&gt; <i>If you&#x27;re a smart guy with Robert Heinlein and copyright is more limited to a few years would you ever have written Starship Troopers? Or would you have gone into something like the real estate business which can last generations and keep your children and grandchildren happy &amp; fed after you&#x27;re long dead?</i><p>Uh, you know you still get to <i>keep the money you make</i>, right? Like, we&#x27;re not going to confiscate any unspent proceeds from a work after the copyright term is up. If you produce a work which is a huge success and makes you rich, then you&#x27;re still going to be rich.