When you’ve finished your writing project, unless your only goal is to finish it, you’ll want to know how to present and protect your work.
The vast majority of what I’ve written has been for newspapers, for which I’ve been paid a salary.
Stepping into other areas, especially into independent publishing, means learning a raft of details that have nothing to do with craft.
One detail is copyright. Here are some simple facts from the U.S. government.
www.copyright.gov/circs/circ01.pdf
Reading this handout won’t make you a copyright lawyer, but it should help you ask the right questions.