Intellectual property copyright What with all the hullabaloo about James Frey and his nonfiction book, A Million Little Pieces—which turns out to be not nonfiction but an amalgam of true and fabricated embellishments, the emphasis on intellectual property copyright is even more important.  No, Frey did not copy or infringe in that respect on any intellectual property copyright laws, but he did bring back to the forefront of the publishing world’s conscious the issue of real and fair versus false and unfair.    Combined with the ways of the world and those on the worldwide web who are less than scrupulous, the need for intellectual property copyright is imperative.  So first, here are a few of the standard terms as they apply to intellectual property copyright procedures, according to the U.S. Copyright office codes and such firms and institutions as The San Diego Business Law Firm: DEFINITION of INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY Intellectual property is any creation done by the mind (intellect).  This includes writing, art, inventions, methods and techniques and practices, and processes. DEFINITION of COPYRIGHT Copyright is protective coverage, as instituted by the United States and its laws (title 17, U.S. Code).  This coverage is granted to those applying for protection of any original work of authorship—including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works (such as technological and scientific, though not those that are or will be protected by patent or trademark). Copyright protection covers both published and unpublished works, depending upon the author’s application of and for copyright protection. GETTING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY COPYRIGHT PROTECTION If you are an author or creator of any of the above intellectual property, you can get protection (for as little as 35 bucks).  You can go directly to the U.S. Copyright site, or you can learn more from one of the following thorough and supportive links: AuthorsLawyer.com – Includes copyright management tools, copyright sources, scam info, and more…. NetEnforcers.com – offers services to educate and protect you…. Whatiscopyright.org – a q and a that covers definitions and distinctions (between, say, patents and copyrights)…. FURL (furl.net) – to furl your site to check for copy thieves Brint.com (http://www.brint.com/IntellP.htm) – pages on Intellectual Property Copyright Law and (other) Technology: Copyrights, Trademarks, and Patents…. LawGirl Says…( http://www.lawgirl.com/webcopyright.shtml) – a discussion of copyright protection for websites…. Copyscape.com – another furling site to catch em. The US Copyright Office (copyright.gov) – everything about copyright and services for registering/copyrighting your work in the U. S. Best of luck, creativity, and deserved protection to all!