Quote:
Originally Posted by khalleron
What makes it 'original' is if you've put your own stamp on the work, if you put enough of YOURSELF into it. Whatever you draw from the well of stories is yours to work with - it's what you do with it that makes it good or not.
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I have no problem with someone reworking their fanfic into an original story and selling it. It makes me personally feel uncomfortable, but that's just me. But most writers might say they were "inspired by" something or other, they don't come out and say "This is my reworked Harry Potter fanfic. Notice how my main character is a super smart girl that some people call a know-it-all and her lover is a very snarky gentleman in pharmaceuticals?"
The first time I heard about 50 Shades, it was someone sending me an article from the Guardian about how E.L. James had gotten a million dollar deal for her Twilight fanfiction after it had already been published by a small press. Then the bigger publisher came in and scrubbed the past away, something that should have been done
before it was professionally published by anyone.
Meyer has been very cool about it, but she could have pursued legal action. I don't know, for trademark infringement at the least? If she had done that, it could have opened up a whole barrel of trouble for all of fandom. Stricter laws could have cracked down at the very least, and the thought of it makes me very uneasy, since I love the current freedom of fanfic.
And now that James has gotten away with it, tons of people that never knew about fanfic before are trying their hand at writing it, not for the enjoyment of fandom, but to make a fortune. It's only a matter of time before a legal horror story pops out.
Other links of interest:
Dear Author -
http://dearauthor.com/features/indus...es-comparison/
Cracked -
http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-tips-t...o-best-seller/
This is the whopper "There was a conversation she had with another very well-known writer in the community how she intended to 'cash-in' on the fandom" in the comments -
http://dearauthor.com/features/indus...comment-356725