Using Songs

[SkyBubble]

Has anyone used snippets of song lyrics in their stories? I have one story in which the first-person narrator is trying to seduce an adamantly virginal Catholic girl. At one point, they are at a place with a jukebox that has music from different eras. he punches up a song, and she notices the lines

You Catholic girls start much too late
But sooner or later it comes down to fate
I might as well be the one.

That's all I use. I think that's just about the limit under Fair Use, but it does play a role in the character arc.

 

[TheRedChamber]

'sued'? Snuck, I think you mean?

Yes, I think you are fine with how much you are quoting especially as it is directly related to the story. I wouldn't include much more of the lyrics though.

In my last story I included a line from Steve Harleys 'Come Up and See Me' - the famous silent break in the middle serving as an opportunity for one character to overhear something that was shouted by another in an otherwise noisy nightclub.

My current draft leans very heavily on Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds as a motif, but, luckily, since I think nearly everyone knows this, I don't need to quote whole sections of the verses, just the line 'Picture yourself on a boat on a river'.

 

[SkyBubble]

Another trick I did was in one story about a singer, her dialogue is lines from her songs. I did it as kind of a challenge, but it came out well enough to post it. I don't explicitly quote batches of lyrics or more than a line at a time.

 

[cadeauxxx]

Another trick I did was in one story about a singer, her dialogue is lines from her songs. I did it as kind of a challenge, but it came out well enough to post it. I don't explicitly quote batches of lyrics or more than a line at a time.

I do stuff like that all the time. 2 of the celebs I enjoy writing are singers and I find their pop songs inspiring for stories.

There's no rules preventing use of music in stories. A lot of times, they enhance things. I believe this is why song choices are so powerful in TV shows and movies. Miami Vice's use of In The Air Tonight created an unforgettable moment.

 

[Bamagan]

Has anyone used snippets of song lyrics in their stories? I have one story in which the first-person narrator is trying to seduce an adamantly virginal Catholic girl. At one point, they are at a place with a jukebox that has music from different eras. he punches up a song, and she notices the lines

You Catholic girls start much too late
But sooner or later it comes down to fate
I might as well be the one.

That's all I use. I think that's just about the limit under Fair Use, but it does play a role in the character arc.

What constitutes fair use is kind of murky, and aside from the legal aspects, the most pertinent question is what the site will allow. There have been occasional posts here in the forums about stories getting rejected because they contained too many lyrics or excerpts from other works. I think you'll be okay vis a vis the site, as I have seen stories that quote approximately the same amount.

It's very unlikely that you would get sued, but there have been a few court cases that have penalized people for using that much of a song. In those particular instances, the songwriters successfully argued that because there are very few lyrics in a typical song, even quoting a single line is not fair use, since it amounts to a substantial fraction of the work in question. I'm not saying I agree with that reasoning or that you need to change anything, just relaying what I read. I also wouldn't be shocked if such rulings have been or will be overturned, either, considering how much litigation could result from the existence of cover bands, remixes, and so forth, which generally copy much more than just a phrase or two.

 

[iwatchus]

there have been a few court cases that have penalized people for using that much of a song

Do you have a citation for a case? I am not a lawyer like Simon (and others I think), but I do try to keep track of interesting case law relating to IP. I have been teaching a short section on fair use to CS students for years. That is a case I had not seen and would be interested to read the whole finding.

 

[69RoadRunner]

I was here to ask some other questions, but this caught my eye. I am using the entire song lyrics in a story I writing, The way it reads is. "The stereo started playing Chicago's Hard to Say I'm Sorry," then the full text of the lyrics. It was meant to be an emotional moment, it made my wife cry when she read that part. I really hope I can post it this way. Also it's not a short story the chapter it's in is 6526 words, the total story is up to 69425 words with more chapters to come.

