Request for feedback on synopsis

Passive versus active voice chuckle I just saw posted on Facebook

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Can you really copyright that concept?
Of course! Why not? In literature as much as in science, it's easier to have an idea rather than exploit it. I might get the thunder of Litopians but I come from a family who's always said plainly what we think.
 
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Really? That seems extraordinary for surely, if it were true that JK had pinched a copyrighted idea from Horowitz you wouldn't be able to see either of them for the mass of lawyers crawling around.

If however she just wrote some more stuff involving magic as has been done for ages, then no problem. After all, you don't see the Tolkein estate suing for breach of copyright and her dementors are a lot closer to ring wraiths or whatever they were called in LOTR than could be explained away by coincidence.
 
Of course! Why not? In literature as much as in science, it's easier to have an idea rather than exploit it. I might get the thunder of Litopians but I come from a family who's always said plainly what we think. The idea of the school of magic was, originally, Anthony Horowitz's in Groosham Grange. But the one who successfully exploited that idea was JK Rowling. JK Rowling can do that as long as she
1. develops the idea
2. admits her source.
She accomplished number 1, but she did not admit her source, Horowitz, which renders her taking Horowitz's idea like a theft of idea. Had she recognized her source, it would have been inspiration, not idea stealing.

Incidentally why Groosham Grange...why not The Worst Witch?

Be careful what you say as you are more likely to be sued for such an accusation than JK Rowling. ;)

What exactly do you think is copied? If it isn't actual work then it isn't stealing. That's quite an accusation!!:eek:
 
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Here's a link which allegedly cites JK Rowling's 'inspiration':

Link

No author is obliged to share their inspirations unless there was heavy public interest as there is with someone as successful as JK is. I don't believe audiences are owed anything by authors except for a darn good book.
 
Lol Yay! An honorary Scot! @Alistair Roberts is one too. So was JK until she pulled that stunt in 2014 and then started calling us all detheaters, now she's disowned :p

I do know about that and still of the view that she is only guilty for expressing her own point of view. Disagreeing with it should not be equivalent to disowning.

And are you sure she called 'us all' death eaters or those who bullied her on twitter?

Guardian
 
Most English are a right brew. I'm fairly typical: 50% Irish, quarter English, quarter Scottish with close family living in Scotland. In a democratic nation there will be a diversity of opinions, and so there was about the referendum, obviously, and it's how it should always be, but feelings still run very strong indeed, 'No' voters have been accused of being unpatriotic, and many dared not voice their view. She did. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...-Scottish-independence-statement-in-full.html
 
Really? That seems extraordinary for surely, if it were true that JK had pinched a copyrighted idea from Horowitz you wouldn't be able to see either of them for the mass of lawyers crawling around.

If however she just wrote some more stuff involving magic as has been done for ages, then no problem. After all, you don't see the Tolkein estate suing for breach of copyright and her dementors are a lot closer to ring wraiths or whatever they were called in LOTR than could be explained away by coincidence.

There have been lawyers around both authors for this issue. You can Google https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_influences_and_analogues and search "Horowitz" in this link and find other things on the Internet. Ah, those artists: always copying one another! I have an annotated copy of "The Hobbit" in which, for just one example, Tolkien's Gollum was inspired by another slimy, subterranean character called Glips. That doesn't prevent me from venerating Tolkien. Well, he's the culprit of me sort of writing in the empty, as I have no publisher. I read "The Hobbit" and wanted to become an author. I think you especially have to enjoy writing and not count on it to earn a living. There are known, published authors who don't earn their living from their works. And Tolkien who, in my view, is superior to JK Rowling, had to work as a professor until his retirement in spite of his master pieces. He only just had a bit of a more comfortable pension.
In his "On Fairy-stories," Tolkien says two interesting things. The first is that you wrongly address fairy-tales to Young people, as they very well deserve to have adult attention. The second is that he believed in the existence of a sort of literary broth from which authors pick some elements.
 
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Politics aside, am curious where you read this bit:

She calls people with Scottish nationalist views as opposed to unionist views deatheaters. She also likes to make a big deal about being English and hated by the Scots because of that fact. Total nonsense.

I just want to know where she outright prejudices against the whole of Scotland. I have so far only read hearsay but not from her own words. Just want a reliable source 'tis all.
 
