyed me so I couldn't....I just could.not.listen.to.her.

Here's the thing, I never knew who she was before all of this, but now I do and I will never download her books regardless if they are KU or .99 cents. What she has done is horrible. J.K Rowling didn't trade mark Harry....she trademarked Harry Potter, I can write a kids book and call it Harry the Hero or whatever...but I can't call it Harry Potter the Hero....anyways.....why the trademark people ever let her TM one word is beyond me.

Like someone else mentioned, what if someone TM the word Brother, or Cowboy, or Duke? It's so absurd. She could have TM The Cocker Brothers, that would make sense, but not the word Cocky, especially in Romance Genre...good grief WTF did she expect to happen?

Remember that scene in A few good men, when Jack says "You messed with the wrong Marine...." boy did she mess with the wrong genre of authors....I hope the readers, the authors, RWA eat her alive.
 

ULTRAGOTHA

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mrsmig

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RWA tweeted that they've stepped in with Amazon about their removals.

So very glad they're doing this. The further this thing goes, the more I worry about the very real danger of like-minded authors in other genres trying the same stunt.
 

lizmonster

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Yup. Since at least the mid-90s. Understaffed, underfunded, overworked.

Yeah, when I took a shot at the USPTO, I should've made it clear I know this is the reason. It's not reasonable to expect a small group of people to understand the ramifications of every single patent and trademark request that passes through the office, regardless of category. (This one, though...hm.)

I hope she loses in court and has to pay a lot of people a lot of legal fees.
 

Jan74

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"Apparently" via twitter, (I'm not on twitter but I sometimes troll the interesting feeds like this one) that she is only going after "indie" authors(that is what the tweet said) and that she isn't going after anyone who has a publishing house behind them. Which really pissed me off, because that is very calculated move on her behalf...if it's true. I did notice that amazon isn't treating everyone the same, Vi Keeland/Penelope Ward's book "Cocky Bastard" is still up with its original title.

So I am super confused why some authors have had their amazon books blocked and removed from sale, one author can't even get access to her work to comply with the changes since Amazon has taken it down completely and she can't open it on her dashboard(I think that is what she said)

It's all so frustrating to see one person affect so many others out there. I hope others see the backlash and take good warning NOT to try and TM a word, a popular word too.
 

Jan74

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Jenny Trout live tweeted the whole video so we don't have to watch it all.
https://twitter.com/Jenny_Trout/status/993903697087352832

We, as a country, have underfunded the Trademark and Patent office for decades. That's why this sort of crap gets through.

It truly reminds me of that Jeff Foxworthy song, "Here's your sign". What in the world would possess her to make a 1hr+ video of her ranting? It's just mind-boggling. I think she's a prime example of why having a community to support you is important in writing, a place where writers can point blank say....that's a bad idea don't do it. If she belonged to AW maybe she would've asked "should I do this?" before doing it....then the members here would've given her some honest feedback AND she would've spared others some heartache in having to relaunch already published materials.
 

frimble3

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What if someone TM the word Brother, or Cowboy, or Duke? QUOTE]
Well, if someone tried to TM the word 'Duke', legions of John Wayne fans rise up in righteous wrath. And, if he didn't try to TM 'The Duke', ain't some writer gonna get away with doin' it now.
As for TMing 'Brother' - see any of various monastic orders.
The Dallas Cowboys can take care of themselves. As can Western songwriters - wanna be mocked at the Grammies?
 

SepiaAndDust

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I did notice that amazon isn't treating everyone the same, Vi Keeland/Penelope Ward's book "Cocky Bastard" is still up with its original title.

Published in 2015, well outside the scope of first use in commerce claimed by Hopkins, which was June of 2016. A claim which may not be true, incidentally.
 

Jan74

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I just saw via a blog that the author who had two of her books locked and removed has had them reinstated yay :) I also read that the RWA has sent amazon an email asking them to step back while this gets sorted.

Now I'm not sure, but I read somewhere that this doesn't apply in Canada, this TM is only valid in the USA.
 

Polenth

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So very glad they're doing this. The further this thing goes, the more I worry about the very real danger of like-minded authors in other genres trying the same stunt.

There is a potentially similar situation going on in another genre. An author in the LitRPG genre (a type of gaming fiction) is trying to trademark the genre name. It's a small and fairly new genre, which means the name is at risk of being grabbed as a trademark. Potentially, it could lock out any author from using the genre name, including those who first came up with it.
 

ElaineA

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It truly reminds me of that Jeff Foxworthy song, "Here's your sign". What in the world would possess her to make a 1hr+ video of her ranting? It's just mind-boggling. I think she's a prime example of why having a community to support you is important in writing, a place where writers can point blank say....that's a bad idea don't do it. If she belonged to AW maybe she would've asked "should I do this?" before doing it....then the members here would've given her some honest feedback AND she would've spared others some heartache in having to relaunch already published materials.

I think it's pretty clear she's a Trump-level narcissist. Those kinds of people don't think they need a community. They think a community needs THEM.
 

AW Admin

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Cocky adj. s.v. OED:
†1. Lecherous. Obs.
1549 W. Thomas Hist. Italie f. 127v He was not cockie enough to satisfie hir appetite.

2. ‘Vain, affecting airs of importance’ (Jamieson); conceited; arrogantly pert. colloq. (Cf. cocksy adj.)
1768 A. Ross Fortunate Shepherdess 150 (Jam.) And now I think I may be cocky, Since fortune has smurtled on me.
1846 J. B. Morris Let. in M. Pattison Memoirs 222 People say that converts are ‘cocky’.
1858 R. S. Surtees Ask Mamma xxv. 95 This might have been all very well..if the cocky Major had had plenty of money.
1863 C. Kingsley Water-babies iii. 101 He looked the cockiest little man of all little men.
 
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Laurasaurus

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We've now reached the point where reviews with the word "cocky" are being removed.
I just read about that too. Reviews of books not even in the romance genre, being removed for containing the word cocky.
How the actual fuck is this being allowed to happen?
 

SepiaAndDust

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Now I'm not sure, but I read somewhere that this doesn't apply in Canada, this TM is only valid in the USA.

Most first-world nations use the Madrid system, including the US. Canada, however, does not, but they have, in recent years, taken strong steps toward implementation. Other countries that use non-Madrid systems include Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Brazil.

Of course, some countries use the protocols as written, and some have carved out exceptions and additions.
 
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ElaineA

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I just read about that too. Reviews of books not even in the romance genre, being removed for containing the word cocky.
How the actual fuck is this being allowed to happen?

If that's the case, I assume she'll be losing a lot of reviews, too. Unless it's ONLY okay to use the word on HER reviews, which, if that's the standard Amazon is setting, it's an indefensible one.

This is what happens when you wield a hammer instead of a scalpel.
 

Haunted_October

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Just an FYI~ she is now going after REVIEWS of books with the word cocky in them. In genres outside of Romance (mystery being one).

Reviews with the word cocky. She thinks she actually owns the damn word!