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Fanficcers are stealin' all me monies!!!
May. 9th, 2010 12:25 pmMost of you are aware of all of the fanfic kerfuffles this week. It's the same old arguments, just a new week. There's one chestnut that I feel the need to put under the microscope: The Cautionary Tale of Marion Zimmer Bradley. Here's how this tale is often told under the dim lights of BarCon.
SCENE
INTERIOR HOTEL BAR
Young Author: I don't mind people writing fanfiction about my characters. Hell, it's kind of flattering.
[Sound of nails scratching chalkboard]
Older Author: Y'all know me. Know how I earn a livin'. Let me tell ya the tale of Marion Zimmer Bradley. She wrote a new Darkover novel, maybe her best yet. They was talkin' movies and riches! Then, the fanficcer came. Out of the dark. The ficker said all the ideas were hers! She brought lawyers from the city and sued for plagiarism! She wanted all of the credit and monies. Bradley burnt the novel rather than let her children get stolen by this word buccaneer. These fanficcers- swallow ya whole.
So, what actually happened?
I spent the day tracing the handful of primary documents about the incident brought together by Fanlore. Based on things said by many of the parties after the fact, here's what seems to have happened.
1- MZB had a very close relationship with her Darkover fanfiction community. She encouraged them to submit to her Darkover anthologies. Bradley not only read the fanzines, she sometimes edited and wrote for them.
2- Bradley was starting to write a new Darkover novel called Contraband. She read a fanzine story and really liked some of the ideas a fanfic writer had about the situations that the book was going to cover. She offered the fanfic writer $500 and a place in the acknowledgments for her ideas. This was something Bradley had done in the past with other fanfic writers.
3- Here's where the story gets complicated. The fan decided to negotiate a better deal. It seems that the fan got an agent and asked for more money and cover credit. People freaked out and lawyers may or may not have been consulted on both sides.
4- The publisher and MZB decided the book wasn't worth the complications and canceled it at the outline stage.
5- An angry MZB disavowed the fanfic community and ranted to her peers. A cautionary tale was born.
This wasn't a case a fanfiction writer suing out of the blue. Bradley actively bought fanfiction ideas. She got burned by the practice, and I can't say that I'm shocked.
But hey, why let the truth get in the way of a good story? ;-)
SCENE
INTERIOR HOTEL BAR
Young Author: I don't mind people writing fanfiction about my characters. Hell, it's kind of flattering.
[Sound of nails scratching chalkboard]
Older Author: Y'all know me. Know how I earn a livin'. Let me tell ya the tale of Marion Zimmer Bradley. She wrote a new Darkover novel, maybe her best yet. They was talkin' movies and riches! Then, the fanficcer came. Out of the dark. The ficker said all the ideas were hers! She brought lawyers from the city and sued for plagiarism! She wanted all of the credit and monies. Bradley burnt the novel rather than let her children get stolen by this word buccaneer. These fanficcers- swallow ya whole.
So, what actually happened?
I spent the day tracing the handful of primary documents about the incident brought together by Fanlore. Based on things said by many of the parties after the fact, here's what seems to have happened.
1- MZB had a very close relationship with her Darkover fanfiction community. She encouraged them to submit to her Darkover anthologies. Bradley not only read the fanzines, she sometimes edited and wrote for them.
2- Bradley was starting to write a new Darkover novel called Contraband. She read a fanzine story and really liked some of the ideas a fanfic writer had about the situations that the book was going to cover. She offered the fanfic writer $500 and a place in the acknowledgments for her ideas. This was something Bradley had done in the past with other fanfic writers.
3- Here's where the story gets complicated. The fan decided to negotiate a better deal. It seems that the fan got an agent and asked for more money and cover credit. People freaked out and lawyers may or may not have been consulted on both sides.
4- The publisher and MZB decided the book wasn't worth the complications and canceled it at the outline stage.
5- An angry MZB disavowed the fanfic community and ranted to her peers. A cautionary tale was born.
This wasn't a case a fanfiction writer suing out of the blue. Bradley actively bought fanfiction ideas. She got burned by the practice, and I can't say that I'm shocked.
But hey, why let the truth get in the way of a good story? ;-)
