The wildly popular Fifty Shades trilogy was initially written as Twilight fanfiction. Does this create issues related to originality or creativity? Should there be legal ramifications when a "published fanfiction" becomes as popular as Fifty Shades did? What lines are drawn to differentiate between these two series? Were enough lines drawn between the two? (The relationship between these two series are used as an example– if any other series exist with a similar relationship, feel free to use those instead.)
I haven't read either of these series before. But through osmosis, I believe I've been able to gather that while both series have a similar structure in regards to the development of the relationship between the two protagonists in each, and a similar atmosphere, the respective stories and the routes they travel on are completely unrelated to one another. The names, settings, situations, and general focus of each are entirely different, so I wouldn't think one could officially stake any legal claim to Fifty Shades of Gray being a knock-off or something, because it's different enough that it isn't even Parody, it's its own thing. However, I do believe there are more appropriate examples where the two works are so entirely similar that one could suggest a legal issue could arise. But one does have to be very careful when dealing with that sort of thing, because anybody is capable of coming up with an idea someone else already did, completely autonomously. Two unrelated people, who never met each other, or saw each other's work before, could come up with the exact same idea. It happened with the movie camera, and the telephone. So it can certainly happen with anything else. – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
I took a class on fanfiction and this was brought up and the only thing that made Fifty Shade not a fanfic and it's own series was the profit. That's really all the difference is that differentiates fanfic from fic-fic or a spin-off is it's acceptance, popularity and revenue. Fanfic isn't supposed to make any money lest they be infringing on creative property so if you just change the names.. presto! "New story." It's hard to draw the line, really, because nothing is original anymore, every plot line has been done somewhere, you just have to take the old and package it a different way. – Slaidey9 years ago
I'm doing NaNoWriMo right now, and many tips I read from fellow writers involve borrowing certain ideas/themes from your favourite books/films, even just to get out of a block. Ultimately, all literature is influenced by life events and things you've watched/read. Arguably, the only difference between books published that started as fanfiction and "normal" books could be that the fanfiction authors admit their outside influences. That could be a perspective to explore with this topic. – Laura Jones9 years ago
I think the wild success of 50 Shades of Grey was certainly something unpredictable, and I believe that the major profit it made is concerning, considering it was blatantly (and admittedly) a fan fiction of another popular series. Fan-fiction fits it's name - fiction made by fans, for fans. It isn't an original product in it's essence, it uses characters created by others, no matter how good the author is in developing plots, it's still based on the work of other's. There was hardly enough lines drawn between Twilight and 50 Shades to make it it's own creative work, in my opinion. – Kathryn Connolly9 years ago
If I remember correctly, there was a time a few years ago when Square Enix (the video game publisher famous for the Final Fantasy series) was actually looking for fanfiction for contest submissions. Nowadays, it's easy to find actual contests/competitions for fanfiction. Some offer monetary rewards, some offer gift cards, and some simply offer recognition and "badges" for the site. Regardless, it's safe to say that published fanfiction as a whole is an emerging market in the publishing industry--one that should be watched carefully, as I think it will soon make its own name for itself as legitimate literature in ways. Good topic idea! – Christina Legler9 years ago
People have been reading and writing stories of revenge for about as long as stories have existed. From tales of vengeful gods/goddesses, to The Count Of Monte Cristo, to Kill Bill, it seems like people through the ages really love their stories of revenge. The theme isn't just found in writing, we see it pop up anywhere there is a story line: video games, comics, even songs. Are these forms of entertainment a way for us to vicariously feel like we've gotten back at our own enemies? Or do we simply delight in the dark side of these stories?