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That was a joke by the way (about disowning her lol) hence the smiley.

May I also point out that all media is union bias ;) it always has been. She calls people with Scottish nationalist views as opposed to unionist views deatheaters. She also likes to make a big deal about being English and hated by the Scots because of that fact. Total nonsense. we loved, embraced and supported her. That's not what it's about. That's never what it's been about. It's been about standing on our own two feet. Just because we make our own rules doesn't mean we will turn our back on our English brothers and sisters. They want as much independence from Westminster as we do!

There is a lot of bad feeling, but not toward No voters, though that's what the media want you to think. The Scots hate the No voters, the Scots hate the English... um... no, we hate corrupt overlords, Tories, Lib dem and Red-tories. There are a few groups who will openly say "see you, you caused all this" with regard to No voters, but not many. The vast majority of us are gearing up for Indyref2. The government is doing a damn good job of convincing folk for us, t the point that Northern cities now want to be absorbed into Scotland. Speaks volumes without us saying a word.

But the overwhelming evidence is that both the Indyref and Genelect were rigged. Of course the vast majority of people will never know. I remember on the 19th when buses upon buses of people from Northern Ireland and England as well as certain Scottish groups whom I will refrain from naming appeared to riot in Glasgow. It was well organised violence. YES campaigners had been sitting in George Square all day, just peacefully doing their thing. Being a member of the YES groups, I saw a hell of a lot more than most have seen of it. And it was not reported on, a 'disturbance' in Glasgow. Unless your eyes are open, you will never ever see the truth behind their lies.

It was frightening. YES campaigners were being collected up in police vans and driven out of Glasgow to keep them safe. Riots were organised in Greenock (where I live), Port Glasgow, Stirling, loads of places... but did you hear even a whisper of those? nope.

Tell you what. Next time, any of you are welcome to come stay with me and see how safe you feel when the mobs come around.

And look at our country now. Now the SNP's 56 are the only MP's standing up for the rights of the working and the poor and the sick and disabled! Labour voted for the Snooping and the Fox hunting, and a whole host of other things, an odd thing that.

Our little collection of countries is in a right sorry state. And it will be even worse come 2020.

______________
See this is why I didn't give a full answer before. I am more than a little politically charged.
Hey ho. I've said my bit.


Not funny at all, Karen. : ( Very ugly. It's an ancient thing and clearly not over. Many of the English were, and would be again, ready to let Scotland go her own way, completely. I suspect the reason the Gov't is so determined that fracking will happen in the face of fierce resistance, and two recent refusals on the part of local government, is connected to this future possibility. I'm in Lancashire, not far from the proposed site at Littleplumpton. Happily, there must be hope; we're all good, talking to each other, here :)
 
Not funny at all, Karen. : ( Very ugly. It's an ancient thing and clearly not over. Many of the English were, and would be again, ready to let Scotland go her own way, completely. I suspect the reason the Gov't is so determined that fracking will happen in the face of fierce resistance, and two recent refusals on the part of local government, is connected to this future possibility. I'm in Lancashire, not far from the proposed site at Littleplumpton. Happily, there must be hope; we're all good, talking to each other, here :)
Fracking is bloody scary. I hope they don't get it through where you are, it risks too many peoples lives, not to mention animal life. The Gvnmt really needs to rethink... Yup just about everything. But all they want to do now is make the rich richer and push people through the cracks. Our wee island is flying by the seat of it's pants and as yet, the landing strip is to be determines... here's hoping it's not in the piranha tank :/
 
Concepts and ideas are NOT intellectual property that you can copyright. Always refer to an authoritarian source for reference.

The Intellectual Property Office, UK

Ideas are free but the hard work you put in to it is not.

Edit: another useful POV .... Link
Okay, in clarification, after reading Emu's contribution, you can only copyright the concept to the extent that it is included in the work you have written.

I could write a story about an astromage of my own, who utilizes magic of planetary physics and relativity to travel through time, but the second I use the same words in the same order as did Monique, then we've got a problem.
 
Okay, in clarification, after reading Emu's contribution, you can only copyright the concept to the extent that it is included in the work you have written.

I could write a story about an astromage of my own, who utilizes magic of planetary physics and relativity to travel through time, but the second I use the same words in the same order as did Monique, then we've got a problem.

That may fall under trademarks.
 
