Speakermom, I was curious about the mailing to yourself thing also. Our B&N didn't have a copy of the book so I haven't read what it actually says. Maybe it advises you do that during the development of a book or something. ??
There are plenty of reasons NOT to rely on anything but registration with the U.S. Copyright Office as proof of copyright.
For one thing, even if the unopened mailing is accepted as proof of authorship, you have to pay for all the investigation and attorney fees to get it before a judge. And even if you win, you only get 'actual monetary damages' which are usually practically nothing.
However, if you register your copyright with the U.S. Copyright office ($30) the U.S. Govt. pays for all the investigation of the infringement of your copyright (which exists for 75 years after you die) because infringement is a federal CRIME and carries with it a $10,000 fine and a possible prison term. Plus if you win in court, you are eligible for not only what it actually cost you, but what the people who stole your work made from it and punitive damages which could be millions of dollars.

For some reason writers seem adverse to registering copyrights. I don't know why. It's so easy. Just do a search for U.S. Copyright Office. The forms are online.
My writer friends go to great lengths to create "proof of copyright" rather than registering. Am I missing something here? I register everything, especially my songs. I learned that the hard way when my songs were stolen and I couldn't afford to pursue a case.
REGISTER
smile

[ November 06, 2004, 04:36 PM: Message edited by: smilinize ]