Forum:Copyright or Fair Use?

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I don’t know if help desk is the right place to ask, but…

Regarding printed novels:

When creating new entries for novels (or other books), is it permissible to duplicate the summary printed on the back cover of the book? Would this be construed as a copyright violation, or would this fall under Fair Use, or Promotional Purposes? As scanned images of the front cover of a book are permitted, it would seem logical the text off the back cover would be similarly allowed. Perhaps a header or preface identifying the text as “from back cover” or “from inside jacket” would be required; an in-text citation equivalent to the copyright disclaimer for images? It just seems kind of silly to sit down and write a summary when a ready-made one is right there, but I’d like to know if it’s okay or not before actually doing so, lest I get in trouble

Thanks for the feedback --Nscale7 10:22, 9 September 2007 (UTC)


 * I am against duplicating back-cover summaries here on WikiFur, as they tend to be easily available elsewhere, tend to be written in a dramatic, puffed-up style that seems best to avoid even in quotation, and--this last my strongest reason--are very often not accurately representative of the book. -- Sine 17:06, 9 September 2007 (UTC)
 * It probably is fair use; a lot of the major online booksellers reproduce them. I also agree with Sine that often editors will choose not to use them anyway as a matter of editorial judgment. --Rat 18:04, 9 September 2007 (UTC)
 * What Sine said. Sit down and write your own. You may find you write a better one. :-) --GreenReaper(talk) 18:16, 9 September 2007 (UTC)