Tim’s answer to “My question is: Did Stephen King plagiarise "Elevation" from my own novel "Helium" (Gollancz, 1997)…” > Likes and Comments
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Speaking hypothetically, someone wishing to steal my story could well have done a little research, seen I'm inactive for many years, obscure novel by obscure author ... it's worth a punt, isn't it? "How much money can I make here for virtually no work? A million dollars? How much of that can I lose?"
A million dollars is probably about right for a world famous author. Already in the bank.
Way too many similarities for this to be anything but outright intellectual property theft. To not only take someone else's concept (fairly unique in its own right) but also their major plot points clearly crosses the line.
The question I have is did Stephen King the author "adapt" Tim Earnshaw's novel or was this the work of some hack working under the auspices of the Stephen King, Inc. brand that merely has King's writing credit (like most big name writing franchises these days).
Either way, Earnshaw deserves some royalty money here and a "based on the novel by" credit, especially given the motion picture deal in play.
Unless this is sheer coincidence - and the chapter title similarity seems to blow that possibility out of the water - then there seems to be a question to answer here: has plagiarism taken place?
Furthermore, King's protagonist is Carey, whilst Earnshaw's is Gary. I find that curious to say the least. What are the chances of that being coincidental?
We need answers.
There's nothing I can, or could, do. Plagiarism is not a legal term - the relevant law is copyright infringement, which is heavily weighted against the plaintiff and stands little chance of success, especially against a writer who has both form in this area and limitless legal funds at his disposal.
The only feedback I've had from King is a statement through his agent, stating he's never heard of the book or read it. This could even be true - I imagine he has a team of researchers and interns working for him - the man is a billion-dollar business, not an unknown writer like me - and one of these could well have suggested the story to him, without mentioning its source, leaving him absolutely untouchable. Whatever else he is (apart from being a massive disappointment to me as a person - something that's not going to cause him any lack of sleep) he is not stupid.
I wish that the thousands of King fans who enjoyed his version of the story would read mine. Even a few hundred would be nice. I'd settle for a handful. But it's not going to happen.
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Speaking hypothetically, someone wishing to steal my story could well have done a little research, seen I'm inactive for many years, obscure novel by obscure author ... it's worth a punt, isn't it? "How much money can I make here for virtually no work? A million dollars? How much of that can I lose?"A million dollars is probably about right for a world famous author. Already in the bank.
Way too many similarities for this to be anything but outright intellectual property theft. To not only take someone else's concept (fairly unique in its own right) but also their major plot points clearly crosses the line.The question I have is did Stephen King the author "adapt" Tim Earnshaw's novel or was this the work of some hack working under the auspices of the Stephen King, Inc. brand that merely has King's writing credit (like most big name writing franchises these days).
Either way, Earnshaw deserves some royalty money here and a "based on the novel by" credit, especially given the motion picture deal in play.
Unless this is sheer coincidence - and the chapter title similarity seems to blow that possibility out of the water - then there seems to be a question to answer here: has plagiarism taken place?Furthermore, King's protagonist is Carey, whilst Earnshaw's is Gary. I find that curious to say the least. What are the chances of that being coincidental?
We need answers.
There's nothing I can, or could, do. Plagiarism is not a legal term - the relevant law is copyright infringement, which is heavily weighted against the plaintiff and stands little chance of success, especially against a writer who has both form in this area and limitless legal funds at his disposal.The only feedback I've had from King is a statement through his agent, stating he's never heard of the book or read it. This could even be true - I imagine he has a team of researchers and interns working for him - the man is a billion-dollar business, not an unknown writer like me - and one of these could well have suggested the story to him, without mentioning its source, leaving him absolutely untouchable. Whatever else he is (apart from being a massive disappointment to me as a person - something that's not going to cause him any lack of sleep) he is not stupid.
I wish that the thousands of King fans who enjoyed his version of the story would read mine. Even a few hundred would be nice. I'd settle for a handful. But it's not going to happen.
And yes he would sue you if it were the other way round.