Am I . . . stealing?!

[T.K._Paradox]

Inspiration isn't plagiarism.

 

[RayneStorm]

You can't copyright an idea so as long as you're not lifting paragraphs from the original works then it's not plagiarism. The best writers are the ones who know how to steal ideas like professionals.

 

[NotaNuffian]

Inspiration is not copyrightable. You are not stealing anything by using it as inspiration.

If you copy-pasted some paragraphs from another novel, then you'd be stealing.
If you made some plotlines 99% the same as some other novel, then it could be argued that you're stealing... But it could also be argued that you're just using Omegaverse tropes, so the person sueing you for plagiarizing their work doesn't really have a case to build up on (Yes, there was a case where this actually happened. The person doing the sueing lost all support as soon as the defending party mentioned that they both were just using standard Omegaverse tropes.).

So no, you're not stealing by being inspired on something.

So encounters are loose, because of the possibility of someone experiencing something similar, if not the same and it is hard to pin on whether the author has lifted it straight off of other works and put on a new paint? I get that mentor impressed by new mentee should not be copyrighted, but occasionally it leads to "same song, shittier singers" problem as new works only know how to copy paste without much thoughts.

 

[2021]

Yes you cuck

 

[RepresentingCaution]

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

 

[NotaNuffian]

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

For the author who is getting plagerized.

For the readers who had to slog through the same plot, not so much.

 

[ConansWitchBaby]

As a literary example there was one that I saw a few months ago on RR. It was the scene from Solo Leveling that had the initial beginning party get stuck in a room and subsequently killed. It had all the steps. Giant door that closes in on the group, circular ensemble of statues with different weapons including an instrument, statue in chair, three-part rhyming poem with rules and the same way of beating the room by sacrificing. The only thing that was added was a second character that goes through a portal at the end. And everyone died instead of a small group surviving. That is straight up stealing, copy/paste, however you want to say it. It didn't change anything it just ermer-glued onto something established.

I want to bring this up mostly because I used a movie example earlier and because I don't want to dissuade anyone from using ideas one will come across. This scene is somewhat common. A room ceiling itself off is extremely common as a trap. Being surrounded by inanimate objects that come to life is as well. Statues, suits of armor, monsters coming through the wall in mass. Having to escape by way of solving a riddle.

You know where else in popular culture/media this near exact scenario comes up in? Harry Pothead. Chess room sealed off, statues coming alive and being a threat and deterrence, sacrifice to proceed and the riddle. Sure, some aspects have a few different ways of being presented like the sacrifice being brought about by a choice rather than a necessity. Or the riddle on how to proceed being less strictly outlined in writing. Also, it is so basic it's barely a riddle (play the room as it is) that Ron simply states what needs to be done. Yet nobody called out Solo Leveling for this because it had a different genre backing it along with changes to make things a bit more obvious. Instead of things being implied it outlines the rules and the dread factor is up and center, with the statue on the throne rather than the situation in Potter where they still need to get past the room out of urgency.


Also, Terry Goodkind existed.

 

[RepresentingCaution]

For the author who is getting plagerized.

For the readers who had to slog through the same plot, not so much.

It's not necessarily the same plot. I inspired someone on Wattpad with my story, and the plot is quite different. Plus, she actually finished her book, and now it's getting published.

 

[Deleted member 57675]

Every original story has already been created. We are now just rehashing troupes, characters, genres and plot elements together to make something that on the outside appears original. If you concede that unintentional/unconscious plagiarism is a thing than you must also concede that everyone alive who has written a story has stolen elements of it.

Yes and no. Humans will always find some way to create something different. Everything may go back to some basic core elements but i feel this prhase sometimes is overused like an excuse not to branch and push out farther than what we are already comfortable with. An ancient greek may write on a tablet but when they see modern tablets, they will do a double take still, even if both are types we utilize to write/draw note on. Isekai an ancient greek into modern world sounds like a nice story.

I think it depends on level of inspired by. If its level of inspiration where its pretty much copying things save for changing a characters appearance and name, then eh...is this better in fanfiction? That being said everyone gets inspired by something. Unintentional plagiarize happens when our minds still not completely let go of what inspired us in our heads and we don't realize it sometimes until it gets pointed out. There are those who inspire by and copy pretty much and then there are those who inspire which by the time it comes into form, you could see how different and how much it stands on its own.

