Estate Planning for Authors: How to Protect Your Books (and Your Family) After You Die episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 8, 2026 · 44 MIN

Estate Planning for Authors: How to Protect Your Books (and Your Family) After You Die

from Novel Marketing · host Thomas Umstattd Jr.

You will die. It could be today, it could be 15 years from now, but no one lives forever. Your books, however, can outlive you. In fact, seventy years after you're gone, they’ll live in the public domain.That means your grandchildren's grandchildren could end up responsible for your intellectual property. Most authors have done zero planning for what happens to their books, passwords, and royalties when they're no longer around to manage them.In this week’s episode, attorney Kelley Way (one of the rare lawyers who practices both estate planning and copyright law) joins us to map out exactly what every author needs to know before it's too late.You'll learn:The one document your heirs are powerless to undo, even if they hate the deal you made with your publisher.Why giving your book away for free after you die might be the single best thing you can do for it.The unglamorous, ten-dollar-a-month tool that prevents more estate disasters than any will or trust ever could.Listen in or read the blog version to make sure your books don't end up in a paper prison, where your hard work can no longer make an impact.Blog link: https://www.authormedia.com/estate-planning-for-authors-how-to-protect-your-books-and-your-family-after-you-die/AuthorMediaSocial link: https://authormedia.social/c/novel-marketing/estate-planning-for-authors-how-to-protect-your-books-and-your-family-after-you-dieYT Link: https://youtu.be/eJjYPCqKPbwSupport the show

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jul 8, 2026

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You will die. It could be today, it could be 15 years from now, but no one lives forever. Your books, however, can outlive you. In fact, seventy years after you're gone, they’ll live in the public domain. That means your grandchildren's grandchildren could end up responsible for your intellectual property. Most authors have done zero planning for what happens to their books, passwords, and royalties when they're no longer around to manage them. In this week’s episode, attorney Kelley Wa...

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Estate Planning for Authors: How to Protect Your Books (and Your Family) After You Die

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