I’m a writer blog

Guidelines for writing Poems, Stories and Tales

Real places in Fictional writing ?

Asked by: Michelle Weston

Can you use real locations in fiction?

Yes. You can make up places. Just make sure to indicate in the foreword that everything in your writing is purely a work of fiction, especially when you use the names of famous places. Otherwise, you might confuse readers – especially the young ones – if such a place exists.

Can you use real town names in fiction?

Towns/City Names: You can use the names of real towns and cities without any problems. I tend to use real large cities and make up the names of smaller towns. It’s easier to “create” a town to your story’s specifications and needs. You can take liberties with real places by making up the names of streets or businesses.

How do you write a fictional place?

Describe the city through the perspectives of your characters. A big challenge when writing about a fictional city in a story is avoiding obvious moments of description, where you put a description of the city in a character’s voice to give the reader information about the setting.

What is fiction based on real events called?

In general, fiction refers to plot, settings, and characters created from the imagination, while nonfiction refers to factual stories focused on actual events and people.

Do you need permission to write about a place?

You do not need permission to include song titles, movie titles, TV show titles—any kind of title—in your work. You can also include the names of places, things, events, and people in your work without asking permission.

Is it illegal to base a character on a real person?

Using real people in your fiction—whether they are correctly named or not—can be legally hazardous. If an author includes enough details that a specific fictional character is identifiable as an actual person, that person could possibly pursue legal action.

Can you use real companies in books?

Editors are frequently asked whether it’s permissible for writers to mention product or business names in books. The short answer is yes. The long answer is be careful. By the nature of doing business, companies put their brands into the public forum and in fact usually appreciate publicity.

Can you sue someone for writing about you in a book?

The offense of injuring a person’s character, fame, or reputation by false and malicious statements.” The term covers both libel (written) and slander (spoken). Only living people can sue for defamation, so someone can’t file a lawsuit against you for defamation through an estate or relatives.

How do you name places in a story?

You can mash two words together, change up the ending, or switch around a few letters to create a name that is new and unique to your story and pronounceable. If your reader can’t pronounce your places’ names, those names will start to run together in their head.

Can I mention a celebrity in my book?

The good news is that celebrity names are not copyright protected, just used as a name. If the name is only used to describe the person, it is not covered.

Can you name a fictional character after a real person?

Even memoirists and nonfiction writers identify people by name and worry about the ramifications. Can writers model characters after real people and name names without getting sued? Yes, they can, with some common sense limitations.



Can I write about someone if I change their name?

People you write about might not ever speak to you again, but as long as you have gotten written permission from them or have changed their names and details, you’ll be okay.

Can you mention a Disney character in a book?

Fictional and cartoon characters are protected by a combination of copyright law, trademark law, and unfair competition law, and Disney has a reputation as one of the most litigious companies in the entertainment world.

Are Mouse ears copyrighted?

Disney does not own the rights to mouse ears. What they do own the rights to is Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. So, while ears are okay, the silhouette (including the head of the mice) is not okay. Likewise, anything that resembles the likeness of a character is not okay.

Can I use Mickey Mouse on a shirt?

Permission to Use Disney Characters

In order to use the characters legally, you must request permission from Disney Enterprises.



Can I sell Mickey shaped items?

You cannot legally make and sell any product with Disney lyrics, quotes, or characters on it without permission from The Walt Disney World Company.

Is the name Cinderella copyrighted?

Cinderella is a word which has been recognized for decades as a mark identifying an entertainment event. That use in commerce created the word Cinderella as a Trademark. Regardless of a Federal Registration, the…

Are Disney princess names copyrighted?

Disney protects its characters with trademark and copyright registrations. A trademark protects a brand name, while a copyright protects an original work such as a movie or book. The owner of a trademark or copyright registration for a fictional character can prevent others from using the character without permission.

Is Eeyore copyrighted?

According to an article in USA Today, legendary characters Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga and Owl are going to enter the public domain, and not be under copyright protection from Disney. Disney acquired the copyright to Winnie the Pooh books and its characters in 1961.

Is Disney losing rights to Mickey Mouse?

Disney Could Lose Copyright Protection of ‘Steamboat Willie’ Mickey Mouse in 2024.



Is Disney losing rights to Winnie-the-Pooh?

Disney No Longer Has the Exclusive Rights to Winnie the Pooh, But He Isn’t Going Anywhere. On January 1, 2022, Winnie-The-Pooh — written by A.A. Milne and published in 1926 — officially entered the public domain — which means that Disney no longer has exclusive rights to the material.

Can Disney lose the rights to Mickey Mouse?

In 2024, the copyright protection for Mickey Mouse will expire, putting the original, old-timey version of the mouse from the “Steamboat Willie” animation in the public domain. That can’t be said for all of the other characters he created later.

What will become public domain in 2022?

In 2022, the public domain will welcome a lot of “firsts”: the first Winnie-the-Pooh book from A. A. Milne, the first published novels from Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner, the first books of poems from Langston Hughes and Dorothy Parker.

Who owns Winnie the Pooh rights?

Winnie the Pooh (franchise)



Winnie the Pooh
Created by A. A. Milne (characters) E. H. Shepard (characters) Walt Disney Animation Studios
Original work Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966)
Owner The Walt Disney Company
Years 1966-present

Real places in Fictional writing ?

