Nathan Bransford - The Forums

WHEN USING CHAPTER QUOTES (eg. from poetry)
Is it permissible to split lines?
Line 1 - Soon again I heard a tapping....
Line 2 (from a different verse) - And the raven never flitting still is sitting, still is sitting.

Another question - The above punctuation is as written in my copy of The Raven. If splitting lines is permissible, should I use punctuation as written, or adapt to fit the split?

And yet another (re punctuation) - Considering that I don't have an original copy of 'The Raven', can I trust that my copy represents the original punctuation? OR must I find one that does? AND how would I know that THAT one was authentic, anyway????

I think this may be a POLYMATH conundrum!

eringayles wrote:WHEN USING CHAPTER QUOTES (eg. from poetry)
Is it permissible to split lines?
Line 1 - Soon again I heard a tapping....
Line 2 (from a different verse) - And the raven never flitting still is sitting, still is sitting.

Another question - The above punctuation is as written in my copy of The Raven. If splitting lines is permissible, should I use punctuation as written, or adapt to fit the split?

And yet another (re punctuation) - Considering that I don't have an original copy of 'The Raven', can I trust that my copy represents the original punctuation? OR must I find one that does? AND how would I know that THAT one was authentic, anyway????

I think this may be a POLYMATH conundrum!

I don't know about the splits and punctuation, but remember that you have to get legal permission to use poetry, songs, etc. that someone else wrote.

Holly wrote:

eringayles wrote:WHEN USING CHAPTER QUOTES (eg. from poetry)
Is it permissible to split lines?
Line 1 - Soon again I heard a tapping....
Line 2 (from a different verse) - And the raven never flitting still is sitting, still is sitting.

Another question - The above punctuation is as written in my copy of The Raven. If splitting lines is permissible, should I use punctuation as written, or adapt to fit the split?

And yet another (re punctuation) - Considering that I don't have an original copy of 'The Raven', can I trust that my copy represents the original punctuation? OR must I find one that does? AND how would I know that THAT one was authentic, anyway????

I think this may be a POLYMATH conundrum!

I don't know about the splits and punctuation, but remember that you have to get legal permission to use poetry, songs, etc. that someone else wrote.

You don't have to get legal permission to use poetry, but you do have to properly attribute where it came from. And that attribution would be for a particular edition, so you would merely have to reflect that edition properly.

As for the rest, there's probably options. You can use ellipses to indicate a break in a quotation, or you could do the lines separately and provide a citation for each. Or you could go all Devil-may-care and just show the two lines with a single citation and let the reader figure it out. Technically that would be wrong, though. But I'm sure people have done worse things. :)

Thanks Ink and Holly.
BUT no matter who included Poe's work in a book of poetry, would I still have to cite that editor? It would be an editor, because Edgar Allan Poe, the author, died in (I think ) around 1876. This makes me assume that I'd be free to use without citation or permission, and may even be able to split those lines. And who knows how Poe puncuated? - except the lucky sod who owns the original copy of 'The Raven'.
Whatdaya reckon?

The punctuation is probably pretty tight, as it will likely have been copied from the original publication, which is what matters (unless amended in later scholarly editions or something). But if it's in the common domain you might be right about the rest. You could probably just use the lines and attribute them to The Raven and Edgar Allen Poe, particularly as this is for a novel and not a scholarly work.

eringayles, my apologies for the misinformation. Ink, thanks for clearing things up.

Note: Erin was right about the songs. That does require legal permission. And often money. Ick. Poetry is much friendlier. :)

Ink wrote:Note: Erin was right about the songs. That does require legal permission. And often money. Ick. Poetry is much friendlier. :)

Ink and Holly,
Thanks again, you two. I owe you a beer!!
Regards,
Eringayles.
Now, just a hypothetical to keep your grey cells active:
I know an author who is using an entire song spread throughout the dialogue of a crazy character. (It's brilliant).The song is a modern classic. Any ideas on what it may cost her? Just ball-park - an educated guess. (She's filthy rich).
Ta,
E
An afterthought: Would the author need to get permission BEFORE submission, or is that the publisher's/agent's job?