Richard Book is Innocent (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
oxfordtweed) wrote2010-12-29 03:20 pm
oxfordtweed) wrote2010-12-29 03:20 pm
Entry tags:
Fic Disclaimers
I'm curious about them. Mostly, I'm curious about the 'why.'
So, you've written your story and now you go to post it on the interweb somewhere. If you've been doing this sort of thing for a while, you've probably got a header template that you use, that has included all of the fields, and you just need to plug in information like title, word count, rating, et cetera. If you're especially courteous, you'll include warnings for triggers and any other oddness that you've included in your fic.
Some people, and I'm not calling out anyone specifically, will include a disclaimer, which basically says, "This is not mine."
Well, okay. I never thought that it was, beyond what you've done with the plot and character interpretation. And frankly, I'm pretty sure that if the creator of your fic ever came across it, and they saw the disclaimer, their reaction wouldn't be, "Oh, well, they know that they're using my intellectual property without permission, so that's all right."
No. I'm fairly certain that they'd react the same either way. Some people will laugh, or even join in on the fun. Others will not take too kindly and even send you a C&D letter. The disclaimer does not make a difference. It does not matter how cleverly-worded your disclaimer is (and I admit, I have seen some hilarious ones, especially lately), Anne Rice will shoot you down so fucking fast your head will spin.
And that brings me back to the cleverly-worded, or sometimes the failed-to-be-cleverly-worded disclaimers. The ones that go on about keeping the characters in their closet or similarly just creep me the hell out. Why? Why would you say that? Seriously. Frankly, those sorts of disclaimers are likely to put me right off.
I don't know. Am I being strange about this, or do other people feel the same way?
So, you've written your story and now you go to post it on the interweb somewhere. If you've been doing this sort of thing for a while, you've probably got a header template that you use, that has included all of the fields, and you just need to plug in information like title, word count, rating, et cetera. If you're especially courteous, you'll include warnings for triggers and any other oddness that you've included in your fic.
Some people, and I'm not calling out anyone specifically, will include a disclaimer, which basically says, "This is not mine."
Well, okay. I never thought that it was, beyond what you've done with the plot and character interpretation. And frankly, I'm pretty sure that if the creator of your fic ever came across it, and they saw the disclaimer, their reaction wouldn't be, "Oh, well, they know that they're using my intellectual property without permission, so that's all right."
No. I'm fairly certain that they'd react the same either way. Some people will laugh, or even join in on the fun. Others will not take too kindly and even send you a C&D letter. The disclaimer does not make a difference. It does not matter how cleverly-worded your disclaimer is (and I admit, I have seen some hilarious ones, especially lately), Anne Rice will shoot you down so fucking fast your head will spin.
And that brings me back to the cleverly-worded, or sometimes the failed-to-be-cleverly-worded disclaimers. The ones that go on about keeping the characters in their closet or similarly just creep me the hell out. Why? Why would you say that? Seriously. Frankly, those sorts of disclaimers are likely to put me right off.
I don't know. Am I being strange about this, or do other people feel the same way?