This has been bothering me for a while, and I want to know if it bothers you too.

[Mandark]

When I look at a fanfic’s synopsis and it says something to the effect of “I own nothing in this story - besides the OC’s”. Then typically is the common “the image is not mine, I’ll remove it if the artist asks.”

What really bothers me is just how many people add that they ‘own’ their original characters.

What does that actually mean? Most fanfics are little more than self inserts where the webnovel takes from the entire original work.

If the author of a published copyrighted series can have their characters turned into harem meat toilets for the amusement of some original character, how on earth does it make sense for a webnovel’s author claim to ‘own’ their OC?

Does anyone else see that line and roll their eyes, or is it just that I’m ignorant of something?

 

[Cipiteca396]

I don't read fanfic, but the term OC means Original Character. In other words, it's a character that you created. So of course you would own the character. Even if there's a crossover between Super Mario Bros and Rabbids, there's no sudden shift in who owns the actual characters. They still belong to the people who made/bought them.

 

[Mandark]

I don't read fanfic, but the term OC means Original Character. In other words, it's a character that you created. So of course you would own the character. Even if there's a crossover between Super Mario Bros and Rabbids, there's no sudden shift in who owns the actual characters. They still belong to the people who made/bought them.

Yes, I know what OC means lol.

Here is the thing, many fanfics have patreons where the webnovel author is profiting (or trying to profit) from the original copyrighted work.

I‘m highly skeptical ‘ownership’ means anything for fanfic original characters. If I made a fanfic that used every OC from every other fanfic there would be nothing those webnovel authors could do because they themselves are using characters that don’t belong to them - and often using those original characters in pretty sleezy ways.

 

[Shard]

The image thing REALLY bothers me. At the very least give credit to the artist rather than just "The image isn't mine, if it is yours and you want it removed, sign up for an account and message me here and I will remove it" crap. They do own the characters they create, however, though others are free to use them in their own fanfics of that story.

But the image thing massively pisses me off. I specifically went without a cover image because I didn't have any I owned, and I wasn't going to take someone else's art without permission for that. Then I found out about AI art generation and got myself a cover that way. IMO just using a image you found is extremely scummy, unless you asked the artist for permission. Using it as a profile pic I can somewhat see (wouldn't be doing it myself, otherwise) or sharing a picture with others (best if you share the artist then too) but using it for something you claim as your own just feels wrong in so many ways.

 

[UberNuber]

It would be funny for a fanfic author to try and push their 'intellectual property' on a character they made based on another persons original work.

 

[Cipiteca396]

I‘m highly skeptical ‘ownership’ means anything for fanfic original characters.

Ah, I see what you mean now. All I can say is, two wrongs doesn't make a right.

An OC still belongs to the person who made it, even if that person is a criminal. Trying to take that away from them is the same as trying to take an OC from a more legitimate creator. Both are wrong, even if one feels like poetic justice.

 

[Mandark]

They do own the characters they create, however, though others are free to use them in their own fanfics of that story.

Ok lol, this is my opinion though I’m not a lawyer.

Akira Toriyama owns Dragon Ball, and he can merchandise Dragon Ball characters.

If I made a Dragon Ball fanfic, I legally could not merchandise them as Dragon Ball characters.

So, to see when someone claims to ’own’ the fanfic original character, and then take specific actions informing others that they do, just bothers me because I literally just don’t see the point.

 

[Cipiteca396]

If I made a Dragon Ball fanfic, I legally could not merchandise them as Dragon Ball characters.

That's correct, but you could merchandize the OC's you made in that fanfic as your characters. For example, you could sell plushies, or pins, or prints. You could make body pillows, shirts, and even coffee cups.

All of that would be fine and dandy, as long as you never include actual Dragon Ball characters, logos or whatever that are owned by other people. If you DID do that, then you could be sued by the creator. If they found out about it.

So if you started trying to sue someone for stealing your character, then that person could tell on you to the original creator. And a small webnovel suing you isn't quite as strong as a major corporation or IP.

 

[Erios909]

The image thing for sure rubs me the wrong way every time and nothing makes me look away faster. It's a childish thing to do, and there are plenty of free alternatives than stealing something without permission. They don't take that much time, either. If they lack that maturity then it's very likely the story is going to show that in the writing, as well.

 

[Mandark]

That's correct, but you could merchandize the OC's you made in that fanfic as your characters. For example, you could sell plushies, or pins, or prints. You could make body pillows, shirts, and even coffee cups.

All of that would be fine and dandy, as long as you never include actual Dragon Ball characters, logos or whatever that are owned by other people. If you DID do that, then you could be sued by the creator. If they found out about it.

