on plagiarism.

[behindthec]

let me disclaim this by saying i'm not trying to be mean or snarky in any of this here; i just want everyone to be aware and educated.

first off, let me just say, i understand anonymous commenting to a degree; if you're reluctant to enter the LJ world for whatever reason, fine, but i just want people to know, when you comment out of the blue with no introductions simply to tell me my idea has "been done," it makes you look kind of creepy and ominous, like i'm going to be in trouble if i write this, lol. and without an LJ account, i have no way of contacting you to further discuss your concerns, if i wanted to, or if YOU wanted me to. so go ahead, get an LJ, it takes five minutes, and it's free. :)

that said, i want to clarify what appears to be, clearly, a common misconception about the definition of plagiarism. i have not studied much theory of literary ethics or anything like that, but i used to be an editor, i have a top-honors degree in english, and i was a writing tutor for 2 1/2 years. so i feel my opinion is at least worth something.

three people commented on my last post to "warn" me that my idea of brendon getting AIDS, falling in love with a bandmate, and dying, has already been done in a ryden fic where it was ryan with AIDS. let's clarify. this? not plagiarism. ;) remember that big old slavefic that was so popular last year? i could literally make a list of slave fics that have popped up since then. some more original than others, but their inspiration is obvious. that doesn't make them plagiaristic. we're not dealing with peer-reviewed journals here; this is fandom. we're working in a specific universe with specific people; recycled ideas are bound to happen.

honestly, there are probably people reading this right now who have subconsciously "stolen" a phrase or a small plot point directly from one of my fics, because i have seen it. and i never say anything because it doesn't upset me; it actually makes me smile, because it's always one of my friends/minions/fans on here and i know they'd never do it intentionally, they did it subconsciously because they admire my work (i've done this too, and only realized it too late; it's very embarrassing), so to me it's very flattering (imitation is the sincerest form of, etc.). to me, at least in fandom, plagiarism, like art, is determined by intent.  intent is what makes the difference between pollack and a 2-year-old's finger painting, in the end.  intent in fandom is similar: if you are consciously, deviously copying someone's work and hoping to get away with it, fuck you.  if you're writing something that you think is original and it turns out it isn't so much, that's really totally okay.  and anyway, the challenge of originality depends on how good a writer you are.  multiple people can take the same prompt and write ENTIRELY different fics; this happens every day.

examples: for fuck's sake, the entire premise for pwf was taken from a beatles fic (which i've never read, but becca mentioned in passing) where the beatles get stranded on a deserted island and are kidnapped by warrior women who only used men for breeding. i dare you to call pwf plagiarism. :P as further evidence, what about all the "sick fics" out there? i can probably make a list of over a hundred fics where one character is sick and the other takes care of them. they're all the same. cutesy and schmooopy and predictable. it doesn't make them plagiarism. furthermore, livinglifeloud and alphabetatoast are both currently writing ryden fics set in italy. if you read them, you will realize the only similarity is that they are ryden fics set in italy; they are utterly different in every way. both writers were unaware of each other's works until i brought it up. so, that? not plagiarism.

i just wanted to put that out there. there is a huge difference between stealing major plot points, lines, etc., and simply writing an idea that is similar to another idea, based on a mere one-line summary; there is a difference between plagiarism and coincidence. i'm pretty convinced i'm going to actually write this fic now, just to prove my point. :P and also because i really want to. my gut feeling is pushing me toward making it brendon/spencer, so we'll see. i think it would be amazing to watch spencer crumble like that. *evilly rubs hands together* XD

but anyway, all that said, i do appreciate those who let me know about the other fic. i know you all meant well. :) hope this helps clear up some stuff, for fellow writers.
 
and yeah, yeah, chapter 2 in a little bit. :P