Google Groups no longer supports new Usenet posts or subscriptions. Historical content remains viewable.
Dismiss

Mercedes Lackey and her views...

11 views
Skip to first unread message

Phil N. D'Blanc

unread,
Jan 3, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/3/99
to
To Ms Mercedes Lackey:

Until I read the following passages, I thought I was a lifelong fan, be it
known that on Monday (January 4th, 1999) I am donating my (extensive)
hardcover collection of your work to the Salvation Army, and that I am never
again buying or reading any of your literature.

You may value your intellectual property, which is your right, but others
value theirs as well, and that includes people who write Fantasy Role
Playing Games, much of which is as entertaining as anything you have ever
written, and likely more imaginative.

Everyone plagerizes, many of your concepts are devices that come from D&D.
There have been familiars and healing spells for many years. I was involved
with D&D for decades before I ever heard of you and your literature.

There were sentient swords with ego long before Need, there have been female
warriors, and many many Indian (ethnic North American) legends to do with
saving the world from various evils or restoring nature.

While perhaps this means nothing to you, you may count on my not being among
those who will purchase any more of your work. Nor will I read it for free
at the library, as a matter of fact, I may make a point of protesting the
expendature of precious library resources, in this pursuit.

I am (also) removing alt.books.m-lackey from my newsgroups, and writing a
letter to my provider to request it be removed from the groups are carried
there. Successful or not, and I doubt my efforts will be successful, it is
all I can do to express my revulsion at your narrow and greedy attitudes.

This from her FAQ:
(will probably get sued for copyright infringement for reprinting it)

5. Why won't she let us have a MUSH or write FanFic?
Russell Galen is Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixson's agent. He has made the
following statements in a general post to alt.books.m-lackey, dated in
October 1994.

"Any use of works by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixson in fan fiction or a
role playing game is strictly prohibited. The reasons are as follows:

A. It is copyright infringement. Any unauthorized use of intellectual
property, whether or not for profit, is copyright infringement.

B. The authors are against it. Knowing that strangers are making use of
one's world, one's characters, one's creations, is usually a very unpleasant
feeling, one of violation and intrusion.

C. There's been a great deal of discussion here as to whether a MUSH or MUD
would help or hurt the salability of commercial game rights. The fact is, we
don't know. It might have no effect, or a ruinous effect. There is ample
evidence for both from other media, and I don't know the answer. Given that
uncertainty, we have to err on the side of caution and protection.

D. All of us on this side have discussed this and are resolved to take no
chances with these valuable copyrights, and will vigorously pursue all legal
means at our disposal. Also, any action we might take would not be limited
to individuals but to the universities and other organizations that permit
their equipment and lines to be used for this illegal purpose.

E. Yes, we're greedy and narrow-minded in defense of our clients' ability to
make a living. This is Mercedes Lackey's job. Anything that threatens her
ability to make a living is no less an evil than any other situation in
which an innocent party is forced, by the actions of strangers, to fight for
her livelihood."

So, please, folks *Just Say No* to Lackey-MUDS. If you want to write Fanfic,
please send mail to the Queen's Own or HighFlight addresses above, and
request a release form. Don't go doing something that you're going to wind
up regretting, later.


Alan Fleming

unread,
Jan 3, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/3/99
to
On Sun, 03 Jan 1999 08:03:27 GMT, "Phil N. D'Blanc"
<anfandore{spamblaster}@home.com> wrote:

[crap, Imho]

What a load of offensive rubbish. It's clear he's never tried to earn a
living from doing anything creative.

Alan.

--
______
\ __/___ Alan Fleming.
\ \ / Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?
\/\ / Email: a...@contract.co.uk IRC: Etrigan
\/ Web: www.contract.co.uk/af

Patroness of Squirrels

unread,
Jan 3, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/3/99
to
In a nutshell, this guy is ticked off at Misty because her agent won't
let people infringe her copyrights. What an idiot. It's not Misty's
decision in the first place. Then he goes on to insult Misty's
creativity and imagination. And why on earth would you ask newsgroup
providers to drop alt.books.m-lackey? Yea right, as if that'll happen.
Servers don't listen to petty complaints. And then he completes his
proof of stupidity by thinking that this message will reach Misty in the
first place. -snort-

-Caroline

Sheila

unread,
Jan 3, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/3/99
to
In article <jvFj2.7627$kR5....@news.rdc1.ab.wave.home.com>,

Phil N. D'Blanc <anfandore{spamblaster}@home.com> wrote:
> To Ms Mercedes Lackey:

> You may value your intellectual property, which is your right, but
> others value theirs as well, and that includes people who write Fantasy
> Role Playing Games, much of which is as entertaining as anything you
> have ever written, and likely more imaginative.

