do I have to ask permission from the author?

K

Kitsune

New member
I am currently writing a book on American Pit Bull Terriers and my first source is a book by Elaine Waldorf Gewirtz. I plan to include her book in my list of resources but do I have to ask permission first if I am not taking things from it word for word? Just info that I could get from several places (like the breed description and breed standards). I am also taking notes on care and training info from this book (will be getting it from other sources). Should I contact the book publisher and ask permission to use as a source?
 
You do need to be careful! If you take too much of your book's information from someone else's, you can leave yourself vulnerable to a plagiarism suit when your book is published. Definitely, you should contact the author for permission. Generally a book's title page will possess a prohibition against reprinting or reusing its contents except to quote it for a review. It would be better if you could write your own book from your personal experiences rather than to use someone else's concepts, claiming them as your own. If you feel that you must use Gewirtz's ideas, do contact her.
 
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