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writer

vr.tr.writer · thing-q36180

Let an agent handle writers by genre, works, rights and attribution, and keep a writer separate from their works and pen names.

Thing Registry Society, people and institutions SOC.PER

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions

Identity Who the writer is.

Names

Legal and pen names.

Names

Names used.

  1. Which names does the writer publish under? provenance
  2. Is any pen name confidential? boundary

Identifiers

ISNI, VIAF, ORCID.

Identifiers

Authority identifiers.

  1. Which authority identifiers identify this writer? provenance
  2. Are other writers with the same name disambiguated? boundary
Works What they wrote.

Bibliography

List of works.

Works list

The works and editions.

  1. What has this writer written? provenance
  2. Which attributions are disputed? boundary

Genre and field

Kinds of writing.

Genre

Genres and fields.

  1. What genres or fields does the writer work in? definition
  2. For which publishers or outlets? provenance
Rights Copyright and licensing.

Copyright

Ownership and term.

Copyright

Who owns the rights.

  1. Who holds the rights to this work? provenance
  2. When do they expire? measurement

Licensing

Permissions.

Licensing

How to obtain permission.

  1. How can permission to use the work be obtained? action
  2. Is any licence already granted, such as Creative Commons? provenance
Professional Working as a writer.

Commissions

Contracts and fees.

Commission terms

Terms of commissions.

  1. On what terms is the writer commissioned? definition
  2. Who owns work made for hire? boundary

Credit

Attribution.

Credit

How credit is given.

  1. How should the writer be credited? action
  2. Do moral rights require attribution? boundary

Classifiers Filled

Family
Thing Registry
Category
Society, people and institutions
Entry kind
thing
Plane
SOC
Domain
SOC.PER
Other names and narrower kinds
travel writer, chief content officer, website content writer, head writer, guidebook author, travel guide writer, runemaster, fashion writer, crossword creator, comics writer, ghost author, sports columnist

What it is Filled

A person who writes texts professionally or creatively, such as books, articles, scripts, poems, technical documents or web content.

Why it exists Filled

Let an agent handle writers by genre, works, rights and attribution, and keep a writer separate from their works and pen names.

Distinguishing features Filled

  • A person who writes; the work is a separate entry
  • May write under several names
  • Holds copyright unless transferred or work-for-hire
  • Includes creative, journalistic, technical and content writing

What robots and AI may and may not do Filled

Must not

  • Attribute a work to the wrong writer or claim a writer wrote what they did not.
  • Reveal the person behind a pen name without their consent.
  • Use a writer's work in violation of copyright or applicable licence terms, including in commercial imitation, while recognizing lawful quotation, other legal exceptions and public-domain use.
  • Publish a writer's private correspondence or unpublished drafts without permission.

Only with a human decision

  • Publishing a translation, adaptation or posthumous edition requires human involvement.

May

  • Report a writer's published works and public biography from reliable sources.
  • Quote or summarise their work within copyright and licence terms, with attribution.

Moral aspects Filled

  • Writers depend on credit and rights for their living and reputation.
  • Pen names often protect writers from persecution.

Who is affected

  • Writers
  • Readers
  • Rights holders and heirs

Owners Filled

Steward

The writer themself; publishers and collecting societies hold rights they have been assigned.

Master systems

  • National library authority files

Links to other meta-models Filled

parent

  • Q108762424 - registry parent class
  • Q482980 - registry parent class
  • Q483501 - registry parent class

related

  • occupation - a role
  • written work - books and texts are separate entries
  • copyright - rights in their works
  • pen name - a name, not a person

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled

Identity and identifiers required Filled

  • Vercy registry: vr.tr.writer
  • Wikidata: Q36180 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q36180)
  • ISNI: 16 digits international name identifier
  • ORCID: 16 digits for academic writers
  • VIAF: numeric library authority file

Direct properties not applicable Not applicable

Not applicable

Plane SOC: no invented physical properties.

Recognition optional Filled

  • Bylines, author names on covers and credits
  • Pen names and ghostwriting hide the writer
  • Author identifiers in library catalogues
  • No particular appearance; writers are known through their works, bylines and author pages.

Capabilities and actions required Filled

  • commission and publish their work
  • attribute works to them, including under pen names
  • license rights in their works
  • cite them

Hazards and failure modes required Filled

  • Works may be attributed to the wrong writer.
  • A pen name may be revealed without consent.
  • Use of a writer's work may infringe copyright or applicable licence terms.

Standards and interfaces required Filled

  • Berne Convention on copyright
  • National copyright law and moral rights
  • Press regulation for journalists

Context of use required Filled

  • Producing texts for readers, audiences and organisations.
  • novelist, poet, playwright, screenwriter
  • journalist and travel writer
  • technical writer and content writer
  • ghostwriter and head writer

Sources Filled

  1. Wikidata item Q36180: writer - identity and sense of the item
  2. Wikipedia: Writer - general description of the item

Open questions

  • How should pen names be linked to writers without exposing identities?
  • Should writing occupations be separate entries?
  • How should AI-assisted writing be attributed?

Machine files

Provenance

thing registry research (pass 2) · unreviewed

Built from: models/things/publications/thing-q36180/spec.json