tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post1581813382072245692..comments2023-11-02T01:51:25.812-07:00Comments on Confessions of a Cafe Writer: It's All Your Fault, So There!Cliffordhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07981816941459227266noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-81839952327895447012007-02-16T04:15:00.000-08:002007-02-16T04:15:00.000-08:00I'll give you this -- I see no point in the 100s u...I'll give you this -- I see no point in the 100s upon 100s of STAR TREK and STAR WARS novels.<BR/><BR/>I once met a guy who was an avid STAR WARS reader. He read several new STAR WARS novels a month, and 100s over the years, and he still couldn't keep up.<BR/><BR/>I thought, what a colossal waste of reading time! He could have been reading old classics, or new voices, but he instead wasted his precious reading time immersed in the "STAR WARS universe," reading its mind-numbingly epic "history" as though it were Gibbon's FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.Thomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06426225673638400368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-34134797868620452452007-02-15T10:07:00.000-08:002007-02-15T10:07:00.000-08:00Thomas,Reading through your list kinda reaffirmed ...Thomas,<BR/><BR/>Reading through your list kinda reaffirmed my beliefs, as none of those sequels and reiaginings was really necessary. Do we really need one more twist on the Scrooge story? Would the world of art be any less full and vibrant if we didn't have The Brides of Dracula? (which I enjoyed, by the way, but it's nothing to write home about) If these creators had worked on their own creations, rather than trying to piggy-back on the works of others (often, for money's sake -- and probably why the corporations green-lighted their projects), would they have more likely to have created something lasting?<BR/><BR/>I think A Christmas Carol is a great example -- the thousands of remakes, from movies to television sictcom rehases, range from the mediocre to the insipid. If they all disappeared tomorrow, we'd probably be better off.<BR/><BR/>And I'm all for funneling the profits from an author's work to charity once the copyright expires. Which means a lot of their work will disappear in a commercial sense, but become available in digital format for all to enjoy.<BR/><BR/>Look at it this way -- I think it would be a shame if the early vampire novels of Anne Rice disappeared, but I can't think of a single Dracula sequel (and there have been a gajillion) that would really be missed. The closest would probably be Bram Stoker's Dracula -- for its artistry -- but that one is fair in my assessment as it's trying to be faithful to Bram Stoker's work and is not a sequel.<BR/><BR/>I think it's telling that none of the sequels to dead authors work has ever (in my mind) made it to that transcendent space where entertainment becomes art.<BR/><BR/>The work of others should be the inspiration for your own, no more, no less. Yeah, I know that's pretty extreme attitude, but I totally believe it. It's hard enough for the original author to create a worthy sequel, and nearly impossible for someone else...Cliffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07981816941459227266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-26132773863154469012007-02-15T05:26:00.000-08:002007-02-15T05:26:00.000-08:00Sure, there a many lame sequels. But after a whil...Sure, there a many lame sequels. But after a while, doesn't a story or character become part of our common culture? And shouldn't authors be free to comment on the culture through re-writes and sequels? To reuse old characters in new works with new characters? Say, one of your own characters meeting Sherlock Holmes or Ebenezer Scrooge?<BR/><BR/>Think of how often A CHRISTMAS CAROL has been re-written and re-imagined. Or Nicholas Meyer's SEVEN PERCENT SOLUTION (I didn't much care for his Sherlock Holmes, but it was an interesting take on Holmes's cocaine habit). Ditto DRACULA and FRANKENSTEIN. Then there's WICKED, told from THE WIZARD OF OZ's wicked witch's perspective.<BR/><BR/>Eternal copyrights would not only hinder sequels, they'd also hinder remakes.<BR/><BR/>Ironically, I see intellectual property becoming both more and less onerous. New copyrights are difficult to enforce (due to new tech), yet extending the terms only benefits Big Media (and not the long-dead artists).Thomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06426225673638400368noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-39986366369601484542007-02-10T10:04:00.000-08:002007-02-10T10:04:00.000-08:00Charles,I'm definitely with you and Thomas on corp...Charles,<BR/><BR/>I'm definitely with you and Thomas on corporate intent -- they're protecting their interests. But since most writers and musician's are paid by corporations, guess who gets squeezed out of the profit equation first?<BR/><BR/>The days of getting paid for your creativity may be numbered as you say, but let's not go down without a lot of kicking and screaming.Cliffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07981816941459227266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-25437577151705099862007-02-10T09:15:00.000-08:002007-02-10T09:15:00.000-08:00The days of most creative musicians and creative w...The days of most creative musicians and creative writers making much money from their creativity would seem to be over. As for what Thomas says, I don't believe the media has the rights of the artist in mind when trying to protect copyrights, but there needs to be a middle ground.Charles Gramlichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052592247572253641noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-63658928787326009382007-02-09T23:58:00.000-08:002007-02-09T23:58:00.000-08:00Arrgh!!! I just wrote a long response and Blogger ...Arrgh!!! I just wrote a long response and Blogger ate it! Sheesh! Okay, let me summarize:<BR/><BR/>* Welcome to the site -- good seeing you here buddy!<BR/><BR/>* I think sequels to other creator's works are really really sad. If you love Dracula for instance (and sure, it's worthy of adoration), you should identify the qualities you like about the work and write your own story, create your own mythology, and make your own magic. You will never equal the original -- so why try? You could create something equally worthy, if you go down your own road.<BR/>* I think copyrights should be eternal -- there's no good reason to write a sequel to The Grapes of Wrath. Again, make your own magic.<BR/>* I didn't realize there'd been so much tinkering with copyrights/tradmarks over the years. In addition to making copyrights eternal, I think X years after a creator dies, all profits from their work should go to the arts (museums, schools, endowments, etc.) rather than the families or the corporate devils.<BR/>* All this being said, for years I tinkered with the idea of writing a sequel to Rod Serling's "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" -- it never worked, until I finally broke free and wrote my own story, inspired by the energy and intent of his work, but in no way an extension or a revision. <BR/><BR/>I will be talking to you soon! Via mobile phone, of course (:Cliffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07981816941459227266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6413407.post-60418691263108965132007-02-09T22:53:00.000-08:002007-02-09T22:53:00.000-08:00Hello Cliff,IMHO, Big Media is stifling free speec...Hello Cliff,<BR/><BR/>IMHO, Big Media is stifling free speech, and hurting artists, with too much copyright protection (i.e., extended terms, limited fair use, and trademark encroachment). I wrote about it here: http://www.hollywoodinvestigator.com/2005/pirate.htmThomashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06426225673638400368noreply@blogger.com