So I’m being plagiarized

And very, very badly too.

It’s my Grimm series and the chick didn’t even attempt to change the series any.

 

Unless you call changing the names changing it.

 

Greta?  She’s now GRETTA.

Rip?  He’s RYP.

Will?  It’s WYLL.

Ren became RENN.

Sigh.

 

The blurbs…

 

Her blurb

This is the 1st book of this Series. Gretta is from the fairy tales we all heard as a child but her life was not the way it was told in the books. She is given a choice and with that choice she must fight demons for eternity unless she changes her mind. She is given an assignment that only she can do but she runs into Ryp who she has a past with. Will the love they both have for each other distract them from their work or will it strengthen it. Read more to find out.

 

 




 

My blurb:

Greta didn’t get her happy ending her first time around. And now that she’s a Grimm—special kind of guardian angel and official ass-kicker in the paranormal world—romance is hard to find. Besides, there’s only ever been one man who made her heart race, and the fact that he did scared her right out of his arms. Now Rip is back. And just in time too, because Greta needs his help.

On a mission he knows is going to test all of his strengths and skills, the last person Rip expected to see is the one woman who broke his heart. Working together seems to be their only hope. But, when faced with a danger neither of them anticipated, the question is, how will they face the danger to their hearts—assuming they survive, of course.

Her blurb

Cindy and Renn are sent to a sex club to take out the head Succubus or Incubus that are changing people into their drones. Mike is sent by Wyll to take over Renn’s place. Mike and Cindy have a very interesting past together. Will they both be able to patch things up and become what was destined for them over 1000 years ago or will they just stay tormented by their past. Read to see if they will ever get their happily ever after ending.

FYI-this ‘Cindy’ character is Cinderella.  She’s Cinderella.
My blurb

Elle spent years trying to get over her so-called Prince Charming, and she’s finally getting the hang of it. A Grimm—a guardian angel with unique gifts—she spends her nights trolling for demons and kicking ass, and lately, her days have been spent with her on-and-off-again lover, Ren, a fellow Grimm. But fate has other plans in store for Elle, plans that include Michael, the prince from her youth who broke her heart.

“What do you choose…live for her? Or would you rather die?” That was the choice Michael was given all those years ago. Although he knew she’d never forgive him, when Michael was given the chance to become a Grimm, he took it. Still, he isn’t so sure Elle needs him in her life. With a lover at her side and a mission before her, Elle looks like she’s doing just fine without him.

But the not-so-charming prince isn’t going to back off that easily…not if there’s a chance she might need him again. He’d do anything to save her. Kill for her, live for her, die for her…

 

So. Well. Um.  I dunno what to say.  I’m on vacation and I spent half of a very beautiful drive messing with this crap, emailing Nicole (as much as I could with an iPhone) and searching (again, as much as I could.)

I’m irritated.  Yes.  I’m baffled.  Yes.  This, plain and simply, confuses me.

This isn’t writing.

My 12 yr old knows this isn’t writing.  Granted, she also writes, maybe that’s why.  Okay, my 9 yr old gets it. Yes, I asked.  And yes, maybe it’s an unfair thing to throw up there since I drill it into their heads they are not to take somebody else’s work as their own.

But writing is a creative endeavor.   You take an idea, you put your own twist into it, your own energy, you make it your own.  That’s writing.

This?  I dunno.

It’s…well.  It’s nothing.  For her, at least.  She did no work.  She can’t claim credit for this-she doesn’t truly understand what it’s like to create a book and know she did it.  When people read it and love it and tell her?  It’s not her idea they love.  It’s mine.  So what is she getting?  A weird sort of attention, I guess.  And how sad is that?

For those who don’t quite get the idea of plagiarism, the definition:

From the Encarta World English Dictionary

1.
stealing somebody’s work or idea: the process of copying another person’s idea or written work and claiming it as original
2.
something plagiarized: a piece of written work or an idea that somebody has copied and claimed as his or her own

 

So, taking somebody’s idea and claiming it.

If you get confused and think…but you didn’t write the Grimm Fairy Tales, Shiloh. First, many of the Grimm stories can be traced back a very long time.  Also, my books are based on ideas from the Grimm.  But there’s no confusing my stories with the Grimm.  I very clearly bastardized things and I’ve also given credit to the Brothers.

This lady claimed she had written this ‘grimm’ series, that she had created this butt-kicking guardian angel, Gretta, Ryp, Wyll, etc, etc.  She didn’t.  I did.

If a person wants to write and can’t see the difference, there is a problem.  She posted somewhere she was using other books as a guide.  A writer doesn’t use books as guides.  A writer’s guide is her imagination.  If a writer doesn’t have that?  She’s not a writer.  (Or he.)

Anyway.  I emailed bookrix.  I’ve emailed booksie.  I’ve contacted the legal departments at my pubs and yes, I’m putting this up on my blog because this isn’t the sort of thing I ignore.  I’ll also be dealing with the headaches of putting up google alerts for things like this in the future.

I worked pretty damn hard on my books.  You want to be a writer?  Then write your own stories.  Leave my stuff alone.

 

Update… BTW, I did hear from the woman.  She’s said she’ll stop and I’m hoping that’s the case.  I’m also hoping she’ll realize the difference between creating and stealing.