Interesting topic. I appreciate that you've even thought of this topic, because it may be something that should be looked at from a moral perspective. Like perhaps our love for revenge-stories reveals something wrong with humanity as it now stands. Or perhaps vice versa. Just a thought... – Dominic Sceski9 years ago
I like this topic... lots to discuss here! You're right; it is a very timeless theme. I wonder, though, to what degree this revenge theme reflects real life (yet another facet to explore!). Not everyone is revenge-seeking - perhaps they do get their satisfaction through fiction - but there are the occasional news stories, personal stories, or historical events that tell us that people do have a vengeful side that occasionally surfaces in very real ways. – Laura Jones9 years ago
I think revenge is a universal desire. Not necessarily in a dark way, but most people have been the subject of an unpleasant experience, and the feeling to get back at someone is natural. – TheoParry9 years ago
It is an emotional motive, and therefore is very helpful for writers when explaining a characters extreme actions. Good for drama too! – Candice Evenson9 years ago
I feel like people sometimes enjoy a sense of revenge or cruelty because it feels good or nice. After if they carry out the revenge or not is when we feel satisfied or hateful. – Wanderlust9 years ago
It may be helpful to look towards academia surrounding Melodrama as a form (think cape and sword, grand sweeping sentiment, spectacle) and how it has really taken over the way we tell stories. – Tiffany9 years ago
This is a really good topic. What if one were to look at it in light of Christianity, for example? There, the two concepts of justice and forgiveness seem to be at a premium, but it is not always easy to see how they relate. I guess the question you might come up against is the relationship of feelings aroused by literature versus feelings aroused by life. For example, if one believes in NOT getting revenge, will revenge literature thwart this commitment? Or will revenge literature instead help to put the dark feelings aside? Etc. – JWHorton9 years ago
This topic was inspired from multiple conversations I have had with people pertaining to my own writing. The first full-length fiction piece I wrote was a fan fiction based off of Suzanne Collin’s The Hunger Games. While I expect most people to react with a wrinkled nose or an amused chuckle, several have been enthused by the concept, articulating that fan fiction is a valuable part of the dialogue between author and reader. My question then surrounds the purpose of, and thereby value of, fan fiction literature. Is it supposed to be a semi-rational approach to an author’s work, exploring underdeveloped facets of their created world, in a kind of creative dialogue? If so, much fan fiction seems to fall short, as the characters developed or plots imagined do not coincide with the author’s original content at all (The character arcs found in the Dramione ship from the Harry Potter fandom is a key example). In that case, then, is the purpose of fan fiction really a sort of wish fulfillment for the fan base, a resource through which they can create – as all fiction writer’s do – their own version of reality? Each approach comes with its own set of artistic constraints and merits, and I’m curious as to whether or not one approach can be “valued” over the other.
Interesting topic! One I don't know a whole lot about... as I haven't read/written fanfic in the last 10 years or possibly more years. Things I'm curious about include: Is this a genre for all ages? Or do only certain groups enjoy fanfic? Also, how much can we value works that are basically spinoffs of someone else's idea? But on the other hand, how many people have made revisions of some of the older classics? Like Peter Pan or Alice in Wonderland for example. What makes something fanfic instead of a retelling? If someone published fanfic many many years after a story was first created would it still be fanfic? – Tatijana9 years ago
Well, whenever something goes wrong in a series (a character dies, something anti-climactic happens) I always hear people say "Well, there's always fanfiction." In that case, it is wish-fulfillment. You may notice too that the fanfiction version of a character is very different from the actual character, doing things that would otherwise be uncharacteristic of them. The writer is forcing them to do what they want, and that too is wish fulfillment. (Shipping is a good example of this.) I don't know about dialogue between author and reader ( how many authors actually read fanfiction) but I see it more as a dialogue between fans. – Candice Evenson9 years ago
Lawrence and Jewett have an interesting idea about fan fiction in their book The Myth of the American Superhero. They argue that fandoms are religious in nature and that fan fic is "strikingly similar to the growth of apocryphal literature in the biblical tradition" (256). Thus, fan fic is not only wish-fullfilment or creative dialogue, but a way for members of a fandom to interact with their "religion." Not saying that they are correct, but it is a different view of the issue. – C8linZimmer9 years ago
Note to the author of the article, be sure to read the other articles on this site about fan fiction! https://the-artifice.com/tag/fanfiction/ – MichelleAjodah9 years ago
In the crowded space that is the media, the digital growth has left profound effects to which writing is contending to keep pace with. Primarily, though English has maintained itself to be the language of the cyber world, there is a consistent mingling of cultures and tongues that our entire world shares in. This topic is meant to provoke the questions about the assimilating values that have shaped the digital crowd, and what kind of adaptations are made to the languages we commonly speak. What can we gather and understand from these changes?
