Hi {!firstname},

Welcome to the first of a five-part series designed to answer your most pressing questions about publishing your content through the Internet's largest retail outlet: Amazon!

You already know why you should be publishing with Amazon, now let's take a look at some of the questions that hold people back. Questions like "Do I have to copyright my stuff?"

The short answer is yes. But here's the thing – it already is. Copyright is extended to your original works the instant it exists in a fixed form. That means that the instant you type into a word processing document, record it via voice recorder, or jot it on a post-it note, you hold the copyright to that work. You don't have to declare it, or register it, or even put that little copyright symbol at the bottom. Copyright is automatic. 

Legally registering your copyright is another matter, and is handled through the US Government Copyright Office. Doing so doesn't give you any more rights; though it does provide a bit more legal teeth should you decide to sue someone for copyright infringement. The cost is reasonable – less than $50 – but is probably an unnecessary expense for most online business owners. 

With that said, though, you do have to own the copyright in order to publish a work on Amazon. You can't publish PLR, or a selection of articles you've compiled from a directory, or anything else you didn't either write yourself or pay someone to write in your name. Remember, you automatically own the copyright on every original work you produce, so you need not do anything special to meet Amazon's copyright requirements.

Happy Publishing!
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P.S. Copyright is a hugely complicated matter that simply cannot be explained in a short email – or even a really long one. If you have further questions, I suggest you contact the US Copyright Office directly, or seek the advice of an attorney.