 

[Ai-chan]

So I've told people that my books are inspired by some of my favorite book series . . . I mean it says that on my profile page, but the thing is everyone is always like, 'Oh isn't that stealing?!' or, 'That book is a lot like this series . . .' and part of me is like well yeah . . . I literally will say what book is inspired by. Does anyone else think it's weird that I do this or do others do this too? Would you say it's 'stealing . . .? Am I stealing these concepts?!

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is very similar to the Japanese Battle Royale. So similar that everyone who have watched Battle Royale instantly said, "This is like Battle Royale." It's not stealing, but people think it's stealing anyway, because of the similarities. It doesn't help that Suzanne Collins lied about never watching Battle Royale, only to later admit that she was indeed inspired by Battle Royale. If you're inspired by something, then there's no need to lie.

The characters are different, the characterization are different, the premise behind the creation of the death game was different and the genre of the story is different. It's just that if you've watched Battle Royale, The Hunger Games feels like the same story. The Hunger Games feel more similar to Battle Royale than Battle Royale 2 is to the first one.

Did she steal the idea? One can argue yes. Can she get in trouble? No. Ideas are not copyrighted. What's copyrighted are the plot, the prose and the characters. She only took an element of Battle Royale, which is the death game, which is not actionable. She didn't use the same plot, the same dialogues or the same characters, so legally speaking, there is nothing wrong with the story. The only reason why people said she stole from Battle Royale was her refusal to admit that The Hunger Games was inspired by Battle Royale.

 

[InceTagn]

Every time we read a story, we build references that can influence us.

When writing our own stories, we do not create a new geometric space, not the concept of X, Y, and Z.
We just define a new coordinate, we form a new shape( for those who are drawing).
I will not say that it is stealing. It is being influenced by a genre.

Guess, when the first Xianxia was created, was the second one stealing from You areee just inspired by a tag and decided to write about it.

 

[Maze_Runner]

Depends. I assume stealing means that you’ve completely plagiarized others’ works. But if you didn’t, then it’s okay—maybe.

It’s kind of complicated, you know. Depends on a lot of factors. If your books are really really similar to others’ books with copyright and everything, and you monetize your books, then you might have some legal issues. Yep, might have, not will have. Like I said, it depends on a lot of factors.

I’m not quite sure, but I think chances of you getting sued for writing something similar is slim, unless you really did copy other’s work to a T.

But if it’s only inspiration, then I don’t think there’s any problem with that, unless the owner of the works you drew inspiration from want to nitpick you—don’t know about book industry, but it sure happens a lot in music.

But inspiration really is a thing. When you‘re inspired by something, you want to create something similar, right? It’s normal. I mean, look at all these isekai stories and the fantasy elements in them. How many elements are really original? The elf, the dwarf, game system, Truck-kun, etc. All these are inspired elements, it’s not original at all. Not to mention the plot, the character’s archetype, etc. These are inspirations, not plagiarism.

So, I don't actually take anything directly from the books. So in my book Zoo Animal it is inspired by Hunger Games. Zoo Animal is about a boy who has to deal with not being royal blood so then he doesn't get into an area (the zoo) and so when it comes out that he isn't of royal blood then he has to run and hide but he ends up coming back to save others. I told someone in my family about this and they said this is a lot like Hunger Games. So I don't exactly take exact quotes or anything. But it's so much like Hunger Games.

 

[IDKWtWrite-San]

It was inspired so it's not really stealing. You come across of a motivation to make you write something that you want to see and since it's not also fan-fiction and not almost similar to the inspired story then it's not considered plagiarizing.

 

[BlackKnightX]

So, I don't actually take anything directly from the books. So in my book Zoo Animal it is inspired by Hunger Games. Zoo Animal is about a boy who has to deal with not being royal blood so then he doesn't get into an area (the zoo) and so when it comes out that he isn't of royal blood then he has to run and hide but he ends up coming back to save others. I told someone in my family about this and they said this is a lot like Hunger Games. So I don't exactly take exact quotes or anything. But it's so much like Hunger Games.

I think you’re good. I haven’t watched or read the Hunger Games, yet, but I do know the general premise and a rough plot of the story. From what you’ve described, I think maybe it’s the action scenes that feel similar to the Hunger Games?

If it only has the same vibe or the same feel to it, then there’s nothing to worry about at all. It’s like watching shonen animes—all of them pretty much give off the same vibes because there seems to be a tradition of source in the genre.