By writing stories featuring someone else's characters, fan fiction authors are treading on risky legal ground. Want to keep your visits to Childline private? If you're waiting for a 1-2-1 chat or in the middle of writing or drawing something, click on the "keep me logged in" button. [3], According to current United States copyright, copyright owners have the exclusive right "to prepare derivative works based upon [their] copyrighted work. Separate from the legal issues raised by fanfiction's interaction with copyright law, legal issues may also develop from United States trademark law. Is fanfiction illegal to read? - TeachersCollegesj You haven't used the Childline website for a while. If the trademark holder can show that its creation acts as a distinctive source identifier, s/he still must prove a likelihood of confusion to prevail in a trademark infringement claim. Perhaps the most famous case, however, is Dmitri Yemets' Tanya Grotter book series, a "cultural response" to Harry Potter, which provoked a lawsuit from J. K. Rowling. In short: Don't like, don't read. 4 Bad Side Effects of Reading Fiction According to the 19th Century Want to write for us? 791(1994)", Meredith McCardle, Fandom, Fan Fiction and Fanfare: What's All the Fuss?, 9 B.U. A lot of youtubers that are minors have this stuff written about them, just look at Minecraft. The remedy is dependent on the harm done to the copyright owner, the intent of the infringing person, and the grievousness of the infringement. All content on fanficable is for entertainment purposes only. a suit. To protect your privacy we'll log you out soon. Naomi Novik has mentioned writing fanfic for television series and movies,[61] and says she'd be thrilled to know that fans were writing fanfic for her series (though she also said she'd be careful not to read any of it); Anne McCaffrey allowed fan fiction, but had a page of rules[62] she expected her fans to follow; Anne Harris has said, "I live for the day my characters get slashed";[63] Tamora Pierce stated on her website that she began writing The Lord of the Rings and Star Trek fanfiction and has no issue with fanfictions based on her works, provided they are non-profit. Modalities That Fanfiction Writers Work With. [24][25][26], A brief note on non-U.S. perspectives: while other countries do not necessarily weigh the interests of trademark owners and other speakers in the same way, noncommercial and expressive uses may receive protection under other nations' laws as well. You can talk privately to a counselloronlineor call 0800 1111 for free. Yes written porn of minors is legal, fanfiction rules are even looser. Essentially malicious compliance: Anne didn't want this part of the online fandom, so now she wasn't going to have an online fandom.". They knew we existed and were happy to work with us," TBQ tells SYFY WIRE. It's harder to argue the case for fanfiction that features objectionable content, since there is a legitimate risk to the author's reputation and brand. An additional defense to trademark infringement or dilution relies on the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of speech. . The answer is actually pretty complicated. Fan works do not deprive the owner of the source material of income, Fan works may work as free advertisement and promotion of the original source material. However, he adds something that the original author hasnt said yet. Some of these things are a sport, a celebrity, a sports team, a book, a genre, a politician, anentertainer, or a movie. Episode fill: this is a modality employed by fanfiction writers to fill up what they assume to be a missing scene. [12] The case was settled in 2011, with Colting agreeing to cease distribution.[13]. It follows as a natural consequence of compelling and well-written works consumed by a passionate fanbase. How well known and distinctive the mark allegedly being infringed is; How similar the infringing mark is to the original mark; How similar the allegedly infringing goods or services are to the markholder's goods or services; Whether the infringer intended to deceive the purchasing public or to trade on the good will of the markholder; The level of sophistication of those persons or groups likely to be the consumers of the mark; Whether consumers were actually confused as to the source of the goods or services. "I think you get better as a writer by writing, and whether that means that youre writing a singularly deep and moving novel about the pain or pleasure of modern existence or youre writing Smeagol-Gollum slash youre still putting one damn word after another and learning as a writer. All properties discussed are credited to their respective creators. There are loads of ways to contact us and you can talk about anything. In contrast, in Suntrust v. Houghton Mifflin Co., the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit vacated a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction sought by the copyright holders of Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind against Alice Randall's The Wind Done Gone. OTW's position is that fan fiction and other fan labor products constitute copyright fair use under 17 U.S.C. Distribution & MKTG, Inc. v. Major League Baseball Advanced Media, L.P., 505 F3d 818 (8th Cir. Where fanfiction writers abide by the rules and regulations that the original authors of the work have stated, they would not be accused of any illegality. "Educating people about that helping them understand why intellectual property law doesnt stand in the way of what they want to do is part of our work." Judge Batts explicitly rejected arguments of parody and criticism, stating, To the extent Defendants contend that 60 Years and the character of Mr. C direct parodic comment or criticism at Catcher or Holden Caulfield, as