Author Topic: Wayne Kernochan (Read 30277 times)

Whooter · « **Reply #78 on:** January 06, 2011, 09:50:38 PM »

Quote from: "Wayne Kernochan"

Quote
You dont know what you are talking about, Wayne. I could write a book titled "Microsoft Founder abused me". I could find 5 ex-employees to side with me (for potential royalty kick backs). Then I could write whatever I wanted about Bill Gates and create a nice juicy book and make millions. The problem is that no publisher would ever touch it or expose themselves to a law suit that would cripple them. You will have to notify Elan of your intentions and have them sign off on the book (saying they have no evidence to dispute what you say) prior to publishing it. If you use peoples real names they need to be notified also and the publisher needs to be comfortable that they will not sue (or cannot sue them).

Then write it. Famous people can't be defamed. Unless your 5 friends go to court and say you lied, you're clean.

I'm not going to argue this with you. As I said, selling the book might be a problem, but not for that reason. The economy is killing the publishing industry, and e-books have taken 10% of sales, as opposed to 2% three years ago

I might try an e-book if I can't sell this the traditional route but that's a long way off

Selling the book might be a problem, but getting a publisher to to publish it will be impossible unless you get clearance that they will not get sued. All the lawyers need to hammer out the legalities and that takes big money and years. Elan could hold of the book for years. You would be better off using fake names, thats what many people end up doing.

Wayne, you just cant say things about other people publicly unless it is common information. Things like that hurt other peoples reputation and they can very easily sue you, Elan included. This has been demonstrated here on fornits in the past.

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Dysfunction Junction · « **Reply #79 on:** January 07, 2011, 09:01:41 AM »

I have to give Whooter credit here, Wayne. With his latest foray into the world of literary publication he has shown himself to be stunningly ignorant on yet another topic. I give him a lot of credit for the depth and breadth of his ignorance, which spans basically every topic you can think of.

According to Whooter, no book can be published unless the subject of the book "signs off on it" which means, of course, that no "unauthorized biographies" or "tell-alls" have ever been published. Need we go further debunking Whooter's charade?

It must be a sensitive topic for Danny considering he crawled out of the septic tank to share his thoughts on the topic. This tells me Wayne is hitting a nerve.

Whooter · « **Reply #80 on:** January 07, 2011, 11:09:15 AM »

Quote from: "Dysfunction Junction"

I have to give Whooter credit here, Wayne.

Thanks DJ, I have had some experience in this area. Someone brought up "Unauthorized Biographies". If we look at "unauthorized biographies" you will quickly see that they are written about famous people. You get special consideration if you are writing about a public figure. The publishing company will notify the people who are mentioned in the book and allow them access to the dialog and a chance to refute it before publishing begins because the publishing company does not want to be sued.

You cannot, for example, write an unauthorized biography about your neighbors wife and the people she slept with in the neighborhood. No publishing company would touch that. That woman and her family would end up owning you and the publishing company. lol

You can fantasize all you want about writing a book about other people, but unless you can insure that you will not be sued and that the publishing company will not be sued and that they will also make a profit then it is not going to happen.

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Dysfunction Junction · « **Reply #81 on:** January 07, 2011, 11:54:01 AM »

Quote from: "Whooter"

Quote from: "Dysfunction Junction"
I have to give Whooter credit here, Wayne. I give him a lot of credit for the depth and breadth of his ignorance, which spans basically every topic you can think of.

Thanks DJ...

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No worries. Glad to point it out.

Paul St. John · « **Reply #82 on:** January 07, 2011, 01:10:02 PM »

I'm really not sure what Whooter and Danny are talking about. I read books all the time that have within them references to other living people which depict them in a very negative light.

Paul

Whooter · « **Reply #83 on:** January 07, 2011, 01:16:20 PM »

Quote from: "Paul St. John"

I'm really not sure what Whooter and Danny are talking about. I read books all the time that have within them references to other living people which depict them in a very negative light.

Paul

You are right, Paul, they do all the time, but if real names are used then the publishers send out notification to the people to verify accuracy before proceeding with publishing the book. The last thing a publisher wants is a law suit because they failed to do their homework. They would not be in business very long.