Although there are platforms dedicated to writing, like Medium for example, they compete with multimedia sites like Youtube. People's attention spans are short on the internet too which is why micro content vs. long form is important and introduces things like the 140 character limit on Twitter and 6 second videos on Vine. People from all over the world interact and speak different languages but we are also able to instantly translate entire web pages if we want to. I think the reason English is dominant and values are starting to assimilate is that the U.S. is the number one exporter of culture through media like movies and music and now on the internet. Emojis are an adaptation of language and they're fairly universal no matter what language you speak. I think this all just goes to show that our world is increasingly fast-paced and interconnected than was ever possible before. – LaurenG9 years ago
This topic will cover the generally accepted writing formats for undergraduate/graduate level writing – MLA, APA and Chicago style specifically. Generally each are associated with a certain field of study and there is no generally accepted styles of writing. What are some of the benefits/drawbacks of each format of writing? Undergraduates normally only interact with one style (ex. I only use MLA but I know some liberal arts degrees require Chicago style proficiency). Explore the reasons certain styles are recommended when all of them have places in the same/similar fields. Also explore what, if any, is the most generally accepted writing style for graduate and undergraduate studies and how they are related.
It depends on the discourse. Education and psychology journals use APA. Journalists typically use Chicago. Liberal Arts and Humanities journals use MLA. These different editing styles have different emphases as dictated by the what is important in that field of discourse.Much of the same information is included, but in different ways or in different orders. – nsnow9 years ago
I'm not sure this is entirely true. I think it depends on the program. In music, I know that we use Chicago at my university in our undergrad program. – Laura Jones9 years ago
Maybe I'm wrong nsnow but my professors told me that Chicago is the writing style for most liberal arts degrees. Let me rephrase - explore why undergrads specialize in one format when there is a multitude that could be used when moving on to graduate school. Perhaps my university does things differently but all of the liberal arts courses use MLA and every other school (business, engineering, etc.) lists MLA as one of the applicable writing styles. – Connor9 years ago
@Venus Echos
I tried to make it more flexible in the ways you described. I'm more concerned subjectively then because I know more academic papers in the English field are done in Chicago but all undergraduate classes ask for MLA specifically at my school.