So if you started trying to sue someone for stealing your character, then that person could tell on you to the original creator. And a small webnovel suing you isn't quite as strong as a major corporation or IP.

ok, so again I’m not a lawyer, BUT

Just say I wrote a super popular Dragon Ball fanfic. Say I got millions and millions of views and had a patreon page which made me a lot of money.

Then say, due to my success I had a artist draw my OC in the same style of the Dragon Ball anime and then sold cups/pillows/etc with my characters face, but no Dragon Ball logos/characters/location/etc.

In this hypothetical, obviously my characters‘ success is built off the prior success of Akira Toriyama. Would he or his publishing company really have no legal recourse against this merchandise?

and if they DID have legal recourse (which I, again as no lawyer, think is obvious), how could it be said that the fanfic author ‘owns‘ their original character?

 

[Cipiteca396]

ok, so again I’m not a lawyer, BUT

Just say I wrote a super popular Dragon Ball fanfic. Say I got millions and millions of views and had a patreon page which made me a lot of money.

Then say, due to my success I had a artist draw my OC in the same style of the Dragon Ball anime and then sold cups/pillows/etc with my characters face, but no Dragon Ball logos/characters/location/etc.

In this hypothetical, obviously my characters‘ success is built off the prior success of Akira Toriyama. Would he or his publishing company really have no legal recourse against this merchandise?

and if they DID have legal recourse (which I, again as no lawyer, think is obvious), how could it be said that the fanfic author ‘owns‘ their original character?

The Patreon page is the vulnerability here. If the author is getting paid for making a Dragon Ball fanfic, then the original creator is owed a portion of that money. They can choose to overlook it, and usually do, but if they ever decide to sue, then that's going to hurt a lot.

Just recently I found out that Warner Bros had(past tense now) the rights to the song "Happy Birthday". Yes, THAT ONE. And they ruthlessly exploited that right by suing and claiming dues. If you wanted to use the song, then you had to pay dearly for it.

In response, most media didn't use the song. They made up new ones (OT's!) and sang those instead. And Warner Bros had absolutely NO legal ground to go after those songs. Not that they ended up having actual legal ground to go after 'Happy Birthday', either.

So no. Unless the fanfic is literally called Dragon Ball or using named DB characters(which is easily amended), there's nothing they could do to stop it. If you do use their stuff, they can sue. If you don't, then they can only gnash their teeth and try to one up you.

Which is to say! If you find a fanfic that's carelessly profiting off someone else's IP: report it to the creator. Or don't.

 

[rain-090]

The image thing REALLY bothers me. At the very least give credit to the artist rather than just "The image isn't mine, if it is yours and you want it removed, sign up for an account and message me here and I will remove it" crap. They do own the characters they create, however, though others are free to use them in their own fanfics of that story.

But the image thing massively pisses me off. I specifically went without a cover image because I didn't have any I owned, and I wasn't going to take someone else's art without permission for that. Then I found out about AI art generation and got myself a cover that way. IMO just using a image you found is extremely scummy, unless you asked the artist for permission. Using it as a profile pic I can somewhat see (wouldn't be doing it myself, otherwise) or sharing a picture with others (best if you share the artist then too) but using it for something you claim as your own just feels wrong in so many ways.

What ai art thing did you use?

 

[CupcakeNinja]

When I look at a fanfic’s synopsis and it says something to the effect of “I own nothing in this story - besides the OC’s”. Then typically is the common “the image is not mine, I’ll remove it if the artist asks.”

What really bothers me is just how many people add that they ‘own’ their original characters.

What does that actually mean? Most fanfics are little more than self inserts where the webnovel takes from the entire original work.

If the author of a published copyrighted series can have their characters turned into harem meat toilets for the amusement of some original character, how on earth does it make sense for a webnovel’s author claim to ‘own’ their OC?

Does anyone else see that line and roll their eyes, or is it just that I’m ignorant of something?

Pfft, tell that to Marvel and DC writers. They have a history of taking their OCs elsewhere when switching sides. Its not unusual.

None of this is canon anyway, most authors give not one fuck about their characters being meat toilets. Its a likeness, but its not the same character.

I've had one dude ask if he could use some of my characters in his stories cuz i guess he liked the personality or appearance? And i was all, "eh, do whatever you want mate." Cuz its not as if its even the same exact character. That dude wont be able to write the character in the same way i do and can, but even if he does...whats the problem?

OCs in fan fictions are usually self inserts but whatever they do to the world or characters isnt gonna affect anything. No one is losing anything.

In fact, its both a show of sucess when people do fanfics of your work and a sort of way to spread awareness of your story to places you dont normally frequent. New channels and all that.

 

[bulmabriefs144]

Yes, I know what OC means lol.

Here is the thing, many fanfics have patreons where the webnovel author is profiting (or trying to profit) from the original copyrighted work.

