How to get permission

The easiest way to avoid legal hassles when you write a script it to base it on a folk play or write your own completely original work. But suppose you would like to base a play on a story you once read. You may be able to do it, and avoid legal hassles. Here is what you need to do:

Figure out who the author is.
Write to them, asking that they permit you to write a play based on their story, for publication according to the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License mentioned at the bottom of this and every FreePlays.org page.
Wait.
If you get the author's permission, go ahead and start writing. Send the script to FreePlays.org and we'll give it to the world.

Believe it or not, sometimes this can actually work. Here's how it can go, if you're lucky:

Request

Hi.

A few years ago (...) I read your story "The Book of El".

I found the story deeply moving, though of course terrible (in the literary sense, like a terrible deity). Also, your story was perfectly written. Not one word out of place.

Thank you for a terrific work.

I've recently started a web site you may see at http://www.freeplays.org. The idea of the site is to make scripts available to players (thespians, actors) without royalty.

I am writing to see if I may obtain permission from you to convert your story, "The Book of El", into a script, with the intent of offering it royalty-free on the new site.

This is the first time I've ever asked an author for their permission and I don't even know exactly what it is I need to ask for. I think I am asking you for:

1) Permission to convert "The Book of El" to a script
2) Performance rights

My request is motivated by the amazing power of your story. I would like the world to hear it.

I'll keep this short; I don't even know if I have your correct e-mail address.

Thanks for the good work,

[signed]

Response

Hello,

Sorry that it took me so long to get back to you. I have to admit, I was a bit flaberghasted to read your message. The Book of El was basically my last stab at creative writing before I went to grad school... I haven't written a short story in nearly six years now. I had no idea anybody had ever bothered to read it, much less enjoyed it so much!

I think your website is a fantastic idea (I'm currently a PhD student in Media Studies, and my department does a lot of work on copyright law and the Creative Commons licence), and am extremely flattered that you want to do an adaptation of your story. By all means, I give you permission! Obviously, I'd like to see your work on it at various points, and would be interested to know if anybody decides to perform it and where I might see a performance.

Thank you again for your kind words!

Sincerely,

Daniel Munksgaard

Of course it doesn't always work. Some people love the idea of giving their work(s) away for free. Others hate it - many authors get quite offended even to be asked.

If the author doesn't grant permission, forget it. Paul's experience is that people don't change their minds on this subject. They tend to hold their opinions forcefully - even passionately.

Asking authors for permission is kind of like asking a person if they want to participate in certain intimate physical activities with you*. The person you ask might say "yes"; maybe even with great enthusiasm. If so, great and wonderful things could happen. (Miserable and awful things could happen, too; just like some plays turn out to be miserable and awful, but let's focus on the bright side, shall we?) But if the person says "no", and scorns the idea, and scorns you for asking, and maybe slaps your face, then it is generally impossible to get them to change their mind. It's a waste of time, effort, and desire to try.

If you love a work, and think the world should have a play based on it, but the author won't agree, then it really makes most sense to drop the idea and the work, and move on to other works. There is more than one great work in the world, you know. The author has the right to restrict how others adapt and use the work, and the law is on their side. No matter how strongly you feel, you may not present this work without going up against the author, and a pretty powerful establishment.

What if you decide to be a rebel, and go up against all that? The attitude of "I'll do what I want no matter what anyone says" doesn't go very far. Of course people in real life do adapt stories into plays, and perform plays, without permission. It happens all the time. You know what else happens all the time? Tragedy, when someone gets caught in a situation of "no performance rights, no permission, and no play".

A student at Michigan State University in the 1980s reports of a beautiful, powerful, stirring production of "Eqqus", a popular Broadway play at the time. The MSU drama department was to perform this play as one of their major performances of the year. Tickets sold, sets built, production casted and rehearsed, costumes sewed and made. It was a great show, according to our informant, who snuck into a rehearsal via a friendly stage crew member. Almost nobody else ever saw it. Somebody forgot to get the performance rights. The show was cancelled during rehearsal.

It's a terrible disappointment, and a terrible waste of time, talent, work, creativity, hope, and passion to everyone involved in a production, when it all goes down the drain because of a "permission failure". Don't let that happen. If you want to base a play on somebody else's work, get their permission. If you can't get it, don't write it. There are other great works. Spend your precious effort on bringing one of them to the world.

*Can't get more specific - this is a kid-friendly site.

All works at freeplays.org are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License. In short:

You are free to print, copy, read, use, modify, and perform these works without royalty.
If you distribute any of these works in any form (including recordings of performances), with or without modification, you must grant these same royalty-free rights.

For legal details, see Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License either here or here

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