Not funny at all, Karen. : ( Very ugly. It's an ancient thing and clearly not over. Many of the English were, and would be again, ready to let Scotland go her own way, completely. I suspect the reason the Gov't is so determined that fracking will happen in the face of fierce resistance, and two recent refusals on the part of local government, is connected to this future possibility. I'm in Lancashire, not far from the proposed site at Littleplumpton. Happily, there must be hope; we're all good, talking to each other, here :)
You'd have to give a name to the gap between the English and the Scots. What about calling it the Mutton Ditch, because the Scots eat more mutton than the English? Here in Switzerland, you have a great, deep gap Between the German speaking people (the Swiss-Germans) and the French ones which we call the Röstigraben (the ditch with rösti in it as the Swiss-Germans will eat more rösti than the people from the French speaking part of Switzerland.:p
 
Okay, in clarification, after reading Emu's contribution, you can only copyright the concept to the extent that it is included in the work you have written.

I could write a story about an astromage of my own, who utilizes magic of planetary physics and relativity to travel through time, but the second I use the same words in the same order as did Monique, then we've got a problem.
Thanks, folks. I hadn't expected so much attention. You are too kind.
 
Maybe. And i think that is what it was of which I was thinking, originally.
Is It Trademark Infringement?

At the end of the day..isn't it always at the end of the day, why not after a goodnights sleeping on it..or at the end of lunch.. I digress...but if you aren't prepared to protect your trademark then it's each man/woman to the deck...hard work always pays off. Make sure people know it came from you first.
 
True. I think a trademark is cancelled, if you don't defend it.
 
That was a joke by the way (about disowning her lol) hence the smiley.

May I also point out that all media is union bias ;) it always has been. She calls people with Scottish nationalist views as opposed to unionist views deatheaters. She also likes to make a big deal about being English and hated by the Scots because of that fact. Total nonsense. we loved, embraced and supported her. That's not what it's about. That's never what it's been about. It's been about standing on our own two feet. Just because we make our own rules doesn't mean we will turn our back on our English brothers and sisters. They want as much independence from Westminster as we do!

There is a lot of bad feeling, but not toward No voters, though that's what the media want you to think. The Scots hate the No voters, the Scots hate the English... um... no, we hate corrupt overlords, Tories, Lib dem and Red-tories. There are a few groups who will openly say "see you, you caused all this" with regard to No voters, but not many. The vast majority of us are gearing up for Indyref2. The government is doing a damn good job of convincing folk for us, t the point that Northern cities now want to be absorbed into Scotland. Speaks volumes without us saying a word.

But the overwhelming evidence is that both the Indyref and Genelect were rigged. Of course the vast majority of people will never know. I remember on the 19th when buses upon buses of people from Northern Ireland and England as well as certain Scottish groups whom I will refrain from naming appeared to riot in Glasgow. It was well organised violence. YES campaigners had been sitting in George Square all day, just peacefully doing their thing. Being a member of the YES groups, I saw a hell of a lot more than most have seen of it. And it was not reported on, a 'disturbance' in Glasgow. Unless your eyes are open, you will never ever see the truth behind their lies.

It was frightening. YES campaigners were being collected up in police vans and driven out of Glasgow to keep them safe. Riots were organised in Greenock (where I live), Port Glasgow, Stirling, loads of places... but did you hear even a whisper of those? nope.

Tell you what. Next time, any of you are welcome to come stay with me and see how safe you feel when the mobs come around.

And look at our country now. Now the SNP's 56 are the only MP's standing up for the rights of the working and the poor and the sick and disabled! Labour voted for the Snooping and the Fox hunting, and a whole host of other things, an odd thing that.

Our little collection of countries is in a right sorry state. And it will be even worse come 2020.

______________
See this is why I didn't give a full answer before. I am more than a little politically charged.
Hey ho. I've said my bit.

Suspect lots of us have strong and opposing feelings on this. My opinion is that this is a writing site, and politics should be kept out of it, to prevent us all falling out in a big way. And that's all I will say!
 
As per usual, Karen opens mouth and inserts both feet. If anyone is offended I'm more than happy to take it down. In fact I'll just do that. Never let it be said I was inconsiderate of the feelings of others. I'm just passionate and get carried away easily :p
 
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Passive versus active voice chuckle I just saw posted on Facebook

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