Still looking for feedback from my previous note by the way. – Connor9 years ago
I don't think most undergraduates only use MLA format, as you intimated. Yes, each style is usually linked to a particular field of study; however, the format that one uses is dictated by his/her major, also by the preference of the professor. All professors do not stick to the style that established guidelines say one should use for a particular major. I teach in higher education, and I know that some professors do not have a preference and will allow the students to use any of the formats regardless of their major. Without having the results of some type of survey, I think it is difficult to outline pros and cons of a particular format. I have heard students complain about a few of them. I think it depends upon the individual and what his/her needs/preferences are. – liztroi699 years ago
Connor, I really like the title it draws me in. I believe you have structured the topic in a manner that flows well. Thanks Venus – Venus Echos9 years ago
@liztroi69 I guess I'm wrong in my understanding but at the university I study at they don't do it that way. I asked my professor and he said that you're right for most schools but mine just teaches it differently. So the question was more subjective than I thought. I apologize. I do think a topic covering the generalization of formatting and how one could be viable where another isn't is still a topic to consider. But yes, my original topic was not sufficient on an objective level. – Connor9 years ago
Actually, it is more accurate to think about what style publications in academic fields desire more than anything. This usually dictates what style a discipline uses. For instance, MLA is the Modern Language Association, and that is why it is the preferred style in English studies (and since most students learn to write papers in English classes first, they learn MLA). Chicago is used in lots of publications because of the way it cites sources (footnotes are a lot more readable than parenthetical documentation). APA is the American Psychological Association, and so the journals that publish under them (and related social sciences) follow their lead. @Connor-did you go to a liberal arts college? I did my undergrad at one and I think we pretty exclusively used MLA. But now I have taught at a city college and a state university and I have helped undergrads with Chicago, APA, and others. – Caitlin Ray9 years ago
@ Caitlin Ray Perhaps that is a good point. What academic fields require what format of writing? Unfortunately, my point is undergraduate school, at least for my liberal arts school, solely teaches MLA where there are communications and journalist majors being restricted in this way. Mine is more analysis/writing courses so maybe you could make an argument for those but Chicago seems like the style most suited for my desired style of writing and a couple of my teachers have implied that is the style I will use in graduate school. My school, UNH, is more specialized in business majors but has quite a successful liberal arts college. Like I tried to make clear in my edits, perhaps the question is why don't schools make more effort to teach the few most popular writing formats (APA, MLA, and Chicago)? Maybe this is a thing and, as I've stated in other comments, this is more a subjective question but I feel students should be more aware of other writing styles and be more capable moving forward with a multitude of writing styles under their belts. – Connor9 years ago
This is a pet peeve of mine, writing styles. There should be a - one - consistently agreed upon style, and I would put forth Turabian and, more importantly, footnotes as the thing to use. Obviously, that's my personal bias though. Aside from that, the problems with all styles in respect to citation, particularly a bibliography, is that they all differ and, as far as I can tell, for little good reason. APA seems to be largely misunderstood in one major way: that one should never use first-person voice in an APA style paper. This is false, and even when I have informed professors that it is false, and yes, pulled out my APA style manual and showed them, currently, section 3.09 (Sixth Addition) where it says "to avoid ambiguity, use a personal pronoun rather than the third-person when describing steps taken in your experiment," and then I usually get some version of This Is How We Do It Here, which would lead me to say that the only consistency I see with writing styles is they all are frequently modified at will, if not whim, by professors and publishers alike (the latter leading to the irritating reality of having to reformat, if not effectively rewrite in some cases, one's paper to satisfy the personal preference of the editor). I prefer Turabian because I know it and use it, so there is my bias, but I use footnotes and find them to make the most sense. True, in all papers they may not make most sense, but then again, if one is simply citing sources, it really does not matter much if it is at the bottom of the page, end of chapter, or end of work, at least not to me. Yet, if those footnotes actually contain information, are exegetic in nature, or otherwise add to that which I am *now* reading, then yes, on the page I am reading makes most sense, again, to me. I find in-text citation styles of MLA and APA both distracting. Superscript numerals used in Turabian are bad enough, but one has to do something, and again, I prefer Turabian's method. APA as a style is, in my humble opinion, the worst style because it effectively teaches the writer to use passive voice, particularly if he or she has been trained to consider first-person a sin. (I would argue that since one writes a paper, it only makes sense to refer to oneself.) I could go on and on (and on) about writing styles, if not academic "research," e.g., multiple authorship abuse, plagiarism, etc., but at least I did note a few common problems with the major three writing styles. Generally, there should be a movement to agree to at least a citation style, largely formatting (capitalize or not? italicize or not? oh, please....) issues, and be done with it. The rest is, well, style. As I was taught, be consistent. And if you are wise, use Turabian. Ha. – Rael649 years ago
The standardization for writing styles is a natural course of action by those promoting the English language, even though I believe they are futile efforts. Much like the language itself, those sorts of developing tools inadvertently tend to divide it by how the users manipulate it, and leads to those unique changes in the format and rule. Regardless, this is an excellent tail to the overall discussion of writing styles, and how certain formats become adapted to various individuals vs. the organized brand. I anticipate some intriguing points related to this topic. – N.D. Storlid9 years ago
These days, more and more students are seeing the goal towards their writing being to tailor their writings towards their professor and thus lessen their own individual creativity in their writing. – Kmo9 years ago
Useful tips for students as well as for writers who are connected with academic field. – WilliamRiley9 years ago
When does one side, or both, start to confused platonic affection for romance. Can one maintain a healthy friendship with the opposite sex with out developing feelings? If they do develop, should you live in silence, cut the relationship, or confess?