opposed to Salinger himself, the Court finds such contentions to be post-hoc rationalizations employed through vague generalizations about the alleged naivety of the original, rather than reasonably perceivable parody. Childline is a service provided by NSPCC Weston House,42 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3NH. What does it mean if a fanfic is Lemon? - Sage-Advices His demand that Babylon 5 fan fiction be clearly labeled or kept off the Internet confined most of the Babylon 5 fan fiction community to mailing lists during the show's initial run. 13 Things Fan Fiction Writers Are Very Tired Of Explaining Today, it's considered fair use. This addition might eventually tally with the work of the original author. There are some characters that don't fall under copyright protection. Every fanfic writer has his or her unique reason for writing fanfiction. These voids fanfiction writers hope to serve can generally be streamed down to three significant points. Authors like J.K. Rowling and Meg Cabot encourage fanfiction based on their works with some stipulations (for example, Meg Cabot does not approve of commercializing or making money off of fanfic based on her books.) The precedent is that if it's not trying to pass itself off as truth, it's legal. [45] MediaMinder states, "This is a right they [the copyright owner] have as an author or owner of the work. Fan works do not copy, or attempt to substitute for, the original work. TaeAfterDark on Twitter: "If you can't call the police on someone for That's why it came as quite a shock when she was the first to receive a cease and desist from Rice's lawyers. When does it apply to a person, and at what age? There oftentimes happen to be rules online, especially when it comes to larger properties. ", "Amici Curiae brief filed on behalf of The New York Times and various other media organizations", "Search Publications - Association of Research Libraries - ARL", "Fanfiction Publishing Rules and Guidelines", "Authors/Publishers Who Do Not Allow Fan Fiction", "Cease and Desist Notice for pornographic Harry Potter Fanwork", "Rowling gives OK for online Potter sequels", "Re: The infamous Marion Zimmer Bradley case", 20010319093259.04213.00001682@ng-me1.news.cs.com, "George R. R. Martin is wrong about Lovecraft", "How fan fiction is conquering the internet and shooting up book charts", "What ever happened to Niven's Known Space? Chat ready: please press 'Go to chat' and your counsellor will be there. Is writing fanfiction illegal? Niven responded by denouncing Sternberg's story in the introduction to Man-Kzin Wars IV (Baen Books, 1991) and issuing a cease-and-desist for copyright violation. Some settings, characters, and plot concepts are copyrighted. Fan fiction hosting sites like MediaMiner and Fanfiction.net have lists of authors whose fandoms are prohibited from their sites. Join us twice a month as we examine authors, platforms, trends, scandals, and more from every corner of the fanfiction universe. To establish a right in trademark, the rights-seeker must establish that his/her mark acts as a distinctive "source identifier" for a particular type of good or service. His books, which, If youre among those who grew up in the 90s, theres a good chance you read some of, __CONFIG_colors_palette__{"active_palette":0,"config":{"colors":{"df70c":{"name":"Main Accent","parent":-1}},"gradients":[]},"palettes":[{"name":"Default","value":{"colors":{"df70c":{"val":"var(--tcb-skin-color-28)","hsl":{"h":53,"s":0.4194,"l":0.8176,"a":1}}},"gradients":[]},"original":{"colors":{"df70c":{"val":"rgb(55, 179, 233)","hsl":{"h":198,"s":0.8,"l":0.56,"a":1}}},"gradients":[]}}]}__CONFIG_colors_palette__, __CONFIG_colors_palette__{"active_palette":0,"config":{"colors":{"df70c":{"name":"Main Accent","parent":-1}},"gradients":[]},"palettes":[{"name":"Default","value":{"colors":{"df70c":{"val":"rgb(161, 161, 161)","hsl":{"h":53,"s":0.01,"l":0.6314,"a":1}}},"gradients":[]},"original":{"colors":{"df70c":{"val":"rgb(55, 179, 233)","hsl":{"h":198,"s":0.8,"l":0.56,"a":1}}},"gradients":[]}}]}__CONFIG_colors_palette__, Is Fanfiction Illegal? Shipping: this is a situation where fans are rooting for the romantic pair-up of certain characters. Tandy echoesRosenblatt's statement that fanfiction is more or less legal as long as it's non-commercial, though while there are different hoops to jump through, commercial fanfiction is out there in more places than you think, and frequently legal, too. Is fanfiction legal? Tumblr Post+ raises troubling new questions "[56] Similar efforts have also been taken by Annette Curtis Klause, Robin Hobb, George R.R. Registered charity numbers 216401 and SC037717, // How to write fanfiction while avoiding legal trouble - Winter is Coming Because there was a relatively small likelihood of confusion, the Ninth Circuit held that the First Amendment protected Aqua's use of the mark. In addition, a significant amount of fanfiction is created in the United States. A side note on writers who feel they can't read fanfic, to protect themselves: young college student Cleo wrote an X-Files script. Authors of fanfictionalso take to a greatextent from the fiction work. In this way, the first three factors relayed here weigh for the trademark holder. Some copyright holders have stated specific positive or negative attitudes towards fanfiction. Common factors that may be relevant to fanfiction include: The courts can weigh the factors in individual cases, and may consider additional factors as they please. : Why Do People Write Fanfiction? "Performance, Property, and the Slashing of Gender in Fan Fiction", Schwabach, Aaron. These writings are also commonly posted on the internet. [citation needed], In Great Britain, Discworld author Terry Pratchett, up until the point of his death in 