Hi all, just a warning about sharing work. I am in a writers group at my local library, and as my novel is in the final stages of "our" editing, before letting an editor near it, I let anyone in the group who wanted to, take a look through dropbox. The week before last the young woman who runs our group, pushed a self published book over the desk for me to look at. later she said I think you need to take a look at the story. Then said I don't think she has done it deliberately. She was being kind. My story had been woven into a quite sexualy explicit story which she had told us someone had told her to make it less explicit. Not only making it less explicit she has woven into it a large part of my plot which is so clear that when I spoke with the young woman who passed me the book to read said, I know I'm sorry she has stolen your work. So people, don't trust anyone with your work, I have no idea what to do. Regards Paul.
Upsetting most certainly. A salutary lesson to us all. Thanks.
Thanks to all for your replies. I think as you say Wilhelmina unless she has a runaway success it is not worth worrying about. I wanted to let people know what can happen. The writing group is a help and I have decided to let sleeping dogs scratch their own fleas. It if heavily sexualised and the part she has used from my book was there to bring something different into her dirty book. She had been told to tone the book down and did but she needed something different to give it something more interesting than sex. And I hope this doesn't sound like sour grapes but it is rough, and I am being kind.
Again thank you for your support and as said be warned.
Thanks and regards Paul
Paul, so sorry this happened to you!
All human relationships carry some risk of being abused. I wouldn't reject a writers' group just because somebody abuses it in this way. You must get a lot of support and positive feedback from other members, no? Though I imagine that if I were a literary thief, joining a writers' group would be a wonderful way to poach ideas!
My advice:
a) Bring the mattere up before all the members and get them to sling this thief out on her ear (before it happens to them)... unless she proves that she has withdrawn the book from publication and offers her apologies.
b) Go ahead with your own original. If YOU have a success and she claims plagiarism, you have witnesses who would be willing to back you up in court. If SHE has a best-seller, you can decide whether to take legal action.
As far as I understand the issue, you CAN'T copyright an idea, so - unless she's stolen actual dialogue or other writing directly quoting - you're not going to get redress. But I'm no expert, check this out if you need to. (Unless she has a runaway success, are you going to need to?)