Do any of you fear you are unintentionally paralleling a story that has been previously published?

[Ronald T.]

I 've been a devout reader of SF/F for more than forty years. Mostly, Fantasy. But I'm not a fast reader. So, compared to those of you with the ability to read at what I think of as an amazing and incredible rate, I feel like a novice.

From what I can determine from so many of the posts you've written, many of you are so far ahead of me on the number of books you've read, it's humbling. Knowing this, I have to fight the feeling of inadequacy to a certain extent.

I'm just wondering whether this is an worry-issue more common to slower readers, like myself, or if it's still a concern for those of you who read so much faster...for those of you who have read so many more books than I have.

If you have the time, I'd love to hear from you.

PS: Sorry for missing the "ed" at the end of "published". I couldn't get the entire sentence to show up on one line, so I missed my mistake.

 

[Dennis E. Taylor]

There's no point in fearing it, as it's pretty much guaranteed. There are a small number of standard tropes in any genre (and a lot of them are cross-genre), and the chance that you've come up with something truly revolutionary is very low. Even The Martian is just warmed over Robinson Crusoe (or Robinson Crusoe on Mars, even).
I've got a lot of readers comparing my current book to any number of other books and series'. What no one seems to have picked up on is that, if my book is 'like' a couple dozen other books, then a couple dozen other books are also like each other.
I think there are writers out there who try to 'ride the wave' of a popular book by writing me-too's, but those are usually pretty blatantly obvious.

 

[Overread]

Bizmuth sums it up well; heck consider that the Romeo and Juliet formula is pretty much repeated over and over again in most romance based novels to some extent.

Often as not stories can be boiled down to a very simplistic structure which at that level can easily be compared. It's why you always get people who say "X story is like Y story". However in my experiences most readers don't notice it unless told or unless its blatantly a copy-cat. A theme might be copied; an idea borrowed here or there etc... What matters is the delivery of the story; that its unique enough that its got its own little bits that make it different and which make it enjoyable.

Those who endlessly complain of similarities are often just airing that they dislike the story but have otherwise no real strong area where they hate it; just that its kinda similar to something else that they either loved or loathed.

 

[The Judge]

Don't worry about it. Coincidences of plot and character happen. You can't possibly read every book published just to ensure you haven't inadvertently mirrored another one. Just write the best book you can.

PS: Sorry for missing the "ed" at the end of "published". I couldn't get the entire sentence to show up on one line, so I missed my mistake.

The title was too long -- so you undoubtedly typed the "ed" but the software cut it off when it hit the limit. I've reinstated the "ed" by removing the "that" as the sentence made sense without it. And I'll now add the missing question mark I forgot when doing it!

 

[Toby Frost]

I agree with the others. I wouldn't worry about this at all unless you are copying something that has been done to death - and you'll usually be able to tell because it will be old hat in pop culture as well as in writing by now. So I'd be worried if I was writing, say: a standard-issue zombie apocalypse; a "non-grimdark" D&D fantasy with orcs, elves and dwarves set in summer; a grimdark fantasy with humans in varying stages of pain/dirtiness set in winter; a standard-issue urban fantasy with sex, vampires and werewolves, and so on.

Also, people like a bit of familiarity. It helps them through the story. Some of the best books don't do anything amazingly new, but add a new variant to an old story, or import a stock figure from another style - a private eye in Blade Runner, say, or the Wild West element in Firefly. Some of the stuff that's considered new and exciting in fantasy was being done in noir crime 60 years ago. Personally, the fact you may not have read as many books as others probably doesn't matter that much, provided that your writing isn't ragingly old-fashioned in terms of style and content.

 

[Ronald T.]

Thank you, Judge.

 

[Overread]

Fantasy actually benefits a lot from using tropes and common themes.

Consider elves - if you put an elf in your story almost most readers already know what an elf is - roughly speaking. They expect pretty; pointed ears; generally longer lived; likely magical; one with nature etc.... They have preconceptions in the same way if you said "car" or "house". They already have a rough idea what it is - so you can then more easily focus on describing how your elves are rather than what they are.

It's also not shocking that when something major hits you get a lot of stories that use simialr themes and ideas - because often as not a major story like Lord of the Rings inspires many many writers. Even without realising it they can copy-cat themes and ideas or approaches. And in general readers don't care; in fact if they loved one they've a good chance of liking the other so long as its well written and clearly not copy-catting every page or just retelling the same story with the same quests and themes and ideas.

 

[zmunkz]

I agree, don't worry about it.

I had a case where I wrote something, then later was re-reading a story I'd enjoyed as a kid, and I realized I'd unintentionally injected a bunch if similar ideas all from this one book into my story. In that case I felt l like I should have known better, so I removed those themes. But if I read a book for the first time and found overlap, I'd just shrug it off.

 

[tinkerdan]

The only thing I would add is, when possible, be aware of what might be old trope.
The reason for this is that it doesn't hurt to say something like this story is Romeo and Juliet meet Robinson Crusoe; however you need to be able to say, "But here's what makes it different."

 

[The Big Peat]

I do worry a little.

Not that I'll have some unintended parallels - I know I will and couldn't care. As others have mentioned its pretty much impossible not to share a lot of DNA with other stories.

But the possibility of coming up with a really close unintended parallel without ever realising until a substantial amount of the way through exists and that would be annoying. What odds someone with little pop culture knowledge and no close young relatives came up with the idea of an ice sorceress who flees, afraid of her own powers, but comes back to society when her sister seeks her out and they reconcile, full of love for one another? Something like that's happened to someone. Its one thing sharing a lot of DNA, its another thing finding out its a long lost twin and the other one got to market first.

That's got to be really rare though. But I do know a guy who basically invented Avatar: The Last Airbender after someone else did, even down to having some of the same characters. It happens.

