In the UK at-least, there is an automatic copyright entitlement granted on anything you write / create which is deemed copyright under the limits set out in law

In the UK at-least, there is an automatic copyright entitlement granted on anything you write / create which is deemed copyright under the limits set out in law. "Copyright is an automatic right and arises whenever an individual or company creates a work. To qualify, a work should be regarded as original, and exhibit a degree of labour, skill or judgement. Interpretation is related to the independent creation rather than the idea behind the creation. For example, your idea for a book would not itself be protected, but the actual content of a book you write would be. In other words, someone else is still entitled to write their own book around the same idea, provided they do not directly copy or adapt yours to do so. Names, titles, short phrases and colours are not generally considered unique or substantial enough to be covered, but a creation, such as a logo, that combines these elements may be. In short, work that expresses an idea may be protected, but not the idea behind it." Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-No Derivative Works License. Copyright © The UK Copyright Service. Source:www.copyrightservice.co.uk