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Dysfunction Junction · « **Reply #84 on:** January 07, 2011, 01:19:53 PM »

Quote from: "Paul St. John"

I'm really not sure what Whooter and Danny are talking about. I read books all the time that have within them references to other living people which depict them in a very negative light.

Paul

Yes, this happens every day.

Whooter · « **Reply #85 on:** January 08, 2011, 08:10:16 PM »

Some more info for Wayne:

There's a popular saying that there are always three versions to every event: your story, their story and what actually happened. Since truth is a subjective issue that's predicated on a combination of underlying intentions and personal frame of reference, a writer who plans to incorporate real-life individuals and incidents in a book for publication needs to exercise caution in identifying what his end-game is and which individuals who have appearances in the text might take offense and file a lawsuit.

* 1

Identify your core objective in writing the book. If the real-life individuals you're including in it are all portrayed in a pleasing and flattering light, you really don't have anything to worry about and can, in fact, stop reading this article and get back to work. If, however, your goal is to expose certain named individuals as the duplicitous, rotten, amoral, sadistic, greedy and squirmy weasels you believe them to be, you're courting a potential lawsuit. Proceed to Step 2.
* 2

Talk with an attorney. Ideally at this point you'll already have a synopsis and outline of the book to take to the meeting with you. If it's a politically charged tome in which you're lambasting your peers and opponents for getting you ousted from public office, there's a good chance that you're already embroiled in lawsuits. An attorney may suggest that you avoid bringing on any more trouble right now.
* 3

Consider what you agreed to when you first started gathering the information. If your book involves material that was acquired during your employment with an entity that had an expectation of confidentiality (i.e., national security, the military, the priesthood, the legal system, the medical community), there's a high likelihood that you signed an oath of silence when you were hired. This can and will be used against you if you proceed. You do, however, have three options available to you if you're still insistent on proceeding. Read on.
* 4

Enlist the cooperation of the individuals you want to write about in your book. This will obviously be easier to do if you're saying nice, fluffy things about them. If you're taking a negative slant, you can incorporate interviews in the text that will allow these people to tell their own version of what happened and, accordingly, allow the readership to draw their own conclusions about who was right and wrong.
* 5

Write under a pseudonym. The drawback to this approach is that it may take on the tone of anonymous letters. If a person doesn't have the courage to use his own name, he may be perceived by the readership as being someone who is probably lying. You'll also be precluded from including quoted conversations in the text because the other party or parties is likely to read it and say, "Hey, didn't I have this same conversation three years ago with Bob?"
* 6

Turn your tale into a fictional novel and change all the names. This happens more often than most people realize, especially in books about romantic betrayals. These not only represent a cathartic outlet for the writers but also serve as an inside joke for all of the writer's friends who know that "Jerry" is really "Lester" and that the snoopy housekeeper "Gwen" who ends up as a chalk outline on the floor was actually "Rhonda," a real-life supervisor who slept with the heroine's husband. The nifty disclaimer at the front of most fiction novels that "the characters, incidents and dialogue are products of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real" acts as a legal buffer against the real Jerrys and Gwens who might otherwise throw a snit and haul you into court.

Read more: How to Write a Book Without Getting Sued | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_4947696_write-b ... z1ANi2mt3W

Always get a written release for photographs and interviews that you want to use in your book. Authors aren't the only ones who get slapped with lawsuits. The References section of this article includes an article from "Movie Maker Magazine" that illustrates some of the legal problems that film producers face.

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DannyB II · « **Reply #86 on:** January 28, 2011, 04:49:41 PM »

none-ya · « **Reply #87 on:** January 28, 2011, 04:56:53 PM »

Sorry Danny, the facebook page won't open.

DannyB II · « **Reply #88 on:** January 28, 2011, 06:08:06 PM »

none-ya · « **Reply #89 on:** January 28, 2011, 10:04:35 PM »

Quote from: "DannyB II"

None ya, find someone with a facebook account and see if they can bring it over here. I am not savvy enough.

It seems to work now.

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