And I'd have to say, reading very fast doesn't change my worry. I'm not worried about hitting the same idea as someone in the genre, by and large. But I could still find myself camped out on the same territory as a popular anime - or comic book - or computer game - without ever really knowing. But the fans would.

All I can say is talk your ideas over with a good crowd and if lightening strikes, you'll find out. Probably won't though.


edit: I'd just add - I have junked an idea before for sharing too many similarities with The Witcher. I probably could have changed it round but since I have too many ideas anyway, it made more sense simply to let it go. Besides, my sample attempt at writing the idea sucked.

 

[Ronald T.]

My deepest thanks to you all.

 

[Susan Boulton]

It happens. Don't worry about it, just make your story, yours.

When I started submitting Hand of Glory, I became aware of a newly published book by Ben Elton, called The First Casualty. Both the setting, time and a main element in the story was the same as my Hand of Glory. I freaked out. I bought Ben Elton's book and read it. But, beyond these basic facts his story and mine are totally different, but on the surface it seemed they could tread the same path.

 

[Vaz]

As others have said don't sweat the small stuff. Just write the best damn story you can.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I used to worry. But since most of my reviews (particularly of Inish Carraig, to be fair, but I suspect Waters and the Wild will go the same way) consist of what-was-she-thinking-coming-up-with-this, when I thought it was the most boring, hum-drum, idea in the world I've decided it's not what I need to be worrying about. Now, finding a sodding market for it....

 

[MWagner]

I worry about readers thinking my WIP rips off A Song of Ice and Fire, mainly because it's inspired by some of the same historical sources that inspired Martin. I have no doubt that many would look at my nomadic steppes peoples and say "ahah - that's just the Dothraki!" where in fact it's the Scythians, whom Martin and I both figured make a good template for a culture in our fictional worlds. Martin has plundered history so widely and so enthusiastically that I come across this issue all the time. I know I should ignore it, and it hasn't stopped me from plucking interesting titbits from history even if I recognize that Martin has done it already. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't sometimes fret over it.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

I worry about readers thinking my WIP rips off A Song of Ice and Fire, mainly because it's inspired by some of the same historical sources that inspired Martin. I have no doubt that many would look at my nomadic steppes peoples and say "ahah - that's just the Dothraki!" where in fact it's the Scythians, whom Martin and I both figured make a good template for a culture in our fictional worlds. Martin has plundered history so widely and so enthusiastically that I come across this issue all the time. I know I should ignore it, and it hasn't stopped me from plucking interesting titbits from history even if I recognize that Martin has done it already. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't sometimes fret over it.

I have so many influences in Abendau. There's a desert world and tribes, so that's Dune. And there's psi powers and seperated twin kids, so that's Star Wars. And there's a wicked Empress, so there's Blake's Seven. And the FTL travel is lifted from any Space Opera.

And sometimes people call me out on them and they're right. And I don't care. Because there isn't, really, anywhere like Abendau, or anything like Abendau (a close character study of PTSD in a Space Opera, for instance, from one theme; a family dynasty story told across three generations in another theme; a story of redemption told through the eyes of those who were most hurt.... whatever, they're all pretty different from what's on the market.)

There might be elements that make it feel that it might be derivative, but it isn't. Because, no matter what our source is, we make it unique. So when people call me out, I call them Space Opera Easter eggs and don't give a stuff.

 

[Stephen Palmer]

There's only one plot - "stuff happens" - so why not use it…?

 

[HareBrain]

"stuff happens"

That's the polite version.

 

[The Big Peat]

I have so many influences in Abendau. There's a desert world and tribes, so that's Dune. And there's psi powers and seperated twin kids, so that's Star Wars. And there's a wicked Empress, so there's Blake's Seven. And the FTL travel is lifted from any Space Opera.

And sometimes people call me out on them and they're right. And I don't care. Because there isn't, really, anywhere like Abendau, or anything like Abendau (a close character study of PTSD in a Space Opera, for instance, from one theme; a family dynasty story told across three generations in another theme; a story of redemption told through the eyes of those who were most hurt.... whatever, they're all pretty different from what's on the market.)

There might be elements that make it feel that it might be derivative, but it isn't. Because, no matter what our source is, we make it unique. So when people call me out, I call them Space Opera Easter eggs and don't give a stuff.

I feel like there's a lot of difference between a book that shows a lot of influences, where a reader might say "That's from X, and that's from Y, and that's from Z" and a book that only shows one influence, where a reader might say "That's from X, and that's from X, and that's also from X". The former most readers smile on, particularly if the easter eggs are done cleverly. The latter gets people grumbling. And by the latter I don't mean "Well they've both got wizards in the modern world in secret organisations and some are 'good' and some are 'bad'" sort of general influences, but more specific "They've both got protagonists who were trained by bad wizards but are now mostly good and are mentoring these wizards that people are suspicious of because they did bad things and there's a magic police/army that they're not on great terms with, and the protagonist has a mundane world job that nevertheless backs onto being a wizard pretty heavily and he solves mysteries even when they involve going against people with a lot more firepower". There's a level of parallel where it stops being easter eggs and starts being heavily derivative in an unfun way. It doesn't help when even the writing style feel the same.

Now yeah, where that level of parallel is for each book is a matter of opinion, and no author is ever going to win them all. But I do think its worth considering. Just because we *can* make them unique doesn't mean we *do* make them unique. There's a ton of ways we can make them unique but it doesn't feel like most authors spend much time considering that.

That said - it does take a lot of parallels without obvious points of difference to produce this sort of reaction. MWagner, I wouldn't be too worried. You can take a lot of the same influences as someone and make something very different if you put the thought in.

 

[tinkerdan]

You know
All these possibilities of parallels://

I think we could blame this on Schrodinger.