Joseph DeMartino
Moderator
Re: G\'Kar\'s role in TLaDiS
Because this site has a dedicated fan-fic section I'm quite sure that JMS does not lurk here, so story ideas shouldn't be a problem, either. It is a sad commentary on our litigious society that this is even an issue but, there you have it. Too many writers have spent too much time and money in court (even winning a copyright infringement suit can cost tens of thousands of dollars) for them to ignore the problem. Marion Zimmer Bradley (if I recall correctly) lost an entire novel due to a similar problem. Someone had posted a similar story idea on a site she was known to frequent and her publisher refused to take the chance.
Even the moderated newsgroup, however, features plenty of speculation - but there are limits to speculation and distinctions between that and pure "story ideas." Projecting from known facts isn't usually a problem. I don't think anyone who guessed that the woman in Delenn's "WWE" timeflash might be Anna Sheridan had a post rejected.
On the other hand something like this can be a problem:
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>On another service, someone without considering what he was saying (not his fault, it just happened) said, in essence, "What if somebody on B5 found out that he had been mind-wiped, and used to be something awful previously?"
Well, I'd had "Passing Through Gethsemane" on the wire at that time, but when I saw this, I had to scuttle the story. It lay there, untouched, for over a year, until I could finally meet the fellow and get a signed release indicating what'd happened.
If that fan had not been fair and reasonable, that episode -- which many consider one of our best -- would never have been made. -- jms<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
But like I said, this shouldn't be an issue here, since I'm almost certain that JMS isn't lurking. It becomes a problem for him when people can demonstrate that he reads or particaptes in a forum. (Because they have verifiable posts or because he comments elsewhere on things he's read here.) I know that he's aware of this site, because I've mentioned it in newsgroup posts he's responded to, and he indicated that he had heard about leaks from the set that turned up here first. (Once he wrote, "well, if you know all this, I guess *I* don't have to say anything" when I tried to get him to confirm or deny a story here - which I took as confirmation.
)
But I don't think he visits because he knows that, by definition, this site is going to be filled with rumor, specualtion, fanfic and lots of other stuff he needs to steer clear of.
Regards,
Joe
------------------
Joseph DeMartino
Sigh Corps
Pat Tallman Division
joseph-demartino@att.net
[This message has been edited by Joseph DeMartino (edited July 01, 2001).]
Because this site has a dedicated fan-fic section I'm quite sure that JMS does not lurk here, so story ideas shouldn't be a problem, either. It is a sad commentary on our litigious society that this is even an issue but, there you have it. Too many writers have spent too much time and money in court (even winning a copyright infringement suit can cost tens of thousands of dollars) for them to ignore the problem. Marion Zimmer Bradley (if I recall correctly) lost an entire novel due to a similar problem. Someone had posted a similar story idea on a site she was known to frequent and her publisher refused to take the chance.
Even the moderated newsgroup, however, features plenty of speculation - but there are limits to speculation and distinctions between that and pure "story ideas." Projecting from known facts isn't usually a problem. I don't think anyone who guessed that the woman in Delenn's "WWE" timeflash might be Anna Sheridan had a post rejected.
On the other hand something like this can be a problem:
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>On another service, someone without considering what he was saying (not his fault, it just happened) said, in essence, "What if somebody on B5 found out that he had been mind-wiped, and used to be something awful previously?"
Well, I'd had "Passing Through Gethsemane" on the wire at that time, but when I saw this, I had to scuttle the story. It lay there, untouched, for over a year, until I could finally meet the fellow and get a signed release indicating what'd happened.
If that fan had not been fair and reasonable, that episode -- which many consider one of our best -- would never have been made. -- jms<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
But like I said, this shouldn't be an issue here, since I'm almost certain that JMS isn't lurking. It becomes a problem for him when people can demonstrate that he reads or particaptes in a forum. (Because they have verifiable posts or because he comments elsewhere on things he's read here.) I know that he's aware of this site, because I've mentioned it in newsgroup posts he's responded to, and he indicated that he had heard about leaks from the set that turned up here first. (Once he wrote, "well, if you know all this, I guess *I* don't have to say anything" when I tried to get him to confirm or deny a story here - which I took as confirmation.
But I don't think he visits because he knows that, by definition, this site is going to be filled with rumor, specualtion, fanfic and lots of other stuff he needs to steer clear of.
Regards,
Joe
------------------
Joseph DeMartino
Sigh Corps
Pat Tallman Division
joseph-demartino@att.net
[This message has been edited by Joseph DeMartino (edited July 01, 2001).]
