Faleena Hopkins, whose works include Cocky Romantic and Cocky Cowboy, is said to have written to other writers asserting her right to the adjective in titlesRomance novelists have risen en masse to defend their right to use the word “cocky”, after one writer moved to trademark the adjective. Faleena Hopkins is the self-published author of a series of books about the “Cocker Brothers” (“Six bad boy brothers you’ll want to marry or hide under you [sic] bed”), each of which features the word “cocky” in the title: Cocky Romantic, Cocky Biker, Cocky Cowboy. Records at the US patent and trademark office show that the registered trademark for use of the word “cocky” in relation to romance ebooks was issued in April 2018. Other writers claimed that Hopkins had reported them to Amazon, resulting in their books being taken down from the site. A petition to the US patent and trademark office asking it to cancel the “cocky” trademark has since been signed by more than 17,000 people.

Source: The Guardian May 08, 2018 13:41 UTC