This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Multi-award winning author Patricia Reding leads a double life. By day, she practices law. By night, she reads, reviews a wide variety of works, and writes. She lives on an island on the Mississippi with her husband (her children having already flown the nest). From there she seeks to create a world in which she can be in two places at once. Patricia has practiced intellectual property law for . . . decades. She assists clients with protecting their trademarks and copyrighted materials. With her 2017 publication of Ignorance is Not Bliss: A Primer for Authors – Protect Your Work and Yourself, she offers authors general information, prompting them to be more aware of potential issues and encouraging them to ask the right questions so as to better protect their works and themselves.
Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite
Ignorance Is Not Bliss: A Primer for Authors - Protect Your Work and Yourself is a nonfiction guide for writers written by Patricia Reding. Reding is an attorney specializing in Intellectual Property as well as being an educator and an author. While most of us have vague ideas about libel, slander, trademarks and copyrights, authors need to be particularly careful in understanding how each of these aspects of law affect them and their work product. The author discusses the roles of literary agents and lawyers specializing in intellectual property, and she highlights the need for authors to be proactive in protecting themselves. She covers trademarks in some detail: why they can be important; what can be registered as a trademark and how to choose one. She also demystifies copyrights and the importance of having clear licensing understandings on each aspect of your publication, including the cover.
Patricia Reding’s Ignorance Is Not Bliss: A Primer for Authors - Protect Your Work and Yourself is an important work that will go a long way for those authors who make the effort to understand the issues raised and realize that they should leave the legal aspects of publication to their lawyers. I have some familiarity with the law and was most impressed by how well Reding presents relatively arcane legal concepts in ways that those not trained in the law can easily relate to. Her subjects are well-organized and presented in an engaging and matter-of-fact manner. I especially appreciated her disclaimers about acting in any capacity as an attorney for her readers. She makes it very clear when having an attorney is necessary, and I’m hoping people listen to her on that crucially important issue.
My favorite and most compelling take from Ignorance Is Not Bliss: A Primer for Authors - Protect Your Work and Yourself would have to be the chapter on Publishing Contracts. The information and cautions found in this chapter are priceless and should help authors realize just what they are signing away in exchange for that advance. So very much rides on this legal document that many sign while still in awe over the very existence of the contract itself. Ignorance Is Not Bliss: A Primer for Authors - Protect Your Work and Yourself is most highly recommended.
