The Curious Copyright Infringement Case of Sherlock Holmes in Enola Holmes
The Netflix movie Enola Holmes is based on a series of young adult novels by Nancy Springer, The Enola Holmes Mysteries, published between 2006-2010 by Penguin Random House. The series centers on Sherlock’s teenage sister Enola,...
Writers Wanting To Incorporate – What Is The Right Option For You?
The question of whether writers should form a business entity for their publishing work generated lengthy conversation during the ThrillerFest tax panel I moderated in July (see my post last week for take-home tax tips from the...
Plots, Prose And Plagiarism In Fiction – Four Things Every Writer Should Know About Literary Theft
In my writing circles over the years, I often heard advice encouraging writers to steal a plot, use a phrase, or mimic someone’s prose. And every time, that taboo I learned in high school and stored in the rafters of my brain...
Bail To Sentencing: Stages Of A Criminal Trial
Earlier this month, two writers asked for a description of criminal trial procedures. Below is an overview of the trial stages from Bail to Sentencing. While states and the federal government follow a standard set of procedures,...
Defamation? It’s the truth, I SWEAR! — How to Avoid Libel in Fiction
Whether writing fiction or memoirs, we writers are constantly encouraged by the literary community to mine our own experiences, relationships, and observations for writing material. As I write this post, the old adage “write what...
Money Laundering
Lawyers. We love our caveats. So here it is. This blog post is not a how-to blog post on money laundering. What I am posting is an answer to a question proposed by Kerry from North Carolina who’s developing a fictional plot...
Welcome! Our blog is now in session.
Hello from Sidebar Saturdays – where the practice of law meets the profession of writing every Saturday morning. Nice to meet you. We are a group of attorney/writers who share the passion of law and writing. We have extensive...