Asked by: Michelle Weston

Can you use real locations in fiction?

Yes. You can make up places. Just make sure to indicate in the foreword that everything in your writing is purely a work of fiction, especially when you use the names of famous places. Otherwise, you might confuse readers – especially the young ones – if such a place exists.

Can you use real town names in fiction?

Towns/City Names: You can use the names of real towns and cities without any problems. I tend to use real large cities and make up the names of smaller towns. It’s easier to “create” a town to your story’s specifications and needs. You can take liberties with real places by making up the names of streets or businesses.

How do you write a fictional place?

Describe the city through the perspectives of your characters. A big challenge when writing about a fictional city in a story is avoiding obvious moments of description, where you put a description of the city in a character’s voice to give the reader information about the setting.

What is fiction based on real events called?

In general, fiction refers to plot, settings, and characters created from the imagination, while nonfiction refers to factual stories focused on actual events and people.

Do you need permission to write about a place?

You do not need permission to include song titles, movie titles, TV show titles—any kind of title—in your work. You can also include the names of places, things, events, and people in your work without asking permission.

Is it illegal to base a character on a real person?

Using real people in your fiction—whether they are correctly named or not—can be legally hazardous. If an author includes enough details that a specific fictional character is identifiable as an actual person, that person could possibly pursue legal action.

Can you use real companies in books?

Editors are frequently asked whether it’s permissible for writers to mention product or business names in books. The short answer is yes. The long answer is be careful. By the nature of doing business, companies put their brands into the public forum and in fact usually appreciate publicity.

Can you sue someone for writing about you in a book?

The offense of injuring a person’s character, fame, or reputation by false and malicious statements.” The term covers both libel (written) and slander (spoken). Only living people can sue for defamation, so someone can’t file a lawsuit against you for defamation through an estate or relatives.

How do you name places in a story?

You can mash two words together, change up the ending, or switch around a few letters to create a name that is new and unique to your story and pronounceable. If your reader can’t pronounce your places’ names, those names will start to run together in their head.

Can I mention a celebrity in my book?

The good news is that celebrity names are not copyright protected, just used as a name. If the name is only used to describe the person, it is not covered.

Can you name a fictional character after a real person?

Even memoirists and nonfiction writers identify people by name and worry about the ramifications. Can writers model characters after real people and name names without getting sued? Yes, they can, with some common sense limitations.



Can I write about someone if I change their name?

People you write about might not ever speak to you again, but as long as you have gotten written permission from them or have changed their names and details, you’ll be okay.

Can you mention a Disney character in a book?

Fictional and cartoon characters are protected by a combination of copyright law, trademark law, and unfair competition law, and Disney has a reputation as one of the most litigious companies in the entertainment world.

Are Mouse ears copyrighted?

Disney does not own the rights to mouse ears. What they do own the rights to is Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. So, while ears are okay, the silhouette (including the head of the mice) is not okay. Likewise, anything that resembles the likeness of a character is not okay.

Can I use Mickey Mouse on a shirt?

Permission to Use Disney Characters

In order to use the characters legally, you must request permission from Disney Enterprises.



Can I sell Mickey shaped items?

You cannot legally make and sell any product with Disney lyrics, quotes, or characters on it without permission from The Walt Disney World Company.

Is the name Cinderella copyrighted?

Cinderella is a word which has been recognized for decades as a mark identifying an entertainment event. That use in commerce created the word Cinderella as a Trademark. Regardless of a Federal Registration, the…

Are Disney princess names copyrighted?

Disney protects its characters with trademark and copyright registrations. A trademark protects a brand name, while a copyright protects an original work such as a movie or book. The owner of a trademark or copyright registration for a fictional character can prevent others from using the character without permission.

Is Eeyore copyrighted?

According to an article in USA Today, legendary characters Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga and Owl are going to enter the public domain, and not be under copyright protection from Disney. Disney acquired the copyright to Winnie the Pooh books and its characters in 1961.

Is Disney losing rights to Mickey Mouse?

Disney Could Lose Copyright Protection of ‘Steamboat Willie’ Mickey Mouse in 2024.



Is Disney losing rights to Winnie-the-Pooh?

Disney No Longer Has the Exclusive Rights to Winnie the Pooh, But He Isn’t Going Anywhere. On January 1, 2022, Winnie-The-Pooh — written by A.A. Milne and published in 1926 — officially entered the public domain — which means that Disney no longer has exclusive rights to the material.

Can Disney lose the rights to Mickey Mouse?

In 2024, the copyright protection for Mickey Mouse will expire, putting the original, old-timey version of the mouse from the “Steamboat Willie” animation in the public domain. That can’t be said for all of the other characters he created later.

What will become public domain in 2022?

In 2022, the public domain will welcome a lot of “firsts”: the first Winnie-the-Pooh book from A. A. Milne, the first published novels from Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner, the first books of poems from Langston Hughes and Dorothy Parker.

Who owns Winnie the Pooh rights?

Winnie the Pooh (franchise)



Winnie the Pooh
Created by A. A. Milne (characters) E. H. Shepard (characters) Walt Disney Animation Studios
Original work Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966)
Owner The Walt Disney Company
Years 1966-present