Is it alright to mention celebrities?

[poptart]

Hi Nathan
I'm involved with putting together a humorous non-fiction book which will hopefully be published later this year. I wondered what is the legal situation regarding mentioning the names of celebrities. The book is clearly meant to be funny and not factual, but I'm worried in case anyone named takes offence.
Any thoughts on this would be very helpful.
Thanks, Sandra

[Nathan Bransford]

Hi Nathan
I'm involved with putting together a humorous non-fiction book which will hopefully be published later this year. I wondered what is the legal situation regarding mentioning the names of celebrities. The book is clearly meant to be funny and not factual, but I'm worried in case anyone named takes offence.
Any thoughts on this would be very helpful.
Thanks, Sandra

Humorous nonfiction that's not factual? Not quite sure what you mean.

[poptart]

It's a kind of fake dictionary of made up words and their humorous definitions.

[Nathan Bransford]

It's a kind of fake dictionary of made up words and their humorous definitions.

Oh ok I see. Please bear in mind that I'm not an attorney but satire of celebrities is usually okay. It shouldn't stop you from querying agents because if you find a publisher they will probably vet it before publishing, but if you plan to self-publish you might want onto seek the advice of a legal professional.

[poptart]

It's a kind of fake dictionary of made up words and their humorous definitions.

Oh ok I see. Please bear in mind that I'm not an attorney but satire of celebrities is usually okay. It shouldn't stop you from querying agents because if you find a publisher they will probably vet it before publishing, but if you plan to self-publish you might want onto seek the advice of a legal professional.

Thanks!