Plagiarism

[Jay142]

I just read a story that is really close to a portion of a story I wrote a couple of years ago. The author changed things up a little but I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen because I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen.

It's not a big deal, nothing I'm going to lose sleep over, but it was weird recognizing a plot line and some exact actions as one of my stories.

Is this something Laurel should be aware of or does this happen all the time? I know there are a lot of stories on here and there is no copyright on an idea but this story was too close to one of mine to be a coincidence.

I'm mostly curious about what other authors think and if it's happened to them.

 

[regularguy13]

I feel bad for you but...

That's a shame, but I admit I lift things off the internet and use them verbatim.

When I'm doing research and need medical or technical info, I'll steal a line from the experts.

When I need to know what women think or how "X" feels for them, I'll lift their comment from Cosmo, Bustle, Bad Girl's Bible, etc.

If I were in college, I'd use a footnote. Here, I copy and paste. no harm. no foul?

 

[Lori_the_Hoosier]

I just read a story that is really close to a portion of a story I wrote a couple of years ago. The author changed things up a little but I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen because I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen.

It's not a big deal, nothing I'm going to lose sleep over, but it was weird recognizing a plot line and some exact actions as one of my stories.

Is this something Laurel should be aware of or does this happen all the time? I know there are a lot of stories on here and there is no copyright on an idea but this story was too close to one of mine to be a coincidence.

I'm mostly curious about what other authors think and if it's happened to them.

Run it by Laurel and see if she agrees; if she does, she'll take it down. This happened with my husband, BB1958; a bunch of people complained to Laurel that some guy had taken one of his most popular stories, renamed every character and altered certain key details that changed it from I/T to EC, but left the premise, plot, and most of the dialog unchanged, and posted it as a self-penned story in EC. Laurel deleted it and banned him. He only actually heard about it when one of the people who complained msg'd him to let him know it had all gone down, so I don't know if he ever got the chance to feel hurt or outraged or whatever because it was all done and dusted before he ever heard about it.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

That's a shame, but I admit I lift things off the internet and use them verbatim.

When I'm doing research and need medical or technical info, I'll steal a line from the experts.

When I need to know what women think or how "X" feels for them, I'll lift their comment from Cosmo, Bustle, Bad Girl's Bible, etc.

If I were in college, I'd use a footnote. Here, I copy and paste. no harm. no foul?

Then there are the copyright laws... Cosmo, Bustle, Bad Girl's Bible, etc. are copyrighted so tread carefully. You could be banned for plagiarism.

 

[Omenainen]

Is this a recent case? I might contact the other author first to ask what’s going on. If one wants to think nicely about it, it could be it’s not intentional, maybe they’ve read your story and it has lingered so that they’re written a similar scene on their story. If it’s 1:1 copy-paste-change-names that is probably not the case, though.

I once ran into a story that was very similar to a story I’d read previously. They were both years old stories, so all I did was check out which was released earlier and mentally frowned upon the other author. I had the impression neither author is active here anymore so I didn’t report it or anything.

But to answer the question on what I think about it, it’s not okay. Each should either write their own stories or contact the other author and ask permission to use them as inspiration, giving credit where it’s due.

 

[missyunderstanding]

Plagiarism Plagiarism

I just read a story that is really close to a portion of a story I wrote a couple of years ago. The author changed things up a little but I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen because I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen.

It's not a big deal, nothing I'm going to lose sleep over, but it was weird recognizing a plot line and some exact actions as one of my stories.

Is this something Laurel should be aware of or does this happen all the time? I know there are a lot of stories on here and there is no copyright on an idea but this story was too close to one of mine to be a coincidence.

I'm mostly curious about what other authors think and if it's happened to them.

I decided to plagiarize this thread.

 

[missyunderstanding]

Plagiarism plagiarism

Is this a recent case? I might contact the other author first to ask what’s going on. If one wants to think nicely about it, it could be it’s not intentional, maybe they’ve read your story and it has lingered so that they’re written a similar scene on their story. If it’s 1:1 copy-paste-change-names that is probably not the case, though.

I once ran into a story that was very similar to a story I’d read previously. They were both years old stories, so all I did was check out which was released earlier and mentally frowned upon the other author. I had the impression neither author is active here anymore so I didn’t report it or anything.

But to answer the question on what I think about it, it’s not okay. Each should either write their own stories or contact the other author and ask permission to use them as inspiration, giving credit where it’s due.

I decided to plagiarize this thread.

 

[SimonDoom]

Contact Laurel. See what she says.

Assuming Literotica's plagiarism/infringement guidelines track US copyright law, the question is whether this other author merely borrowed the ideas from your story (which would be OK under US law) or borrowed the unique creative expression (which would not be OK). The distinction between the two is not always clear, especially in a site devoted to genre fiction that involves a high degree of repetitive use of popular tropes.

 

[AvroAnson]

That's a shame, but I admit I lift things off the internet and use them verbatim.

