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<blockquote data-quote="Justin D. Jacobson" data-source="post: 2382478" data-attributes="member: 18946">It's complicated. The safest thing to do is consult with an attorney. However, as a practical matter, the best indicator is the year of publication, and anything published awhile ago is most likely safe. Exactly how long &quot;awhile&quot; is depends on several factors, but 99% of anything from the 1800's and earlier is likely in the public domain. Again, this is not a guarantee or a brightline rule -- just a guide.Additionally, your initial post is confusing that that your question refers to &quot;concepts.&quot; Ideas cannot be copyrighted, only the representations of ideas. So, the concept of a star-spanning epic with a sect of quasi-religious mage-types fighting against an ebon-clod ex-member is perfectly viable. Calling them &quot;jedi&quot; is not.FYI, this is an issue of great concern to us for our forthcoming Thrilling Passages book, which relies on utilizing famous literary characters in the public domain. Interestingly, there are many instances where a character has fallen in the public domain but where many of the most famous publications involving them are not, e.g., Sherlock Holmes and Cthulhu.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Justin D. Jacobson, post: 2382478, member: 18946"] It's complicated. The safest thing to do is consult with an attorney. However, as a practical matter, the best indicator is the year of publication, and anything published awhile ago is most likely safe. Exactly how long "awhile" is depends on several factors, but 99% of anything from the 1800's and earlier is likely in the public domain. Again, this is not a guarantee or a brightline rule -- just a guide. Additionally, your initial post is confusing that that your question refers to "concepts." Ideas cannot be copyrighted, only the representations of ideas. So, the concept of a star-spanning epic with a sect of quasi-religious mage-types fighting against an ebon-clod ex-member is perfectly viable. Calling them "jedi" is not. FYI, this is an issue of great concern to us for our forthcoming Thrilling Passages book, which relies on utilizing famous literary characters in the public domain. Interestingly, there are many instances where a character has fallen in the public domain but where many of the most famous publications involving them are not, e.g., Sherlock Holmes and Cthulhu. [/QUOTE]

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