I‘m highly skeptical ‘ownership’ means anything for fanfic original characters. If I made a fanfic that used every OC from every other fanfic there would be nothing those webnovel authors could do because they themselves are using characters that don’t belong to them - and often using those original characters in pretty sleezy ways.

Well, here's an example using a company-created fangame. Some of the Inuyasha 3DS or PS2 or whatever fangames have original characters. Inuyasha, Kagome, the setting in the present and the feudal era are all the same. They may even get the same voice actors. They obviously do make money from a previously made anime. The new character has voice acting and original powers.

In this case, yes, they have made a fangame. The difference between this and a fan-made fangame is that the company probably owns the license to these characters, or at least leases it. The fan can only admit that this is not their work, they are making a sequel or side story. Hopefully, the original character is not an obvious ripoff of an already made character.

 

[RepresentingCaution]

Yes, wish fulfillment is often the point. Don't forget to drop by and give my story a one-star review ?

Kaiba’s Prostitute

When CEO Seto Kaiba propositions Joan, she expects a one-night stand, but he and his brother keep coming back for more. Now the Kaiba brothers want an heir from her and will pay any price to get it. How do Joan’s husband and boyfriend feel about her new profession?...

www.scribblehub.com

 

[Cipiteca396]

So no. Unless the fanfic is literally called Dragon Ball or using named DB characters(which is easily amended), there's nothing they could do to stop it. If you do use their stuff, they can sue. If you don't, then they can only gnash their teeth and try to one up you.

There's an added dose of irony in using Dragon Ball as an example by the way. It's a fanf- Ahem, heavily inspired by an old story called A Journey to the West. Son Goku is literally the Japanese name for the Monkey King in that story.

 

[Le_ther]

Yes, wish fulfillment is often the point. Don't forget to drop by and give my story a one-star review ?

Kaiba’s Prostitute

When CEO Seto Kaiba propositions Joan, she expects a one-night stand, but he and his brother keep coming back for more. Now the Kaiba brothers want an heir from her and will pay any price to get it. How do Joan’s husband and boyfriend feel about her new profession?...

www.scribblehub.com

What the fuck did I just see?

 

[Cipiteca396]

What the fuck did I just see?

Ah, you must be new here. @WelcomeToSH

 

[lnv]

When I look at a fanfic’s synopsis and it says something to the effect of “I own nothing in this story - besides the OC’s”. Then typically is the common “the image is not mine, I’ll remove it if the artist asks.”

What really bothers me is just how many people add that they ‘own’ their original characters.

What does that actually mean? Most fanfics are little more than self inserts where the webnovel takes from the entire original work.

If the author of a published copyrighted series can have their characters turned into harem meat toilets for the amusement of some original character, how on earth does it make sense for a webnovel’s author claim to ‘own’ their OC?

Does anyone else see that line and roll their eyes, or is it just that I’m ignorant of something?

Generally, fanfic's are considered under "fair use". Where one considers "fair use" is up for debate but usually the understanding of fair use for fanfics is that they use it for personal use or sharing with others and are not making money.

When you say you own the OC characters, it means someone can't produce merchandise and etc with your OC characters

Now all these stuff gets into a really grey area when things like patreon is involved. It's the same grey area that fan translations fall under. The claim usually is that "I am not making money on the content itself, but getting donations to continue my effort(or pay translators), it isn't a replacement for a full time job"

I say grey area, but honestly speaking, if someone ends up going to court over it, 99% the one doing the patreon would lose. The only reason it is grey is usually nobody will bother going to court over it and just at worst ask you to stop since it isn't in their best interest to pick fights with their fanbase(also the amount of money is usually not worth going to court for)

 

[DiscoDream]

When I look at a fanfic’s synopsis and it says something to the effect of “I own nothing in this story - besides the OC’s”. Then typically is the common “the image is not mine, I’ll remove it if the artist asks.”

What really bothers me is just how many people add that they ‘own’ their original characters.

What does that actually mean? Most fanfics are little more than self inserts where the webnovel takes from the entire original work.

If the author of a published copyrighted series can have their characters turned into harem meat toilets for the amusement of some original character, how on earth does it make sense for a webnovel’s author claim to ‘own’ their OC?

Does anyone else see that line and roll their eyes, or is it just that I’m ignorant of something?

it's poorly thought out legal protection. They don't understand copyright law well enough to realize that, that does nothing to protect them. The minute they started accepting "donations" for their work involvijg other IP's, it shifted from fair use to plagiarism. Examples would be games workshop, and then suing anyone who uses their IP without being licensed.

As for the picture thing, most people don't even know where they got pictures from, being either too lazy or unknowledgeable to find it themselves. Throw in a healthy dose of narcissism as well. It's infuriating, but there's little to do bout it