Immediately, right after I submit my work electronically and pay the $35.00 fee, is my work in their database and considered copyrighted?
Law & Ethics - 3 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Your work is copyrighted in the US from the moment it is saved to a fixed medium, such as paper or your hard drive. The registration of the copyright--the part you pay extra for--offers you additional protection in the highly unlikely event that your work is stolen and sold for profit. If you seek publication, don't copyright the work. Publishers (and literary agents) often demand changes, which would mean the revised work would have to be copyrighted again. Copyrighting the work before sending it out announces a lack of professionalism, a lack of trust, and that you have not done your homework in terms of sending the work only to reputable publishers or agents. See more at copyright.gov
2 :
If they recieve your work then you are added to the library of congress database or vault
3 :
Copyright is automatic and international. Copyright.gov is just a way to get your work's copyright ensured in case it's at some risk of being stolen and the risk that you can't prove your authorship.
