This is one of those things that all writers need to know; the difference between plagiarism and coincidence. Anyone can think of a broad concept but it’s in the details that we can find plagiarism.
For example: The zombie apocalypse books, films and whatnot tend to follow a basic plot. A couple of survivors are trying to find a safe place while dealing with the undead. That’s pretty much a common plot in every story. But it’s in the details that matter the most.
The trick to make it your own. There are plenty of stories that have the same concept but every writer works on creating something different and unique. Some have their zombie apocalypse stories take place in another time period, or another place that’s rarely done, others have unusual characters, sometimes they add on other problems that the characters have to face like a natural disaster and so on.
Just remember that anyone can have the same concept but it’s the details that determine whether or not they copied. But even if some things seem quite similar to another person’s story it doesn’t mean that they blatantly plagiarize them. It’s certainly not uncommon for people from from vastly different areas to come up with the same ideas without ever hearing of the other.
A good example of that is, Alexander Graham Bell who invented the telephone. A few days after he patented the new invention, another guy from some other country came up with the same kind of instrument only to find that he was a bit late. This doesn’t just happen with writing.
 DamnBlackHeart · Mon Mar 18, 2013 @ 04:37pm · 0 Comments |
