Though I didn’t comment on it at the time, batzulger’s semi-sequel to “Tea and Oranges” recently concluded. Originally titled “Another Number Heard From”, the story was then renamed “Ghosts in the Machine”, which I found 1) slightly less original, 2) considerably more euphonious, and 3) substantially more representative of what the story turned out to be.
As to the story itself, I can’t offer much informed feedback, for reasons that follow. “Tea and Oranges” was itself a remix of ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
jedibuttercup’s “Slayer of Interest” (Part I and Part II); though I had followed the first several episodes of Person of Interest, that had lapsed in subsequent months as I got out of the habit of watching direct television and gradually phased into following my personal subjects of interest on cached internet files, so to do the story I had to watch PoI up to the point where my own story was set; but, afterward, though somewhat intrigued, I didn’t continue to view the subsequent seasons I had missed. Since batzulger’s story is more PoI- than BtVS-focused, much of what was referenced had no immediate meaning for me. (Not that I in any way disapproved, I was just aware that there was an extra level I was missing.) I’ve read and enjoyed many of this author’s other stories, however, so I have no doubt that someone who knows more than I do about the primary fandom (Person of Interest) would have got even more pleasure out of “Ghosts in the Machine” than I did.
Another little observation, though.
Though batzulger was prudent and courteous enough to request my approval before beginning to post, I honestly can’t see that it was necessary. The only real correspondence between my story(remix) and its ‘sequel’ is the involvement between Fusco and Caridad, which in my opinion was generic enough to be a non-issue. It leads to an important point, however. Since fanfiction is by its nature derivative of works/concepts owned by other persons, the ‘ownership’ of fanfic stories/plots/concepts is … fuzzy. Technically, anything written is copyrighted at the moment of its writing, but when you’re writing about someone else’s characters/settings/ideas, the ramifications can get mind-boggling. Consequently, recognition of intellectual property rights between fanfic authors tends to operate in a kind of ‘gentleman’s agreement’. There is no real legal recourse if someone infringes, only personal recognition of boundaries with a rather vague reinforcement by community standards (as in, how much online disapproval gets expressed when someone is seen as having transgressed).
Since I already follow batzulger on Twisting the Hellmouth, even without permission I would have seen the story, read it, taken some enjoyment from it (limited by my limited PoI background), noted the Fusco/Caridad pairing, and maybe wondered if the author had even seen — much less been inspired by — my own story. That’s about as far as it would have gone.
If I had been of a more militant, prickly personality, though, I might have objected. Raised a stink. Made accusations of plagiarism. If I were a different person, the differences of my response could have gone absolutely anywhere. By making a courteous request, batzulger avoided all that. And, let’s be honest, if I had refused or even not responded, the story could have proceeded by substituting some other Slayer — canonical or OC — for Caridad, without having any real effect on that story (though batzulger’s effort nicely points back to mine, and adds some small layer of meaning for anyone who read mine).
Sometimes, being considerate and polite is all we have to work with. And sometimes, it pays.
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