Tis true - I think it's set after Angels and Demons and the Da Vinci Code and involves Robert Langdon.
My fictitious second book has the characters (in only a few lines) basically 'discussing' things which tease the reader who never finds out anything anyway. Hope that's not too confusing!!
Can be removed from my novel if needs be.

I thought the next book was going to be called Daughter of God? Maybe that title would be too controversial, and heaven forvbid poor DB should have to endure another dollar-raking court case, eh?

JB

I made a rude joke about the DVC in my second book - and the copy editor took it out! Left in the reference but made it much less snidey.... (Sigh.)

There can be no problem, can there, in talking about books (and films and TV programmes), and referring to their characters? I do it all the time. It's the equivalent for us of authors of the past bringing in classical lit or biblical referenecs or whatever. Writing exists in the context of culture, and cultural reference is part of the process, whether it's Dan Brown tucked under your character's arm, Sugababes on the radio, saying someone's glasses look like Harry Potter's or comparing something to the shower scene in Psycho. The problem only comes if you (i) borrow the words from the book/film/song, or (ii) say something libellous about the author/artist (e.g. "that Dan Brown, what a plagiarist..").

Rosy

EmmaD,

You state in your above post:

The only thing you can't do without permission is quote verbatim from the book.

I have just finished an historical novel of sorts, where in the Author's Note, I quote verbatim from a couple of non-fiction sources (which I later go on to praise for their research efforts).
Am still looking for an agent/publisher, so it may yet be academic, but is this likely to cause me a problem?

David, welcome to WW.

I think in practice, most authors are happy to give permission so long as they are acknowledged. On the other hand, if they are unwilling to give permission, then an acknowledgement isn't going to compensate them for you using their work. Out of courtesy you should make every effort to obtain permission for anything which is still in copyright. The Society of Authors publish a couple of very informative guides on the subject which are free to members or only a few pounds to non-members. Well worth a look at.

Good luck

Dee

Dafydd, yes, you must get permission, otherwise you're infringing their copyright. As Dee says, they're unlikely to refuse, but your publishers will insist that you do have permission, and it can take a while, and you need to have it before the book's typeset, so it's worth getting going.

The alternative is to re-word it, so that you state the facts and acknowledge their source, but don't use her/his exact words: 'As Joe Bloggs says in his magisterial history of the period, it is a myth that the Ancient Britons painted themselves with woad'.

Emma

EmmaD,

WADR, how the hell can I get going before I have an agent or a publisher?
I don't have any contact details, and can't seem to find any, for the 2 authors I quote in my "Author's Note". I could maybe circumvent one, using the technique you suggest above (i.e. "Joe Bloggs believes that...."); it would, though, be a-lot more difficult to do so with the other one.

Dafydd, sorry do you mean that you don't have an agent, or publisher, or they don't?

If it's you, it would probably be all right to wait till you have an agent, and cross your fingers that it doesn't take too long to get the permission. If your authors are academics they'll probably be used to it. But actually there's nothing to stop you writing now, stating the position - that you don't yet have a publisher - and seeing what they say.

Emma

You don’t need to have an agent or publisher yourself at this stage. Contact the publisher of the books you want to quote from, and explain you’d like permission to use a short extract (quote the extract verbatim). Alternatively, one of the SoA publications I mentioned earlier tells you how to find contact details. It’s called Permissions and it costs £2 to non-members.

http://www.societyofauthors.net

Dee
ps - what does WADR mean?

Thanks Dee and Emma, much appreciated.

Dee,

WADR - With All Due Respect.

Dafydd