When I'm doing research and need medical or technical info, I'll steal a line from the experts.

"Hey Bill, did you see this article?"

"No."

"Well, the Nude English Journal of Medicine says: 'Death is a leading cause of mortality.'"

"Huh."

Problem solved.

 

[KeithD]

You can't copyright ideas or plotlines. Are there extensive passages of predominately duplicate wording? That's what plagiarism is.

Send one of these passages to Laurel and she presumably will leave the earliest posted version and delete the last (and investigate the later poster).

 

[jehoram]

I decided to report trolling

Um, it was a joke, I think.

 

[Jay142]

How do you contact Laurel?

 

[KeithD]

Um, it was a joke, I think.

I don't think so. Missy is a troll from the politics board who apparently is invading other areas of the discussion board to do her thing.

 

[jaF0]

The author changed things up a little but I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen because I was able to predict exactly what was going to happen.

There are VERY few original ideas. How many ways are there to describe a sex act or the events leading up to it? Copying word for word is one thing, but taking a basic idea or scene or encounter and altering it to fit their own story usually isn't a problem.

 

[Haulover]

This used to happen to me all the time when I was a rock music journalist (side-job) - my reviews would be plagiarized with just enough tweaks to the prose to avoid being a direct copy.

On the one hand it was a bit of a compliment to know that my work was good enough to be copied.

On the other hand it took me many hours to write each review (I did almost 600) - and this thief would probably spend 20 minutes and get just as much exposure as I did.

I survived the experience and moved on...

 

[KeithD]

This used to happen to me all the time when I was a rock music journalist (side-job) - my reviews would be plagiarized with just enough tweaks to the prose to avoid being a direct copy.

On the one hand it was a bit of a compliment to know that my work was good enough to be copied.

On the other hand it took me many hours to write each review (I did almost 600) - and this thief would probably spend 20 minutes and get just as much exposure as I did.

I survived the experience and moved on...

Wonder how often someone who had basically written the same thing before you did looked at what you wrote and thought the same thing--that you were copying them. Not trying to nitpick here, but, on the basis that ideas can't be copyrighted, there's always the possibility that the one thinking they've been copied was not the first one in that idea chain.

 

[SimonDoom]

You can't copyright ideas or plotlines. .

It's a bit more complicated than this. One thing to keep in mind is that copyright infringement and plagiarism are two different things. Plagiarism is more germane to academic writing -- it's lifting the ideas of another person without properly crediting that person as the source. Copyright infringement is the unauthorized reproduction of another person's proprietary creative expression. Attribution, or the lack of attribution, is the central issue with plagiarism. Attribution is irrelevant to copyright infringement. The only issue is whether one copied without permission. With copyright infringement, giving attribution doesn't protect you.

At a sufficient level of detail, a plotline can be copyrighted and proprietary. You can't completely copy the plot of another story and insulate yourself from liability by just changing the names and places and the specific words used. Even if none of the words correspond from one work to another it may still be copyright infringement.

 

[Bramblethorn]

That's a shame, but I admit I lift things off the internet and use them verbatim.

When I'm doing research and need medical or technical info, I'll steal a line from the experts.

When I need to know what women think or how "X" feels for them, I'll lift their comment from Cosmo, Bustle, Bad Girl's Bible, etc.

If I were in college, I'd use a footnote. Here, I copy and paste. no harm. no foul?

...until Cosmo notices that Literotica is hosting material that infringes on their copyright.

 

[Haulover]

Wonder how often someone who had basically written the same thing before you did looked at what you wrote and thought the same thing--that you were copying them. Not trying to nitpick here, but, on the basis that ideas can't be copyrighted, there's always the possibility that the one thinking they've been copied was not the first one in that idea chain.

Keith, I understand your point in principle. If I wrote bland reviews that just described each song and provided a generic opinion, then yes, mine would look like anyone else's reviews - and vice versa.

But that was not the case. My reviews were always written with a slightly restrained imagination and flair, in a voice that was pretty distinctive, and I always tried to put a slightly interesting or unconventional spin on them. (Tough to do when writing 600+ reviews over several years, but I tried )

I doubt anyone could ever claim I'd copied their ideas, and there's no question that the people copying my work were doing just that.

 

[KeithD]

Keith, I understand your point in principle. If I wrote bland reviews that just described each song and provided a generic opinion, then yes, mine would look like anyone else's reviews - and vice versa.

But that was not the case. My reviews were always written with a slightly restrained imagination and flair, in a voice that was pretty distinctive, and I always tried to put a slightly interesting or unconventional spin on them. (Tough to do when writing 600+ reviews over several years, but I tried )

I doubt anyone could ever claim I'd copied their ideas, and there's no question that the people copying my work were doing just that.

My point wasn't just in the specific; it was in general. We're not really in a position to "know" that what we're writing has never been written in that context before. It's one reason why I read very few stories in the genre I'm writing in. If I've come up with something that someone else has already written, at least then it isn't because I knowingly or unknowingly picked up something I've read before--it's because there are only so many ways these events can be presented and plots can be devised and because something dropped in the public--like a TV commercial, or something--can trigger the same "idea" by more than one person, thinking they've had an original idea, simultaneously.

