MOVED from MAIN - "sequels" to the classics

[susanmcgee48176]

 Very
> different from writing works based on the characters created by a
> living author. JKR appears to be pretty tolerant of Internet fanfic,
> but I don't know what would happen to an author or publisher who 
dared
> to publish, say, "The Short, Unhappy Life of Severus Snape."
> 

Yes, Ms. Rowling is incredibly tolerant of fan fiction. Many authors 
will not allow fan fiction. 

M. Z. Bradley had a bad experience after allowing fan fiction for 
many years, and as a result many authors such as Mercedes Lackey will 
not allow fan fiction...

MZB quote:

". . .While in the past I have allowed fans to 'play in my yard,' I 
was forced to stop that practice last summer when one of the fans 
wrote a story, using my world and my characters, that overlapped the 
setting I was using for my next _Darkover_ novel. Since she had sent 
me a copy of her fanzine, and I had read it, my publisher will not 
publish my novel set during that time period, and I am now out 
several years' work, as well as the cost of inconvenience of having a 
lawyer deal with this matter. 

"Because this occurred just as I was starting to read for this year's 
_Darkover_ anthology, that project was held up for more than a month 
while the lawyer drafted a release to accompany any submissions and a 
new contract, incorporating the release. I do not know at present if 
I shall be doing any more _Darkover_ anthologies. 


"Let this be a warning to other authors who might be tempted to be 
similarly generous with their universes, I know now why Arthur Conan 
Doyle refused to allow anyone to write about Sherlock Holmes. I 
wanted to be more accomodating, but I don't like where it has gotten 
me. It's enough to make anyone into a misanthrope." 

It's wonderful that JKR continues to be so generous, given the 
possible problems and pitfalls.

Susan