"Fan fiction" is loosely defined as a work written or directed by someone who "borrows" original material from an original author or director, usually as a means of expanding on a story. The best example of this that I have found are Trekkies (Star Trek aficianados for those non-science fiction fans reading this) writing critical, in-depth articles and essays about the popular franchise. Technically, they have to get permission from whatever company owns the idea of Star Trek, and most don't. If the company or studio decides to sue, a gigantic super-rich corperation ends up in a legal battle with some guy paying homage to a story that he worships. The company looks greedy, to say the least. After all, they already have their billions of dollars and are not really going to benefit from suing some guy (or girl) typing in his/her basement. Can you really own an idea? I know that technically that is more or less the definition of copyrighting, but can "fan fiction" really be regulated? And, more importantly, should it be?
A contemporary example of legal issues over fan fiction is the newest Harry Potter saga. A self-described superfan wrote a companion encyclopedia to the magical realm of Harry Potter and the original author, J.K. Rowling, did not like that at all because she did not give authorization and allegedly had planned on writing her own encyclopedia, even though she has insisted over and over that the story arc is complete. She is in the process of suing him. I'm not sure how I feel about this situation. J.K. Rowling isn't exactly hurting for money, so that cannot possibly be the motivation for suing. Does she have a legitimate right to keep her ideas out of the hands of everyone, even people that want to help others learn and understand those ideas? Are "fan fiction" writers stealing, or are they just overly excitable authors/directors who get carried away? I'm not sure that either side is wrong or right in this particular case.
4 comments:
What an interesting debate!!
After thinking about your post, I think that what people create need to be protected by copyright. This isn't a money issue, its a persons right to own what they create. You used the example of JK Rowling. Yes she is rich. Yes, she finished her series. However, she should have the right to what she created. Shes rich because she is brilliant. She created a series which has die hard followers, both adult and youth. She deserves all of the credit for her creation. If someone wanted to extend her work, they needed to ask for permission.
Those are my thoughts:)
Sarah,
I respect your thoughts and I think I agree with you. I know that sounds pretty timid, and it is. I realize that I left my initial post ambiguous because I honestly can see both sides, and I still can. However, the principle overides the monetary issue. Most authors and directors don't really take that much of a hit to their wallets, but they should "own" their ideas and people that piggyback off them are probably going to make a buck somewhere. When it comes to multi-million dollar companies/studios,I have a little harder time drumming up compassion for them.
Steve,
This is really cool. I had no idea that this genre had a name. I agree with Sarah that the author's copyrights of original works should be protected. If a fan is that zealous, it shouldn't be too much to ask that proper permission be requested. Yeah, there's a chance of denial, but there's an equal chance of permission and maybe even broader money-making possibilities for the fan.
I keep thinking of the recent debacle created by a fan of Stephenie Meyer, the author of the Twilight series. This person leaked parts of her new book on the net, probably hoping to generate interest and notariety for her, but only caused her grief and the possibility of not finishing the series. I know this isn't the same thing as a fan piggybacking on an idea, but it's a form of someone misusing something that wasn't his/her work, property, or idea. I've heard of authors mulling over ideas for years before they actually produce something or add to a series, so rather than an unauthorized version of a work being produced, I say let the original author have first dibs!
It's funny, because I don't think I had much of an opinion about any of this before I started researching and learnig about copyright, but now I'm really leaning toward the rights of the creator.
Thanks for throwing this out there for us to discuss!
Lorena
Lorena,
Thanks for your contribution. I actually hadn't heard of the Stephenie Meyer fan fiction fiasco, if you will. That sounds like a fan with good intentions overstepping his or her bounds and causing a lot of problems for the author. I'll take a further look at that situation.
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