Copyright For The Rest Of Us

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In 2007 I began teaching “Copyright Issues,” a 3-credit course that meets my university’s “Engaged Citizen” general education requirement. The class has run every year to the present. In 2011, after taking a one-semester sabbatical, I licensed a textbook, Copyright For The Rest Of Us, via Creative Commons. Controlling my own publication allowed me to update and sometimes rewrite a chapter when I knew it was needed—not when the sales dropped. I do not have to work through an editor and publish a new edition when they believe it will sell. I can teach with it as needed. Publishing a textbook to meet my particular need—teaching undergraduates about copyright—and having control of the book has been essential to a successful course.