This is a fascinating topic, and it speaks a lot of how relationships between men and women are handled in writing. In real life, when both men and women have a friend of the opposite gender, other friend always hint at you like that friend automatically. Why is this? Why does their automatically have to be romantic implications? You could talk about how writing and other forms of media have reenforced this mindset that men and women are better off as lovers than just friends. – Aaron Hatch9 years ago
I think a lot of what gets confused as "specific affection" is simply a very affectionate personality. Both men and women are capable of being extremely polite, helpful, and generous; and yet those feelings can easily be mistaken by one or more persons as genuine attraction or flirting. But it's usually unintentional. It therefore falls to the other person to make reasonable judgements about this seemingly affectionate person, and to rationalize if it really is flirting, or just enthusiasm and politeness. People can also find other people a joy to be around, and can develop a "strong" platonic attachment to them like one would with a sibling. So sometimes it could get rather confusing unless you are honest with each other, and you talk these things out openly. In my case, I am always looking out for a relationship, but I have yet to meet anyone whom I'd genuinely like to ask out for coffee or something, and yet I've had a few people show an interest in me, because they appreciated all the nice things I tried to do for them. I've often been the shoulder to cry on, the person with good advice during tough times, and that can be a comforting quality. I completely understand how the other person feels about me. But I can't in good conscience reciprocate their feelings, nor would it be fair to me to go out with them just because I feel sorry for them. – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
I also find it really irritating that people still refuse to talk openly about how they feel, and allow their (perhaps misplaced) feelings to be bottled up so much, that if they do finally talk about them, it might make things really awkward forever after. I dislike this idea of "signals," and "secretive gestures," or hints and clues. Things that are all related to flirting, but that only serve to confuse people if they are done unintentionally, and are read incorrectly by the other person. So if one really thinks there could be something there, then it might just be best to talk about it openly. Or, if you feel, or can see that the other person is pursuing other people, or building a life and a career that doesn't look like you could fit in it, perhaps its better not to say anything. – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
Any article to the contrary (which is, of course that men and women can just be friends) would probably generate a lot of hate and controversy. Finding or understanding that someone is attractive, same gender or opposite, doesn't mean it will interfere with the relationship. So what? They're hot, that doesn't mean you're attracted to them as a person. That's exactly why we as humans don't run around in a giant orgy. The question itself is far too broad. Any given person can attest to being friends with the opposite sex all their life and never developing romantic inclinations. Maybe a more specialized direction like: is it easier to be friends with the opposite gender once you're in a relationship? It sounds silly and is kind of sexist, but I've found that in myself. I didn't have any male friends until I got a boyfriend, now almost all my friends all also males and there's nothing awkward about it. Does having the notion that "nothing can ever happen" make people more socially compatible, knowing no awkwardness need arise and if it does that it doesn't have to mean anything? – Slaidey9 years ago
I'm assuming that this would be applied to scenarios within books? For example, one could do a comparison between books and analyze which offers a more "realistic" representation of the male/female relationship, or how this representation has changed throughout time in literature. As just an analysis of the possibility of men and women being "just friends", I wouldn't think that the content would be suitable for this platform; if someone takes this topic, be sure to tie it in to one of the categories so your hard work isn't rejected! – Laura Jones9 years ago
Along with books, one can examine how this idea is also present in movies or tv. I personally think it would be interesting to show how this idea is reinforced in both literature and tv/movies. – Afasciano189 years ago
