Book Talk: Is fanfiction flattery or plagiarism?

This post is meant as a discussion piece -- not a "right or wrong" opinion on my behalf. I'd really love to hear all of your thoughts on this. Warning, this is long-winded and filled with a ton of questions.

Is fanfiction flattery or plagiarism? My initial thoughts...

I've never read fanfiction. (Is it fanfiction, fan fiction, or fan-fiction?) Well, I guess I have. 50 Shades of Grey, anybody? Okay, I've never knowingly read something considered fanfiction. I don't quite understand the lucrative fandom behind 50 Shades either..but I digress.

They say imitation is the best form of flattery. I understand why fans might want to try their hand at writing to take their favorite characters down a different path than the original author. I understand why fanfiction writers see it as a homage to their favorite authors, that it can be a fun hobby, a great online community, a creative place to bounce new ideas, a way to meet a lot of wonderful new people...

But I don't understand why some fanfiction is not considered plagiarism. Or maybe it sometimes is? Those more knowledgeable than me, please enlighten me on if/when that plagiarism line is considered to be crossed.

Here's where I think the line is crossed: when a fanfiction author is able to make money from someone else's brain child (e.g., 50 Shades of Grey). And why authors of the original aren't up in arms about it? Or are they and I just haven't heard about it?

In the example of E.L. James' 50 Shades of Grey (I use that because that's the most well known that comes to mind, but here are some others that you might be familiar with), what if Twilight hadn't been the massive success that it was? What if Stephanie Meyer never made a dime, but a huge fan happen to write a massive million-plus dollar hit based off from Twilight's characters? Honestly, if I was in Stephanie's shoes I'd be a pit peeved in that case. But had I already made $$$ off from my book, I probably wouldn't care as much. I'd probably be flattered by the thought that I could inspire someone to such great heights.



But is money really the big deciding factor between plagiarism and homage?

What about community fame? Local to international fame without the big bucks from that specific fanfiction story?

In other words, is riding on the coattails of someone else's work plagiarism?

Say 50 Shades of Grey didn't make a ton of money, but its massive success in online communities (where you can sell any work) drove E.L. James' to a community name (much like what happened minus the best sellers list and blockbuster movies)? I'm not saying that's bad. After all, it still takes hard work and creativity to develop a new world in a book. Who is to say that it is wrong to earn a reputation by using others?

I'll be honest, when I read 50 Shades of Grey I had no idea that it was borrowed/inspired by Twilight. Granted it may have been tweaked more since it's original fanfiction write up that went under a different name. Having read both series and thinking about it in retrospective, I can see where certain qualities were perhaps borrowed. But it wasn't/isn't obvious to me. Which is where the confusion comes in. Just because it was written as "fanfiction", does that automatically make the story borrowed? Even if it doesn't jump out and scream borrowed? Where is that borrowed line drawn? 

What if borrowed is simply inspiration? What if E.L. James wrote 50 Shades of Grey and made no mention of Twilight? Would the similarities have been noticed? I doubt it. But the fact is that it was laid out in the beginning to be fanfiction, and then it made money. So should that change the plagiarism line?


 Google's thoughts...

I think I'm just running my mind in circles with these wannabe-philosophical questions. I did ask the the all-powerful Google to help in this quest for an answer. I found some interesting responses by both fans and authors discussing the pros and cons of fanfiction. 

Fanfiction Pros: 

• (Fan) It's a creative outlet that means no harm
• (Fan) It's using general concepts and giving the author credit, so it's not plagarism
• (Author) It drives interest and interest drives sales
• (Author) It gives authors creative ideas

Fanfiction Cons:

• (Fan/Author) can see why intellectual property rights might become an issue
• (Fan/Author) can be a poor reflection on the author
• (Fan/Author) Who owns what?
• (Author) What if an author is not done writing a series but a fan jumps the gun and writes about a huge plot twist?
• (Author) Sue-happy fans

My final thoughts...

After reading these, I understand where both sides come from. There doesn't seem to be anything illegal about it unless an author specifically states that no fanfiction derivatives are allowed (please, correct me if I'm wrong). But I can see where the legal issues might get a bit blurry. Especially the "who owns what" in a borrowed versus inspiration dispute.

This is what brings me back to my main concern: Why are fanfiction writers legally able to make lucrative careers from this? And, do authors gain more from fanfiction then they risk loosing? Is it like non-fiction writing in that if you provide references and give credit where credit is due then all is well? If that's the case, then shouldn't all genre's have the same accepted rules?


I obviously have a ton of questions about this. More-so food for thought than anything.

Writing fanfiction can be a great way to get your name out there because it appeals to a certain audience. I don't think there's any wrong in "riding on someone else's coattails". But I do think there is a line between using someone else's work to help hone your skills and build a fan base versus using their work to build an empire.