Nathan Bransford - The Forums

MattLarkin wrote:I would guess they'd be unlikely to complain either way, unless the story makes them look bad. If it makes it look like a place to hang out, then it's free publicity. If it makes it look like a dump, well, I wouldn't be very happy if I was the owner (and I sure wouldn't want to stock your book).

I agree with Matt. I doubt they'd mind. If it's someplace nearby, that you visit, or that you could visit, you may want to try to approach the owner and let them know you'd like to use their store in a novel you're writing. I'd think many businesses, especially small shops, would be happy to be included. Plus it could give you an additional connection for helping display & sell your work - if Harold's is mentioned, maybe the owner would consider setting up a small stand by the register with your books on it.

One area of concern a trademark owner may have with nominal uses is dimuintion of value. Xerox went through that problem in the '60s. Xerox became a household and business world common noun term for photocopying. Lower case xerox is now in the dictionary in that form. Good for business? Open to interpretation. Actionable? Yes. Dimunition of value claims favor a trademark owner.

Lucas Films, stung by U.S. Defense Deptartment use of the term Star Wars, took steps to trademark many of the terms used in the saga. "Droid," for example.

For more on the dimunition of value argument, see the Rice article linked in my previous post.