One of the most exciting things about a new year in the literary world is the entry of a slew of new works into the public domain. Which means, in essence, that fan fiction, “homage” fiction, or simply using those characters in your own work is now a free-for-all and can be used for commercial purposes.
ALLi News Editor Dan Holloway
There are some caveats when it comes to the public domain, and I advise you to have some fun but also, with a serious hat on, peruse the Wikipedia page and other lists that break things down by work and jurisdiction. Works may enter the public domain at different times in different territories, for example, which could lead to some serious litigation if you’re not careful. And where beloved characters only enter the public domain in a single work, be very careful.
Characters, Caveats, and Cautionary Tales
One of the most recent high-profile public-domain debuts was that of Winnie-the-Pooh, which gave us delights such as the zero-budget splatter hit Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey. Winnie-the-Pooh entered the public domain in 2022, but the much-loved character Tigger did not do so until 2024, when The House at Pooh Corner joined it.
On this year’s list, one of the most notable entries is The Murder at the Vicarage, the first of Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple novels, which enters the public domain in the US. Very exciting—but use with great care.
A Rich Vein of New Material
Other significant works entering the public domain include much of T. S. Eliot; in Europe, the works of Thomas Mann; and the literary works of Winston Churchill. Following The Murder at the Vicarage, thriller writers may be interested in works by Margery Allingham, Ellery Queen, Leslie Charteris, and several Nancy Drew books. One that caught my eye personally was a childhood favorite, Arthur Ransome’s Swallows and Amazons.
It’s also worth noting that films from 1930 will be entering the public domain.
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