 

[Bamagan]

Do you have a citation for a case? I am not a lawyer like Simon (and others I think), but I do try to keep track of interesting case law relating to IP. I have been teaching a short section on fair use to CS students for years. That is a case I had not seen and would be interested to read the whole finding.

I do not, sorry. It wasn't one of the so-called 'landmark cases' so I didn't read it fully and carefully. As mentioned, I was a bit skeptical of how much weight it would hold as a precedent, so it wasn't a major factor in the questions I was trying to answer.
I was on the GWU site, and it would have been either 2011 or 2012 when I was looking things up, if you're serious or dedicated enough to poke through them.

 

[iwatchus]

I do not, sorry. It wasn't one of the so-called 'landmark cases' so I didn't read it fully and carefully. As mentioned, I was a bit skeptical of how much weight it would hold as a precedent, so it wasn't a major factor in the questions I was trying to answer.
I was on the GWU site, and it would have been either 2011 or 2012 when I was looking things up, if you're serious or dedicated enough to poke through them.

I have to finish my Nude Day entry first, but I might. Thanks for the pointer.

 

[MetaBob]

Has anyone used snippets of song lyrics in their stories? I have one story in which the first-person narrator is trying to seduce an adamantly virginal Catholic girl. At one point, they are at a place with a jukebox that has music from different eras. he punches up a song, and she notices the lines

You Catholic girls start much too late
But sooner or later it comes down to fate
I might as well be the one.

That's all I use. I think that's just about the limit under Fair Use, but it does play a role in the character arc.

I use song lyrics in my stories, sometimes quite a lot, but never a whole song, in fact I don't recall using more than four lines from any one song. I credit the songwriter(s) at the end of each chapter where I use them. A representative example:

Lyrics:
Babyfather - Sade
A Case Of You - Joni Mitchell
Love Has No Pride - Eric Justin Kaz & Libby Titus
Sexual Healing - Marvin Gaye
The Order of Death - John Lydon, Keith Levene & Martin Atkins

https://www.literotica.com/s/crossings-ch-04

 

[SinclairGroupLLP]

I am constantly referencing song lyrics, quotes from movies and TV shows in my stories. For the most part, you could usually argue fair use if someone got pissy, but in reality since no author here is making money, you are unlikely to have a problem.

The risk here is very low, so don’t let it deter you. Just don’t use the whole song and pretend you wrote it.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I was here to ask some other questions, but this caught my eye. I am using the entire song lyrics in a story I writing,

You might get a rejection doing that, even though you've credited the songwriter. The site allows a line or two, but would likely push back on 100%.

I was allowed 50% of a translated poem, years ago, after a couple of go-arounds, even though the text cited both the poet and the translator.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

I was here to ask some other questions, but this caught my eye. I am using the entire song lyrics in a story I writing, The way it reads is. "The stereo started playing Chicago's Hard to Say I'm Sorry," then the full text of the lyrics. It was meant to be an emotional moment, it made my wife cry when she read that part. I really hope I can post it this way. Also it's not a short story the chapter it's in is 6526 words, the total story is up to 69425 words with more chapters to come.

That seems really excessive.
Do you need to use the whole song or is there a specific part that makes your point?

One of my stories is about a widower trying to move on with his life. He's dating someone new, things are going well, and then he overhears someone playing the Talking Heads "Once in a Lifetime."
I used two lines:

And you may tell yourself, "This is not my beautiful house"
And you may tell yourself, "This is not my beautiful wife"

Then he breaks down, because the women he's with is not his beautiful wife, she's gone.

I could have quoted more, but the emotional impact comes from that part.

 

[iwatchus]

You might get a rejection doing that, even though you've credited the songwriter. The site allows a line or two, but would likely push back on 100%.

I was allowed 50% of a translated poem, years ago, after a couple of go-arounds, even though the text cited both the poet and the translator.

In one story, (already published) I quote the entire lyrics for Carly Simon’s "The Girl You Think You See" because MC looks them up when the song becomes relevant. Very appropriate song for any role playing scenes, if you don't know it.