I really don't see what this guy is getting at.

Nothing - -nothing- - he quoted is saying anything against fantasy
role-playing games per se. Nobody can stop "People who write Fantasy Role
Playing Games" writing "entertaining... and imaginative storylines" as
long as the ideas and universes they use are their own. All they are being
stopped doing is writing their storylines around Misty's work in any of
Misty's universes. I doubt they are "more imaginative" however if they
can't come up with something original!

And to say it's Misty's right to value her intellectual property but then
imply that doing this is denying others the right to -theirs- doesn't make
sense.

He gives the impression of the small boy who decided to take his football
home because he wasn't given his own way...

Sheila

to email change argo to argonet

--
she...@argo.co.uk

Imagination is much more important than knowledge


KrissyBee

unread,
Jan 4, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/4/99
to


Well, some authors do visit and regularly post to "their" newsgroups
(Terry Pratchett and Tom Clancy come to mind), so I suppose I can
understand that he may have thought she'd see it. But otherwise, I
agree with both you and Alan. While certain themes she has used may not
be "original" (and whose are totally so??), her works certainly are and
more so than others I have read. The strength of his assertions makes
me wonder what is behind them. I would not be surprised if he just
realized that he had been infinging on copyright, unintentionally or
otherwise.

Otherwise, i don't care what he chooses to do. He can get on his high
horse all he wants. There are plenty of people who will continue to
enjoy her works AND respect her decisions regarding the use of them.

Kris

Nightshade

unread,
Jan 4, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/4/99
to
On Mon, 04 Jan 1999 14:45:06 +0000, KrissyBee <kwet...@qn.net> kinked
my brain with:


>
>Well, some authors do visit and regularly post to "their" newsgroups
>(Terry Pratchett and Tom Clancy come to mind), so I suppose I can
>understand that he may have thought she'd see it. But otherwise, I
>agree with both you and Alan. While certain themes she has used may not
>be "original" (and whose are totally so??), her works certainly are and
>more so than others I have read. The strength of his assertions makes
>me wonder what is behind them. I would not be surprised if he just
>realized that he had been infinging on copyright, unintentionally or
>otherwise.

It does sound a little like getting angry to cover the prickles of a
guilty conscience and the awareness that he can't rip off her works
for his RPGs. IMHO, if he was *that* original, he'd be writing his own
and not using her worlds anyway, right?


>
>Otherwise, i don't care what he chooses to do. He can get on his high
>horse all he wants. There are plenty of people who will continue to
>enjoy her works AND respect her decisions regarding the use of them.

Ditto for me. Among my major obsessions are Pterry - who keeps a
strict control on his games etc so they *stay* 'his', and Elfquest
team, who have on occasions indicated their extreme disappointment
with the way some of the games and fanfic based around their worlds
has worked out, in at least one case going totally counter to the
entire ethos of the culture they'd built. Misty is the other, of
course. They're her worlds, regardless of the sources she drew on to
create them, and she's entitled to say what other people get to do
with them.
>Kris

Nightshade
*****************************************************
Goddess of Kinkies (your pleasure is my pleasure -
or the kinkies pleasure.....)
ICQ #17890372
Home Page (under construction)
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Realm/5063/
Email kgolding at ozlinx dot com dot au
****************************************************

Star Creature

unread,
Jan 5, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/5/99
to
Chocolate splatter from "Phil N. D'Blanc"
<anfandore{spamblaster}@home.com> read:


>You may value your intellectual property, which is your right, but others
>value theirs as well, and that includes people who write Fantasy Role
>Playing Games, much of which is as entertaining as anything you have ever
>written, and likely more imaginative.
>

>Everyone plagerizes, many of your concepts are devices that come from D&D.
>There have been familiars and healing spells for many years. I was involved
>with D&D for decades before I ever heard of you and your literature.


I feel I have to say something here. Familiars, healing spells,
sentient swords... These are not peculiar to D&D. They are common
fantasy devices. Well, maybe sentient swords aren't quite as common,
but familiars and healing spells are all over the place. I would say
that use of them in writing new fantasy is not plagiarism so much as
making use of something everyone uses. And the saving-the-world
business happens everywhere--in the movies, in many more genres of
writing then fantasy/sf, in legends... It's not unique to anyone or
any thing.

