GreekChat.com Forums - For people who have read my novel, or whoever

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I think that unless substantial portions of the script are identical to your novel, then there is probably nothing you can do about someone exploring the same themes in a play as you did in your novel.

Perhaps he is grappling with these issues himself?

Quote:

Originally Posted by KBanks19 (Post 2052472)

Sorry to come in at an odd time but your book sounds like it will definitely be a hit! As soon as its readily available, I will be buying!!! :)

Thanks!

And we'll see.

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Originally Posted by ree-Xi (Post 2052337)

I think that you might have an uphill battle here. According the US Copyright site:

"(b) In no case does copyright protection for an original work of authorship extend to any idea, procedure, process, system, method of operation, concept, principle, or discovery, regardless of the form in which it is described, explained, illustrated, or embodied in such work."

Think about movies that come out within weeks of each other, that share huge plot lines, similar story conflicts, protag/antagonists, settings, sequence, etc. For example, "Armageddon" came out two months AFTER "Deep Impact" (but was more successful). Other examples are "Antz" and "A Bug's Life," and "Dante's Peak" and "Volcano."

Most of the info I know deals with screenplays and protection advice from the Writer's Guild of America, but there might be some good information on their site. They suggest re-registering work when revisions are made; basically holding your ownership through additional revisions.

One question - do you retain a literary agent? Someone who works on your behalf? If not, you might be able to get some help from your publisher, even if it's just advice or suggestions on who else might be able to help you.

Good luck; we writers become married to their pieces of work, and it's scary to think that someone else is trying to capitalize on your ideas, efforts and successes. The situation does seem pretty sketchy to me. Definitely go to the play, and jot down phrases that might sound familiar to yours, any common themes, characters, places, events, even names. If not prohibited, bring an audio recorder and record some parts of the dialogue.

Like others, I'd love to read your book. Keep us posted on what happens!!

No literary agent for the self-published :)

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Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby (Post 2052478)

My GED in IP law tells me that you don't have an actual legal case. Ree-Xi covered it pretty well above.

That said, the guy is still a douche, and there's no reason not to call him out.

He's pursuing an MFA... possible academic repercussions if not legal ones.

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Originally Posted by ElieM (Post 2052489)

Probably so. Wouldn't even be a thread if the rip-off wasn't so blatant.

Waiting to hear back from my mentor.

Sidenote - if I didn't make it clear before, I'm definitely not one of those people who is hyper sensitive to intellectual property theft. It's a book about a specific situation that has happened many times before and will happen many times in the future. For as many social networking sites as I'm on, I was never worried about it.

It's far more troubling that some rat fink scum who is an alum from my own school would do this. Yes, I sad rat fink. I saw Grease 2 yesterday.

But anyway, thanks everyone.

I'd definitely be following up academically then

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Originally Posted by Senusret I (Post 2052521)

Waiting to hear back from my mentor.

Good move, I think. And I would at least talk to an IP lawyer.

Good luck!

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Originally Posted by Senusret I (Post 2052521)

He's pursuing an MFA... possible academic repercussions if not legal ones.

Which is why you should call him out. Letting him use your work to get a degree devalues the degree itself.

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Originally Posted by DeltaBetaBaby (Post 2052551)

Which is why you should call him out. Letting him use your work to get a degree devalues the degree itself.

From an academic perspective, I think it is wise to start with your mentor, but bear in mind that you might not know who is on whose team these days. I am aware of some brutal fights amongst professors who are championing one candidate or another, especially when a favored candidate turns out to be a less than stellar scholar and it is pointed out to the professor responsible for overseeing the candidate's work. And there can be some pretty extensive fallout.

Regardless, the play's author is getting an MFA and I'm questioning the creativity factor, if he lifted his idea as it appears he's done. If the "lifting" was more extensive, that's definitely an academic concern. Would be interesting to actually obtain a copy of the script, wouldn't it?

In any case, you keep on keepin' on, and I'm pulling for you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Senusret I (Post 2052521)

No literary agent for the self-published :)

He's pursuing an MFA... possible academic repercussions if not legal ones.

Probably so. Wouldn't even be a thread if the rip-off wasn't so blatant.

Waiting to hear back from my mentor.

Sen, if pursuing the academic route doesn't work out, and your mentor (I don't know his experience or credentials), there might be established writer's groups out there with people who might have been in your situation, or at least can speak to it.

Either way, good luck with everything.

Congratulations on self-publishing your book! I did not know!