* Copyrights
Before we go any further, let me 'splain the facts of life to you. Mailing copies of your songs to yourself does not protect your copyright and has no bearing at all in a court of law. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch. I have no clue how that old wive's tale got started but it has been circulating since the beginning of time. Go to the Library of Congress website (linked below) and read up on all this (and other legal matters) for yourself. Or click here or here or here.
Specifics from the RIAA website:
Your creative work is protected by copyright as soon as it is created and "fixed" in a tangible form such as film, a sound recording, etc. However, to fully protect your rights in a court of law it is vitally important to register your work with the U.S. Copyright Office, which is part of the Library of Congress. Having done that, you get a certificate of registration and your work is a matter of public record. Then, if it becomes necessary to sue to protect your rights, you have proof of the originality and authenticity of your work.
To register, you need to submit the correct application form, a non-refundable filing fee of $45, and a non-returnable copy (or copies) of your work. For forms and more information, contact the U.S. Copyright Office via the mail, online, by phone, or even in person.
The Library of Congress
Copyright Office
101 Independence Ave. S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
There is a 24-hours-per-day forms hotline at (202) 707-9100. Once your completed application is accepted, it can take as long as eight months to process.
Here's an excerpt from the Library of Congress website:
Copyright is secured automatically when the work is created, and a work is "created" when it is fixed in a copy or phonorecord for the first time. "Copies" are material objects from which a work can be read or visually perceived either directly or with the aid of a machine or device, such as books, manuscripts, sheet music, film, videotape, or microfilm. "Phonorecords" are material objects embodying fixations of sounds (excluding, by statutory definition, motion picture soundtracks), such as cassette tapes, CDs, or LPs. Thus, for example, a song (the "work") can be fixed in sheet music ("copies") or in phonograph disks ("phonorecords"), or both.
If a work is prepared over a period of time, the part of the work that is fixed on a particular date constitutes the created work as of that date.
For additional registration information, etc., go to http://www.copyright.gov/
The forms you need to fill out can be found here: http://www.copyright.gov/forms/
And here's a good website with some more legal advice on the subject: http://www.copyright-laws.com/
Here in Chicago, contact The Entertainment and Intellectual Property Group
Pretty interesting: http://www.alankorn.com/articles/copyright_infringe.html
And for those who dropped out of high school to pursue a career in music: http://www.copyrightkids.org/
http://www.songwriteruniverse.com/musicbusinfo.html
http://www.professorpooch.com/Copyrighting.htm
http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/nov01/dawson24.htm
http://registermycopyright.com/poor.html
http://registermycopyright.com/
http://www.songwritersresourcenetwork.com/copyrights.html