Forum: Story Ideas

Of course, you would need to read the story (which I strongly recommend) and would want to get permission from rlfj.

As long as it's a similar theme (i.e. you change the names of the characters and locations), there's no need to seek permission, as story ideas aren't copyrightable. Copyrights only cover the actual text used in a given story.

That said, it's good form to credit the original author, just so anyone reading can seek out the original. That way, both the new and original author gain attention from the posting, so they both benefit (and profit if the material is published). That's where story credits (after found in a book's dedication or acknowledgements section) comes in.

Of course, if you acknowledge the original author, you'd then need to link to the original 60 Minutes report, which would need a link to the original article, which all quickly spiral out of control as the reader is sent searching out link after link, never getting around to reading your new story. :(

Just teasing, a simple credit for the initial idea with a link (reference) to the first story so readers can find it if they want is plenty. :)