tis me your loveable American

It's a subtle one. But I maybe I missed the real subtlety myself! Oh no! It's starting again!!! :~) Larkin has a point though. The date stamp is good in English and US copyright law as far as I am aware. If someone steals your work - well, its not ideal unless you spot and sue for your share (they even did all the leg-work). But one way or another the bird is out of the cage - as it is on here. Those words are not doing much stashed under the floorboards.

I send my work, dated on a disc to myself by registered post in a tamper proof envelope. I have been assured that this is a legal way to copyright your work.

I think I'd be flattered and only angry if the thief profited financially from it, especially when I got nowt from the same stuff. Personally I'm not really worried about being literary ripped off. If ABC editorial's judgement is anything to go by my work is virtually worthless anyway. sue

I attended a course on copyright a couple of years ago and I can assure you that by placing your work on here you are attesting that it is yours and the date and time stamp is an excellent legal mechanism that proves that this is so - far better than the posting to yourself thing! If anyone steals your work then you must sue them - this is an expensive thing to do and can bring only limited rewards so do beware if you go down that route. But others are correct - the only sure way of avoiding plagiarism to not to show your work to anyone! Once it is out there then it can, clearly, be stolen - but by putting it on here you have a better chance of recompense than you would in most other systems.