 

 

20 Replies to “So I’m being plagiarized”

  1. Thank you so much for posting this. What this woman has done is very wrong! I plan to tell everyone I know so every writer can be aware of her. I don’t know how she can look at herself in the mirror or sleep at night. I wish you the best in your writing. I hope revealing her will make her stop.

  2. Holy fracking yikes! I’m so sorry you had to deal with this. And I wish this was an isolated case. ::sigh::
    You deserve a drink

  3. How crazy is this?! I’m sorry this happened to you. I really hope it didn’t ruin your vacation. *hugs*

  4. I can’t even wrap my head around this. I just, I don’t know where to begin. I’ve heard of some incredible things being done for attention, but this? How does a person do this and…nevermind.

    I’m sorry that this impacted your vacation. I hope you’re able to get back to enjoying your family after the emails and it’s all resolved quickly.

    Hugs,

    ~Xakara

  5. I would like to know who she is, so that I can keep an eye on her. Hate to have her steal someone else’s work while we’re not looking. Mine even!

  6. Shit, when will they stop this? How stupid do these people think we are? Hugs, baby, I bet you were stressed double time with this.

  7. I appreciate the support, guys, but this isn’t the sort of thing I’d let ruin a family trip. Family is first and foremost. In the end, I can’t even be as pissed as some people would probably think. This was just too pitiful.

    As I mentioned, the woman did email, she removed the stuff, she apologized and I can let this go.

  8. Wow.
    First, I’m glad you’re not letting this get in the way of you having fun on your vacation. You’ve got some spirit to be able to pull yourself away from that one, take a deep breath, and continue on (annoyed, no doubt, but undeterred).
    Second, that sucks. When people think they can plagarize – and get away with it – it boggles the mind. Why would you even want to take credit for someone else’s ideas? Wouldn’t you want them to be your own? I would think she’d find it hard to take pride in a story that wasn’t hers.
    I’m glad she’s removed the stuff and that you can let it go! Enjoy your trip!

  9. Ugh, this woman is just incorrigible…
    Your book is also up on Google Books, if you haven’t seen it already. I did a quick search for a snippet of the story (that didn’t have names, so it was less likely to be altered) and it came up on Booksie, fiction-ebooks, and getfreebooks.com (which is hosted by Google Docs, apparently or something).

    I hope you get this sorted… I’ve seen notices about this woman by at least three other authors and it’s disgusting that she would do something this blatant. And even after she’s called out on it, she defends herself!

    I hope you get this sorted… the story seems really good, and you deserve full credit for it, not to have it tarnished by some wannabe.

  10. Shiloh–Her blurbs are TERRIBLE. Talk about outright THEFT of your ideas. I hope she DOES stop…or at least others recognize that she STOLE your stories. Best wishes that you are able to shut her down ASAP.

  11. @ Rose May–Years ago, one New York Times Best Selling Author plagiarized ANOTHER NYT Best Selling Author,,,and the plagiarist was supposed to be the victim’s friend. Readers online compared the books, and reported that fact. The Victim collected all the proof, and sued the CRIMINAL ( and won that suit).

  12. Hey Shiloh!
    Sorry to hear about your “thieving” problems. you’re a better person than I am. I would be pressing charges on whoever steals from me. Especially if it’s the same person stealing from other Authors too.

    BTW, your Vacay-Photos are very nice…Thanks for sharing!!

  13. I saw her handy work over at Moira Rogers, too. She is wacky! Her explaination is so lame. I hope someone makes an example of her because this can’t be allowed to happen. Good luck and I hope she really has stopped.

  14. *shakes head at the woman* There really aren’t words for this sort of thing. The sad thing is she’s probably genuinely shocked at being called a thief.

    So glad it didn’t ruin the holiday though.

  15. I wouldn’t let her off the hook so quickly. If everyone accepts her apology and dismisses her as pitiful, she’ll do it again.

  16. Hey there. Sorry to hear about the theft. I’m so glad you caught it.

    I’m the head librarian at a site called elfwood.com, and your thief has posted a bunch of plagiarized stories based on Nora Roberts’s work on our site. We have a zero tolerance policy and will remove them, but we always notify the authors whose work was stolen as well. Do you know if anyone has contacted Nora Roberts about it?

  17. @Angela, Yes… I believe she’s been made aware. 🙂

    @KB, well, for me, once I’m offered an apology and I see the person at least attempting to make amends, ‘letting them off the hook’ is something I do. If I decide to let brew and obsess over this-and I would-then I stop writing, I stop producing…and in a way, she wins. Because I’m not creating. And I’m not trying to be dismissive or anything, but most writers (and those who WANT to write) tend to take a great deal of…well, pride when we get praised. Not in the arrogance-sort of pride, but we like to hear our work is appreciated. If we were peacocks, our tails would all big and fanned out, so to speak, when we get that praise.

    As a writer, I’d say one of the worst things you can say about a writer-or in her case, a wannabe, is call them pitiful.

    As somebody who is probably far more proud than I should be, aside from writing, that last thing I want from anybody is pity. It’s humiliating.

    It’s not about patting and stroking and saying, ‘oh the poor thing.’ If that’s the best she can, it’s sad. Very sad.

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