2015, emphasized that he was careful not to read fanfics, and had voiced the opinion that "everything works if people are sensible" and didn't mind "so long as people don't put it where I can trip over it". In an interesting twist, as a fanfiction author, I think that all writing is useful for honing writing skills," Gaiman has said. If you're making a profit or writing potentially offensive content, you may start falling into the territory of copyright infringement. In determining whether Randall's work rose to the level of transformative, Circuit Judge Birch used the guidelines for transformative works laid out in the Supreme Court's Campbell v. Acuff Rose Music. In the case of the Doctor Who novels published by Virgin Books, once the BBC reclaimed the license to publish novels regarding the Doctor, many readers immediately categorized all the Virgin New Adventures as non-canonical fan fiction. Devotees are vocal - and can resort to cyberbullying . Is AO3 illegal? - TimesMojo }); They have now started to state regulations on engaging in writing fan works on their original position. If you're worried, or just want to talk,remember that Childline counsellors are here for you. Some stories published online, like fanfics, may not have been through this process. Anne Rice objected to fan fiction based on any of her characters (mostly those from her famous Interview with the Vampire and its sequels in The Vampire Chronicles) or other elements in her books, and she formally requested that FanFiction.Net remove stories featuring her characters. When writing, fans can decide to retain the original writers settings and characters. I read fictional stories featuring minors on an adult erotica page An example of this is a parodic publication running a parody ad for a product, and the parody not being well done enough or labeled clearly enough for people to realize it is not a real ad. Courts have shown reluctance to curtail creative uses of trademarks in expressive works. Here, the fanfic writer retains the setting of the original author as well as his storyline. Reading is not illegal. Short answer: yes. The fanfiction writer can write his fanfic with its setting as a different universe from the original writer. Paramount Pictures, for example, allowed the production of Star Trek: The New Voyages and Star Trek: The New Voyages 2 from Bantam Books, fan fiction anthologies which followed Bantam's Star Trek Lives! Is writing fanfiction illegal? It's not illegal for you to watch porn or read fanfics under the age of 18. .for a very long time We built our universes, and our characters; they are our intellectual property; and they are not toys lying about some virtual sandbox for other kids to pick up and modify at their whim. The fans of a particular person or theme put together make up its fan base, also referred to as fandom. [47], J. K. Rowling has also complained about sexually explicit Harry Potter fan fiction. [17] In legal terms, this is known as "secondary meaning.". But you may find book shops choose not to sell these books to you. The original writer rarely endorses Fan-fiction. It's harder to argue the case for fanfiction that features objectionable content, since there is a legitimate risk to the author's reputation and brand. What right do original creators have to the characters, locations, and concepts in their stories? And it's also not illegal to sell written sexual stories to someone underage, like it is for some kinds of porn. Harry Potter author JK Rowling is generally positive toward fanfiction, but she draws the line at erotic content and other subjects that might be damaging to her child-friendly brand. Once a digest, now a deep dive into the world of fan-created written works. George R.R. The reaction from fans to such alliances and interference in their activities has been mixed, with some people thinking that it violates the basic rules of fan fiction communities. Is it against the law to read (only) sexually explicit stories - Avvo Why Don't Writers Read Fanfiction of Their Own Work? | The Mary Sue : Understanding The Legality Of Fanfiction, Fanfiction, commonly abbreviated as fanfic, fan-fic, ff, or fic, is a fictional piece of writing written by fans. Make Sure Your Fan Fiction Is Legal (Or Regret It Later) - Standout Books I don't see where writing a MA story about a fictional character is illegal. Is Fanfiction Illegal? Find Out All The Answers Here - Adazing Authors Meg Cabot (The Princess Diaries and Airhead) and Neil Gaiman (the Sandman series) have revealed that they've written fanfiction. The writer adopts trademarked settings, characters, or some other abstract elements from the primary author. Cleolinda Jones (@cleolinda) January 7, 2014 Of course I . ", Roddenberry said that he considered fanfiction, when crafted with love, as ", the highest compliment and the greatest repayment that they could give us. Fans are sometimes also involved in innovative projects called fan labor. The single website about any fandom associated with Anne Rice remained online for a time, but only with a note explaining where all the information and fanfiction had gone, plus a few choice words from creators in other fandoms who supported those who wrote fanfiction. Find out how. "[46] Fanlore has a list of Professional Author Fanfic Policies that includes authors who support and authors who discourage fan fiction of their works. Fanfiction is defined by the use of characters and expression from an original creative work and the creation of derivative works, all of which is illegal under current copyright law (McCardle, 2003). [14] Despite Randall and Houghton Mifflin having released The Wind Done Gone as a commercial work, and Randall having used a substantial portion of Mitchell's work in her own, Birch found that the highly transformative nature of Randall's book overcame the other prongs of the fair use test. Find Out All The Answers Here, Is fanfiction Illegal? There have been numerous incidents in multiple fandoms of people shaming fic authors about writing about certain subjects, incorrectly claiming that they're illegal. [11], The case was vacated and remanded by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit with orders to apply the eBay v. MercExchange test in determining whether publication of a work can be prohibited on a theory of intellectual property infringement before the case has gone to trial. The short answer is no. [50], In 2008, Steven Brust published a Firefly novel with a CC copyright notice.