Writing Tips for Speakers: Tip #7–Good News about Bible Permissions

Posted on May 14, 2019 by Foxworld

Troublesome as it is to obtain permission to quote song lyrics, just the opposite is true for the Bible. Getting permission is easy as pie–because it’s already granted! Most Bible publishers are generous with the number of verses you can quote without having to send a written request.

For most purposes, you can quote between 500 and 1,000 Bible verses before you need to contact the publisher. That’s a lot of verses! You’re unlikely to exceed that allotment. All a Bible publisher will request is that you include their specific blurb on your copyright page, a detail your editor will handle. I call that more than fair.

Here for your convenience are the permission limits for some popular translations and paraphrases, along with the names of their publishers:

  • English Standard Version (ESV): 1,000 verses (Crossway)
  • King James Version (KJV): No restrictions; public domain
  • New American Standard Bible (NASB): 1,000 verses (Lockman Foundation)
  • New International Version (NIV): 500 verses (Zondervan, for Biblica)
  • New King James Version (NKJV): 250 verses (Thomas Nelson)
  • New Living Translations (NLT): 500 verses (Tyndale)
  • New Revised Standard Version (NRSV): 500 verses (Augsberg Fortress, for the National Council of Churches)
  • The Amplified Bible (current, AMP; classic, AMPC): 500 verses (Zondervan, for the Lockman Foundation)
  • The Message (MSG): 500 verses (NavPress)
  • The Voice (VOICE): 500 verses (Thomas Nelson)

While it’s unlikely you’ll run into any permission concerns, each publisher has their own stipulations for how a given translation may be used. For instance, Crossway Books requires that verses quoted from the ESV “not amount to a complete book of the Bible nor account for . . . 50 percent or more of the total text of the work in which they are quoted.”* In other words, you can’t quote the ESV in a way that flies in the face of reasonableness and common sense.

It can’t hurt you to visit a Bible publisher’s site and read their permission guidelines. You’ll most likely find that you can use their content the way you intend to. And if you have any questions, consult your editor.

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“Guide to Permissions,” Crossway, accessed May 14, 2019,
https://www.crossway.org/permissions/.

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Writing Tips for Speakers: Tip #6–Avoid Quoting Modern Song Lyrics (Unless You’re Willing to Do the Legwork)

Posted on May 11, 2019 by Foxworld

Nothing beats a song for capturing the heart of a matter with eloquence and emotion. But before you weave the words of a popular tune into your content, know what you’re getting into, because the complexities can be much knottier than for quoting prose.

Quoting even a single line of copyright-protected song lyric requires permission from the copyright holder–and there may well be more than one. Song lyrics are attached to a larger production, and it can be frustrating, time-consuming work tracking down all the stakeholders. Each of them will almost certainly charge you, and they will have requirements for how you use the lyrics.

Moreover, your permission will probably only be good for your initial print run of X number of books (the copyright holder will want to know how many). If your book does well enough to require subsequent printings, you will most likely need to renew your licensing and pay more fees. Do you really want to go through all that?

Maybe you’re willing to. That’s fine as long as you understand that it’s up to you to do the legwork. The author, not the editor or the publishing house, is normally responsible for obtaining and paying for all permissions, including those for song lyrics, and for keeping a record of licensing information.

What about Fair Use?

Fair use applies primarily to the limited use of prose. Song lyrics–and poetry–lie outside its umbrella.

The only song lyrics you can freely use are those that lie within the public domain. If you want to quote “Amazing Grace,” have at it. But if you want to quote “King of Love” by Steven Curtis Chapman, you’ll have to obtain permission.

One Work-Around

If you’re in love with how a particular song expresses a point you’re making, you can in your own words describe the song. For example: “In her song ‘Better Man,’ Taylor Swift poignantly captures the heartache, the damage, and the trauma bond of an abusive relationship.”

The above solution may be just the ticket for you. In any case, consider well before directly quoting song lyrics. If you absolutely must, then you should get to work early obtaining permissions. Until you’ve got them, the one thing you really, really need to avoid is writing anything that depends heavily on the words of a particular song. It’s like building a house before you’ve laid the foundation.


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Writing Tips for Speakers: Tip #5–Use the Right Word

Posted on May 7, 2019 by Foxworld

I occasionally find myself puzzling over an author’s word choice. Why did the author pick that word? For variety? For effect? Because it sounds cool? To impress? In any case, the word has drawn my attention as an editor for one of two reasons: either (1) I’m not certain it adequately expresses the author’s meaning, and I need to query him or her; or (2) it’s simply a wrong usage.

Accuracy is so important! Words are the currency of communication, and you as a writer need to account for every dime you spend.

Since I’ve already posted on this topic, and since that post covers the matter so well that I can’t improve on it, there’s no point in my saying more here. Just click here to read the article.

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