I’ve read the other questions on this topic but the answers seem contradictory and somewhat opinion-based. Some posters have said you ‘don't want to risk the wrath of corporate lawyers’ (or trademark lawyers) others have said that using brands is good for specificity.
What I want to know is what actually happens in reality in traditional publishing? For those writers out there who have been traditionally published, did your publisher make you remove brands from your books?
I’m working on my final draft which my agents will submit to publishers shortly, and I have a well-known tailor who makes suits for presidents and film stars referenced several times in my book. I’ve used it to demonstrate the wealth of one of my characters, that all his suits are handmade by this very famous tailor.
If the publisher will likely force me to remove this, I’d rather do that now in this draft and come up with a fictional famous tailor.
Answer
Using a real-life brand or famous name actually subtracts from your story.
If you invent your own world-class practitioner, you can hype him as the world's best, better than your real life one, unknown to any but the extremely rich, or the up and coming rival of your RL guy. Your RL guy will be beaten someday, by death or a rival or changing styles.
Your fictional world champion need never die. And you'd have to explain the fame either way for readers that do not keep up with who's hot and who's not in business fashion.
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