[51]. [31] Some courts have relied heavily on Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski's strong dissent from the White decision in order to deny a "Right of Publicity" claim. There, Sylvester Stallone successfully pursued an action for copyright infringement against Anderson, an author who wrote a proposed script for Rocky IV, by proving that the copyright-protected characters used in the previous Rocky movies were central to the new script. In an interesting twist, as a fanfiction author, you are still entitled to your own copyright on any original content you created. "[14][15] Campbell had already established that the greater the transformative value a work held, the less important the other factors in the fair use test became. 107 because they add "new meaning and messages to the original" work,[38] and thus fall under the exemption to U.S. copyright law the Supreme Court defined in Campbell[39] and which was later revisited and followed in Suntrust. Fanfiction in its originality can be said to be a violation of copyright laws. March 23, 2015. Flint (a former labor organizer and socialist) contends that this collective work allows the expansion of his alternate history universe into something approaching the complexity of reality. Sometimes, fans are also referred to as anenthusiast or aficionado. To prove infringement, an owner must present evidence establishing that the accused has copied protected elements of the original work. Thus, trademark rights may arise when a fictional character's name or likeness may serve to identify the source of an entertainment product or related good. If you're making a profit or writing potentially offensive content, you may start falling into the territory of copyright infringement. Fanfiction makes use of settings and characters curled out from an original work of fiction work. I read every single letter but I can only answer a few each week. Fan fiction (commonly known as fanfiction) is a loosely defined term for fiction about characters or settings written by admirers of the original work. [69], Neil Gaiman, another English author who has written such works as Stardust, Coraline, and American Gods, says he does not mind fan fiction as long as the author notes that the characters are the intellectual property of another and so long as the fiction is not for profit. In general, an author does have a right to their characters. Copyright goes into effect automatically, even if a work is not published. Copy this essay. by reprinting stories from various fanzines; as well as Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, a series of ten anthologies from Pocket Books in which the short stories were selected through an open submissions process geared toward novice writers. "The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) allows copyright owners, including fan-authors, to request that something be taken down if it infringes copyright. To say she was a major fan and a large presence in the Anne Rice fandom would be no understatement. Legal issues with fan fiction - Wikipedia There is an ongoing debate to ascertain if fanfiction is illegal or legal. In order for a work to be considered fair use, the law considered three factors: the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work. You can check out other Childline pages, videos and games while you wait. In Salinger v. Colting, the New York Times[43] and other major media conglomerates filed an amicus brief supporting Colting's book, as did the Library Copyright Alliance.[44]. In this article, we will be discussing if fanfiction is illegal. All fan fiction on the site is recognized as non-profit derivative works. One can make these types of works without necessarily getting direct approval from the original author. Unlike copyright, however, trademark rights are not automatic. You can ask me about anything you want, there's nothing too big or small. MacHale, Stephenie Meyer, and Terry Pratchett) do not take issue with authors of derivative works, a number of authors do. Martin, and Robin McKinley among others. Anything that is strongly associated with a character may also qualify for protection, like Freddy Kreuger's glove. This means you may read stories that you find shocking or that make you feel uncomfortable. document.getElementById('enableRecite').addEventListener("click", function() { Though it has existed for many years, fanfiction as most people know it today has been largely popularized by the internet. ", "Star Wars - Fan History Wiki: The Fandom History Resource", "TUESDAY September 18 & a WRITING CONTEST OPPORTUNITY", "The Copyright and Rights in Performances (Quotation and Parody) Regulations 2014", Katyal, Sonia. Why not ask the counsellor you chat to about this? Generally, no one really goes after fanfiction writers and readers as long as the work isn't monetized. Validation is one of the most powerful reasons why books that started as fanfiction are appealing. ", Ender's Game author Orson Scott Card originally considered fanfiction an unwelcome intrusion into his territory, but he now supports it.