 

[SimonDoom]

My point wasn't just in the specific; it was in general. We're not really in a position to "know" that what we're writing has never been written in that context before. It's one reason why I read very few stories in the genre I'm writing in. If I've come up with something that someone else has already written, at least then it isn't because I knowingly or unknowingly picked up something I've read before--it's because there are only so many ways these events can be presented and plots can be devised and because something dropped in the public--like a TV commercial, or something--can trigger the same "idea" by more than one person, thinking they've had an original idea, simultaneously.

I think the way to resolve this issue is simply to let go of the idea that one has any proprietary right in story ideas. If one writes a story about a BDSM loving pet shop owner that has an affair with a cute librarian with a rope fetish, that's not proprietary. Others are free to write their own version of the pet shop-librarian story, and nobody should feel guilty about it. It's only when the elements being borrowed get to a certain level of detail and specificity that it becomes a problem -- when, in copyright law parlance, it becomes a matter of taking somebody's expression rather than somebody's ideas.

For instance, I've written a story that trades on the well-worn "mom and son on a seat together" idea. Somebody, at some point, was the first to write a story on that idea, and I have no idea who it was. I know I got it from somewhere. But it's such a broad idea that nobody owns it and I have no compunction whatsoever about borrowing the idea without getting permission or giving acknowledgment.

I also am in the process of writing a series on the "mailgirl" story idea. Somebody, I don't know who, came up with the bizarre idea well before me, and many authors have written stories based on the idea. My story and characters are completely different from any one else's, although the basic idea is not original. In that case, however, I did give acknowledgment to authors who have written these stories before me and who inspired me.

I applaud you if you can come up with all your many story ideas without any reliance on erotic stories you've read by others. I get many of my ideas from stories I've read before. I think I put enough twists and spins on them that I'm not ripping anyone off. It's never been a concern of mine.

 

[jaF0]

I applaud you if you can come up with all your many story ideas without any reliance on erotic stories you've read by others. I get many of my ideas from stories I've read before. I think I put enough twists and spins on them that I'm not ripping anyone off.

A lot of mine are rooted in the old Penthouse letters type magazine submissions. I never did figure out if they were from genuine readers or professional staff writers.

 

[MColton84]

My point wasn't just in the specific; it was in general. We're not really in a position to "know" that what we're writing has never been written in that context before. It's one reason why I read very few stories in the genre I'm writing in. If I've come up with something that someone else has already written, at least then it isn't because I knowingly or unknowingly picked up something I've read before--it's because there are only so many ways these events can be presented and plots can be devised and because something dropped in the public--like a TV commercial, or something--can trigger the same "idea" by more than one person, thinking they've had an original idea, simultaneously.

Now, if I were to write a story about a young woman, let's call her Debbie, who wants to become a Dallas Cheerleader. I could say that her and her friends decide to were themselves out to raise money for the undertaking. Sounds like an interesting story, but not mine. I don't believe that you can steal an idea, but you can steal a method.

Half of my ideas take root in my personal experiences. The other half, however, are usually my "what if" on various sources. Brazzers videos, penthouse forums, other authors stories, even the occasional snl episode, all influence my stories. I don't know if there is a single original idea left in the world, but there is always something new to add to an idea's execution.

Your characters are your own, and the specifics of your story is yours, but the idea is fair game. That's just my thoughts on it.

 

[KeithD]

Now, if I were to write a story about a young woman, let's call her Debbie, who wants to become a Dallas Cheerleader. I could say that her and her friends decide to were themselves out to raise money for the undertaking. Sounds like an interesting story, but not mine. I don't believe that you can steal an idea, but you can steal a method.

I'll bet there are hundreds of slight variations of the Debbie does Dallas stories out there, none of them having been taken to court.

Maybe folks here should just let this issue slide. They are posting stories for free on the open Internet under assumed names. Nobody out there cares about who owns what under those circumstances.

 

[AvroAnson]

I'll bet there are hundreds of slight variations of the Debbie does Dallas stories out there, none of them having been taken to court.

Maybe folks here should just let this issue slide. They are posting stories for free on the open Internet under assumed names. Nobody out there cares about who owns what under those circumstances.

Or the basis of a fan-fiction ...

"This is the plaintiff, Mister Whacka Mynoodle."

"This is the defendant, Mister Cuten Paste ... he's accused of being very naughty on the lawyer's naughty stories website, Litigaterotica, and of taking stories that don't belong to him."

"This is the 'People Holding Themselves' Court'. Where the cases are real and the complaints are real, even if rather petty. And everyone has a really big dick or huge tits, is over eighteen and actually enjoys it in the end no matter the verdict."

"All rise," said the Bailiff, "the honorable Judge Spooge presiding."

"You may be seated."