Pulling fanfics from the internet - your opinions?

[Misha]

Ah, if only bad grammar, spelling and narrative were reason to not publish... how much money would I have already saved on books!

I agree with you that a fanfic that is going to be published should have a rewrite into something that can stand on its own. Alas many AU's (and specially All human in fandoms like ours that have aliens/supernatural elements) are already pretty much their own thing, and are one step away of being original. It's the canon ones that are hard to change into something new.

Either way, good luck to this girl! If people like her story, with all its problems, and are willing to pay money, I see nothing wrong with what she's doing. She's not plagiarizing Twilight, even if the story is heavily "inspired" by it.

I would so pay good money for some of the fics I've loved throughout the years, that's for sure

[nibbles2]

She may not be plagiarising the plot of Twilight, it sounds very AU, but if she hasn't changed the character's personalities and physical characteristics, then is that not a form of plagiarism? I don't know, it just doesn't sit right with me.

[Misha]

I know... but if she's not plagiarizing Twilight, what? Is she plagiarizing her own story? She kinda have the rights to do it... right? ::head hurts::

Let's see it in other terms: if I write a Roswell fanfic, and then go and change the names and make it a Twilight fanfic (what, with the two core stories being similar and all) would I get banned from the Twilight boards since I'm plagiarizing the story at the Roswell boards? Yet they are my words, no question about it. if I chose Max or Edward, Liz or Bella, would it really matter?

As long as the Twilight author doesn't think her work is being plagiarized, I see no reason for any fanfic author to feel compel to rewrite a totally perfect story to be published, when the fanfic one is ready for the prints.

It might seem like cheating, I guess, but I find no legal reason to stop it. She even has the advantage of having some sort of fan base, and already knows the story works for her audience. Wouldn't we all benefit from that before publishing?

[Misha]

Heh, seems the book is really taking off...

http://shine.yahoo.com/love-sex/mommy-p ... 00515.html

No wonder it was a fanfiction hit...

[Heavenli24]

Heh, seems the book is really taking off...

http://shine.yahoo.com/love-sex/mommy-p ... 00515.html

No wonder it was a fanfiction hit...

Yeah... I think one of the reasons why this is bugging me so much is that the Twilight fanfics being pulled from the internet are the ones that are most popular (I think 'Master of the Universe' aka '50 Shades of Grey' got something like 15,000 reviews online)... however, they are not necessarily the fics that are good enough to be published.

They're popular because they contain lots of sex and very little plot - which is fine for fanfic, but not for mainstream publishing (there's one scene I've heard about in this particular fic/book which makes my stomach turn to think about... it's something totally inappropriate for mainstream publishing, yet it's still in the book!). If it were me, I would be mortified at the very idea of my name being associated with it in real life and I think it's embarrassing for the fandom in general (especially as it's becoming publicised that it used to be a fanfic) .

On the other hand, the Roswell fanfics in this fandom that are the most popular and that people generally consider good enough for publishing are those that actually are good - they are well-written and have great storylines; they don't just focus on sex and nothing else.

The other main reason that I have a problem with it (which I've probably already mentioned in this thread) is that there is a reason we put disclaimers on our stories... because fanfic is a derivative work; we don't own the characters and part of the reason it's generally accepted by the original creators is because it's just a hobby, a chance to express your love and enjoyment for a particular book, show or movie... it's a not-for-profit endeavour.

If you want to hone your writing skills through fanfic, then that's great... but if you want to publish a mainstream novel, at least write something original - don't just publish a fanfic which could be linked back to fandom and possibly considered to be a derivative work with different names, but take what you've learned from writing fanfic and use it to create your own characters and plots instead (or take the basis of a fanfic you've written and then re-write it and create something original out of it).

[Misha]

Hmmm... I guess it could be seen as an ethical issue, if not a legal one.

Would I publish one of my fanfics as original work? Absolutely. I've gone through the whole process and the words are there, even if I first publish it as fanfiction. I would need to rework the background in a canon fic, but if my story is already there and works on its own, I don't see why not. It could even be less work if it's an AU

It comes down to what do we think it's good and not, what are we willing to pay for and not. Obviously, there's a market for PWP that is very willing to pay up and might not be familiarized with fanfiction. And I doubt every reader would think "this was fanfcition, so all fanfiction must be like this!" (which might not be far from reality... "fanfiction" hardly equals quality).

Don't take me wrong, I see your point, it's just not an issue from my perspective

[nibbles2]

Of course, I'm completely convinced that Twilight started as Roswell fanfiction, so it's coming full circle.

[Misha]

Of course, I'm completely convinced that Twilight started as Roswell fanfiction, so it's coming full circle.

[Heavenli24]

Would I publish one of my fanfics as original work? Absolutely. I've gone through the whole process and the words are there, even if I first publish it as fanfiction. I would need to rework the background in a canon fic, but if my story is already there and works on its own, I don't see why not. It could even be less work if it's an AU

I have considered the thought of reworking one or two of my fics into original novels, but to be honest, some of them contain a lot more personal stuff/real events than I would be comfortable publishing in the real world, so they would pretty much need to be completely rewritten for me to be happy with them. Also, I try to keep to the inherent original personalities of the Roswell characters even in my AU fics, so I personally don't feel that they are my own original characters and I wouldn't be comfortable claiming that they were.

It comes down to what do we think it's good and not, what are we willing to pay for and not. Obviously, there's a market for PWP that is very willing to pay up and might not be familiarized with fanfiction.

The publishing of this particular book has caused uproar in the Twilight fandom, mainly because of the way it was handled by the author - she basically took advantage of the fans to create her own success: by posting the fic online and gaining thousands of fans while also plotting to make money off her popularity, and then pulling the fic before it was finished and telling them they could only find out the ending if they purchased the books (costing around $100 for all three).

I think pretty much the only reason the books have done so well is because she had that solid fanbase already there and she used it to her advantage... she's not even part of the fandom anymore and apparently wasn't even a fan of the books in the first place!

Of course, I'm completely convinced that Twilight started as Roswell fanfiction, so it's coming full circle.

Lol - there are several similarities!

[Misha]

Woa! That's low!

I still think anyone has the right to publish anything they want, or take off the internet/site any story as well that is theirs, but I can see how frustrating that would be for the readers. The fact that she's earning millions upon millions doesn't help