“A Piece of my Mind” - Notes from the Editor
Summer might be my favorite season. It seems a bit slower paced, and for me it’s the only season during which I’m not preparing for an immediate quilt show booth. The slower pace also give me some time for business planning. Look for our new resource on Internet marketing in August.
I’m sure many of you are aware of the pending legislation in Congress that will drastically alter the copyright landscape for artists, including quilters. In April, bills were introduced in the U.S. House (HR 5889) and U.S. Senate (S 2913) that seek to change the 1976 U.S. Copyright Act. The intent is to provide a limitation on judicial remedies in copyright infringement cases involving orphan works. Orphan works refer to copyrighted works whose owners cannot be found after a “diligent” effort. Among other things, the bill requires artists to register every work in a private certified database, a database that currently does not exist, which presumably would be used for the “diligent” search. The current legislation, which went into effect in 1978, provides copyright protection to all work, with or without registration. This will have a significant impact on visual artists.
The bills are still in play, so please do some research on the topic — just Google orphan works — and act now to get your opinion known to your members of Congress. We still have time to make a difference. I personally have written to my Congressional representatives expressing my opposition to both bills. Here’s a link for you to make your opinion known to your Congressional representatives: http://capwiz.com/illustratorspartnership/home/.
Our profile this month features Linda Beach, a quilt artist from Alaska. I first saw Linda’s work in person in Houston and was so taken with it. It was a lovely surprise when Eileen Doughty suggested Linda for a profile. I enjoyed learning more about her and how she markets her work.
This issue also includes an article by Maria Peagler on developing a blog to use for marketing your quilt business. This is something I’ve been doing on a limited basis, and her article has spurred me to update and develop my blog.
You can link to it through our Web site, www.professionalquilter.com.
My summer will also include extra time with my local nieces, who are on summer vacation from school. One just finished her first sewing project, a skirt, and the other hopes to finish her first quilt.
Hope your summer is enjoyable as well.
Morna McEver Golletz