The formatting was atrocious -- I have learned how to do that better now. But I got no grief for it from Laurel. Unlikely anyone from Crly Simon's camp has actually read any of my stories. Not many people have.

 

[Actingup]

I'm quoting lyrics from quite a few songs for my Nude Day entry, so fingers crossed! But the only 'complete' lyrical fragment is a (credited) German poem from the 1800s, and hopefully no direct descendents to sue me.

 

[Actingup]

I found this article - it's reassuring in that nobody's been taken over to court over doing it, and in this case I doubt that anybody would bother with a cease and desist letter.

https://dorianbox.com/song-lyrics-in-fiction-fair-use-doctrine/

 

[pink_silk_glove]

The question is: How many people have used "Come on Eileen" in a story? : P

 

[ElectricBlue]

In one story, (already published) I quote the entire lyrics for Carly Simon’s "The Girl You Think You See" because MC looks them up when the song becomes relevant. Very appropriate song for any role playing scenes, if you don't know it.

The formatting was atrocious -- I have learned how to do that better now. But I got no grief for it from Laurel. Unlikely anyone from Carly Simon's camp has actually read any of my stories. Not many people have.

It's one of those random things. Sometimes the lyric gets noticed, sometimes it doesn't. It depends on the song, I guess, and whether or not you give credit - thus drawing attention to it.

Best policy is to always cite the songwriter in the text. That way it's clear it's a quotation, not claiming the words as your own.

 

[iwatchus]

Best policy is to always cite the songwriter in the text. That way it's clear it's a quotation, not claiming the words as your own.

I certainly said who i the singer/songwriter was. I even commented about the album it was on -- Anticipation -- which was one of the two really sexy cover photos of her.

 

[Actingup]

The question is: How many people have used "Come on Eileen" in a story? : P

Was it the HeeBeeJeeBees who parodied that as "Get 'em off, Eileen?"

 

[iwatchus]

Was it the HeeBeeJeeBees who parodied that as "Get 'em off, Eileen?"

They did Get Em Off Irene

 

[YDB95]

Because Lit stories are free, you're probably on safe ground legally. But the mods won't allow posting all the lyrics to a song. I've sometimes used a few lines as the introduction to a story and that passes muster, but I have heard of stories being rejected because they reprinted all the words.

 

[Bramblethorn]

https://fairuse.stanford.edu/2003/09/09/copyright_protection_for_short/

As discussed there, it's not just about how much is copied, but about the creativity of the content. Use of Ashleigh Brilliant's "I may not be totally perfect, but parts of me are excellent" (12 words) was found to be copyright violation, and judges mentioned Carroll's "Twas brillig and the slithy toves" (6 words) as an example of something creative enough to merit copyright protection despite its brevity.

Dropping song lyrics into a story to beef up the emotional impact is not the kind of use that "fair use" aims to protect. Literotica's moderation is relatively easygoing about this kind of thing, and it's unlikely that rights owners would bother going after small fry, but if they did I suspect a lot of authors here would be unpleasantly surprised by how little "fair use" might get them.

 

[alohadave]

Because Lit stories are free, you're probably on safe ground legally.

No. This is bad advice.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Dropping song lyrics into a story to beef up the emotional impact is not the kind of use that "fair use" aims to protect. Literotica's moderation is relatively easygoing about this kind of thing, and it's unlikely that rights owners would bother going after small fry, but if they did I suspect a lot of authors here would be unpleasantly surprised by how little "fair use" might get them.

It seems at least one law professor disagrees with you there:

Section 107 of the Copyright Act states that “the fair use of a copyrighted work … for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching …, scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.” I would assert that use of song snippet in a novel makes a “comment” about the song, but note also that the listed items are not exclusive. Section 107 offers them only as examples (“for purposes such as …”).

https://dorianbox.com/song-lyrics-in-fiction-fair-use-doctrine/