Not really a fan of this question as it is exceedingly heteronormative. If anyone were to write this article, they'd have to take the LGBTQ+ community into account. – CHRISagi9 years ago
This is an interesting topic but I have to agree I think it's looking into things over-analytically. I have plenty of female friends and I don't grow the desire to date every single one of them. Plus after you've been in a long relationship you start considering is it worth going trying to be romantically involved with certain girls over others? Not always the case as much as you may think. – SidMot9 years ago
Might be worth it to look at this from a philosophical perspective - particularly modern philosophers who deal with love and sexuality...possible suggestions:
"The Promise of Happiness" by Sara Ahmed
"The Will to Change" by bell hooks
"The History of Sexuality" by Michel Foucault
"I Love to You" by Luce Irigaray
"Works of Love" by Søren Kierkegaard (not really modern, but still pertinent) – SonoftheSpaceman9 years ago
An analysis of psychopathology as a plot device (particularly in horror films), a phenomenon I've come to identify as "sexy slasher" movies, and humanism (or lack thereof) in depictions of mental illness in mainstream television, films and books.
Mental illness is quite a broad spectrum. Perhaps choose to focus solely on psychopathy in horror films (or something similarly narrow). It would also be interesting to analyze what these portrayals do to aid or challenge the continuing mental illness stigma. – Laura Jones9 years ago
I find that many movies are consistent with characters with split-personality disorder (archaic name I know :) ), schizophrenia, or sociopath characteristics. The Silver Linings Playbook touched on the drama's of Bipolar Disorder and it's related spectrum. However, I feel that many say these depictions of mental illnesses are indulging in the stereotype. Although true in some cases, I would venture to say that most films and literature are now playing so much into the stereotypes that there seems to be the adverse effect happening. The stigmas are being dramatized to the point that they're proving themselves to be invalid and disproportionate. – rmadisonhaymore9 years ago
I can think of a couple of horror movies that have mental illness as a plot device, but not so much to mock people with mental illness. If anything it is just used as a way to create a sense of fear of the unknown in viewers. Also with a huge push in getting rid of mental illness stigma in the past decade, like rmadisonhaymore mentioned in her post, films like Silver Linings Playbook, I think that mental illness will be portrayed in a better light as a way to continue to reduce stigma and humanize characters with mental illness. – pallasngai9 years ago
In doing this topic, an examination of One Flew over the Coo-coo's Nest will be vital in some form, so have some mention and analysis of that. – JDJankowski9 years ago
Hyperbole and a Half. Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir. Humans of New York. Even Dog Shaming. All of these are blogs turned into books—although some are more successful than others. What makes for a successful transition from blog to book? How has this changed publishing (for better or worse)? Should prospective writers be writing in blogs, in the hopes of building an audience base and working towards a book deal? Or is this a fad that will play itself out?
This would be a great article I'd love to read. I'm sure lots of people on this site would like to know whether writing on a blog is worth it and if it would in fact get them and audience or book deal? Research the stories of the aforementioned blogs and rate how successful each was, why, and how they could have gotten more popular. Are they getting book deals or just self-publishing? What markets are being targeted? – Slaidey9 years ago
I am interested in the relationship between creative and commercial endeavors when it comes to blogging, writing and publishing (particularly as a blogger and aspiring author myself). This subject material is definitely relevant and that's why I decided to comment on it -- intriguing stuff, for sure! – emich139 years ago
There are so many bloggers out there right now, that it does take a specific writer with a specific writing style who writes a specific topic in order to stand out. It's literally like trying to find a needle in a haystack or rather, a writer in a pile of writers. – kennylim9 years ago