On the other hand, using Misty's characters or world for your own
personal role-playing game is a definite no-no. And please don't
start about "everyone" plagiarizing. The fact is, it's illegal. As
an amateur writer myself, this is something I feel very strongly
about--when I create something, I do NOT want anyone at all to be able
to twist it into whatever they want to mae out of it just so that they
can have a little bit of fun. If you want a "cool" RPG or character,
make it up yourself. I don't think many people here are going to feel
sorry for you.

>While perhaps this means nothing to you, you may count on my not being among
>those who will purchase any more of your work. Nor will I read it for free
>at the library, as a matter of fact, I may make a point of protesting the
>expendature of precious library resources, in this pursuit.

I don't know about Misty herself, but if I were her I wouldn't be too
worried about it. I might even be glad that someone who wants to
plagiarize my work isn't reading it any more.

>I am (also) removing alt.books.m-lackey from my newsgroups, and writing a
>letter to my provider to request it be removed from the groups are carried
>there. Successful or not, and I doubt my efforts will be successful, it is
>all I can do to express my revulsion at your narrow and greedy attitudes.

Narrow and greedy? Because she wants to have control over her own
work? I don't think so. See the following, which you quoted from the
FAQ.

>E. Yes, we're greedy and narrow-minded in defense of our clients' ability to
>make a living. This is Mercedes Lackey's job. Anything that threatens her
>ability to make a living is no less an evil than any other situation in
>which an innocent party is forced, by the actions of strangers, to fight for
>her livelihood."

This writing is Ms. Lackey's way of making a living--and, surprise,
surprise, she wants to defend that. Try writing for a living
sometime. Try *thinking**seriously* about writing for a living
sometime. I'm not going to scream "You just don't understand!" at
you; I just don't think you've really thought about this beyond the
fact that your won't be able to use *someone**else's* intellectual
property for *your* fun.


Star Creature (Sorry if anyone thinks I'm taking this too
seriously--it's something I feel VERY strongly about.)

Goddess of Babble
Part-Time Disciple of Grilled-SPAM
remove "babble" from e-mail address to reply
* * * * * * *
http://members.tripod.com/~FawbushSa/index.html
http://www.angelfire.com/in/youngwriters/index.html
* * * * * * *

"When a wonky idea, a wooden character, or even an
incoherent sentence causes readers to realise they're
reading *fiction*, the writer has lost the game."

--James Patrick Kelly, "You and Your Characters"
available at http://www.sfwa.org/writing/character.htm

Rhino 7

unread,
Jan 5, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/5/99
to
>To Ms Mercedes Lackey:
>
>Until I read the following passages, I thought I was a lifelong fan, be it
>known that on Monday (January 4th, 1999) I am donating my (extensive)
>hardcover collection of your work to the Salvation Army, and that I am
never
>again buying or reading any of your literature.


...Hey! Can I have it instead of the SA? I'll give them a good home I
promise!

The Bookwurm <g> (figuring what this guy *really* needs is a sense of
humor)
Goddess of Libraries ™, Avatar of Gyre Hart,
Heretic Priestess of Coffee & Cheesecake
High Priestess to the Goddess of Babble
Stuffed Animal Fairy, Keeper of the BotRoM
<spam trapped - remove the fish from address>

Tristaan

unread,
Jan 6, 1999, 3:00:00 AM1/6/99
to
Phil N. D'Blanc stomped through my brain with:

<snip some really stupid stuff>


>I am (also) removing alt.books.m-lackey from my newsgroups, and writing a
>letter to my provider to request it be removed from the groups are carried
>there. Successful or not, and I doubt my efforts will be successful, it is
>all I can do to express my revulsion at your narrow and greedy attitudes.

I think this guy has a serious problem. I mean, what is wrong with an
artist trying to preserve their rights to their creations? Authors do
so simply by copyrighting their books. To be honest, Misty doesn't
even really need to have a statement like that put out by her agent,
the copyright laws strictly forbid making use of her creations in any
public forum without her express permission.

So, to Phil N. DeBlanc, wake up and smell the coffee, dude. This is
part of being an author.

Tristaan
******************************************
Ogre-Monk, ICQ# 14668166
God of Grilled-SPAM™
Assistant Librarian/Orangutan (pedant regained)
Husband of Amethyst, Co-Owner of The Ogre and the Elf
Violinist for the ABML out-of-practice-musicians band
Sister of Mess (don't ask)
Keeper of the ABML Cookbook
Remove SPAM trap to reply
"A mathematician is a machine for turning coffee into theorems" Paul
Erdols
*******************************************

0 new messages