Writing Stack Exchange
Writing Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [plagiarism]

Plagiarism is the use of the ideas and words of another passed off as one's own. Issues here include similarity of work, theme, and characters. Plagiarism is not always a crime, but in academia and industry it is seen as a serious ethical offence. Cases of plagiarism can also constitute copyright infringement.

No universally adopted definition of academic plagiarism exists, making it quite hard to pin down. However, plagiarism is the use of the ideas and words of another passed off as one's own. Issues here include similarity of work, theme, and characters. Plagiarism is not always a crime, but in academia and industry it is seen as a serious ethical offence. Cases of plagiarism can also constitute copyright infringement.

Within academia, plagiarism (by students, by professors, or by researchers) is considered "academic dishonesty" (or in some cases "academic fraud"). Offenders are usually subject to academic censure, which may include expulsion.

Plagiarism is not the same as copyright infringement. While both terms may apply to a particular act, they are different concepts, and false claims of authorship may constitute plagiarism regardless of whether the material is protected by copyright.

According to U.S. law, the expression of original ideas is considered intellectual property and is protected by copyright laws.

According to Bela Gipp, academic plagiarism encompasses:

"The use of ideas, concepts, words, or structures without appropriately acknowledging the source to benefit in a setting where originality is expected."

— Citation-based Plagiarism Detection: Detecting Disguised and Cross-language Plagiarism using Citation Pattern Analysis.1

According to Wikiepdia, Teddi Fishman's definition of plagiarism abridges Gipp's and defines five elements characteristic of plagiarism. By this definition, plagiarism occurs when someone:

  1. Uses words, ideas, or work products
  2. Attributable to another identifiable person or source
  3. Without attributing the work to the source from which it was obtained
  4. In a situation in which there is a legitimate expectation of original authorship
  5. In order to obtain some benefit, credit, or gain which need not be monetary

Further reading

129 questions
37
votes
9 answers

Can I write a book of my D&D game?

I am a long time Dungeon Master of Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder. My games run in a custom world of my own making. However, I utilise a lot of the traditional lore and races of D&D. I'm quite proud of one of my current storylines and have been…
linksassin
  • 4,200
  • 3
  • 24
  • 53
21
votes
13 answers

My friend says that the story of my novel sounds too similar to Harry Potter

I always wanted to write a book, and finally after so many years, I started writing one. But when I told my friend about the idea of my story... he said that it sounds too similar to Harry Potter. I don't know what similarities he found. My…
Hasan Askari
  • 311
  • 1
  • 2
  • 4
17
votes
8 answers

How do I know which elements I can use from the work which orginally inspired me?

I recently read the Blood on the Stars series by Jay Allan and really enjoyed the idea of a post-Golden Age human civilization that has splintered into factions and is now at war with itself. I really want to explore this theme further…
jwil408
  • 171
  • 5
16
votes
10 answers

Do I need to cite ChatGPT in published writing?

If I use ChatGPT to generate the initial prose for, say, a 2 paragraph introduction (where I modify and rephrase a little) do I need to cite it or somehow give credit? This article implies "no" World's largest academic publisher says ChatGPT can't…
CJ Cornell
  • 446
  • 1
  • 4
  • 12
15
votes
6 answers

Borrowing Characters

Would it be a violation of copyright and/or plagiarism to “borrow” a character from another novel? For example, I have a short story and want to include as a side character Ender (of Ender’s Game). I would preserve Ender’s name, family, personality,…
LN6595
  • 251
  • 2
  • 8
14
votes
2 answers

How can I know that I'm not plagiarizing?

New to the web. I just recently started to write again. I won a few highschool prizes writing short stories. Around the same time, I began to play Roleplaying games and to write different stories for different games. Lately, I have been thinking…
Tiklis
  • 251
  • 2
  • 8
13
votes
4 answers

How can you prevent your work from getting stolen?

I have written a book recently, and I want to share it so it can be reviewed, but I am worried over that it might get stolen if I do so. So is there a way, like a watermark or signature, to protect it, showing that the work belongs to me?
SirDancealot
  • 141
  • 1
  • 6
13
votes
3 answers

How much is considered plagiarism?

I'm aware that some fictional work is loosely based on others, consciously or not. For instance, Lord of the Rings has some common elements with the Saga of Nibelung from the old Norse traditions. Well, I'm writing my own story that has some common…
Chaotic
  • 706
  • 4
  • 17
11
votes
2 answers

Can my work be stolen if I post excerpts and ideas on critique sites?

Participating in writing-related sites (for example on critique sites) sometimes involves describing a plot problem or sharing an excerpt from my work. I'm usually vague because of the fear that someone might steal my ideas. I already know that…
Nate_Writes
  • 269
  • 1
  • 6
10
votes
8 answers

How does one avoid inevitable influences being obvious when writing something like superheroes?

So I have been debating writing a story idea I have had swimming in my head for a long time. I love superhero comics, and I love the more character driven aspects of the stories. I have been tinkering in my mind with an idea for a story like this,…
Scott.Bell
  • 211
  • 2
  • 8
10
votes
5 answers

Would it be plagiarism if you use a changed scene?

If I read someone else's scene that describes a situation in my own work if adapted to fit my characters and plot, would it constitute plagiarism if I so use it?
slashmais
  • 677
  • 4
  • 15
9
votes
5 answers

When does inspiration across artforms become plagiarism

eSpoilers for Green Book in the E.g. section I listen to a lot of music, and when I come up with stories, I often use songs as a source of inspiration. However, what I was wondering is are songs and other artforms protected the same as writing and…
P.Lord
  • 191
  • 2
9
votes
4 answers

How to assemble recipes without plagiarism?

How does one collect and compile recipes for publication in an ethical way? Some cohorts want me to help build a website of culinary recipes, and their plan for content is to rely entirely (initially at least) on data scraped from a competitor…
Jellicle
  • 193
  • 1
  • 5
8
votes
3 answers

How do I determine if a paper has been plagiarized?

Is there a service which allows you to check if a paper/article was plagiarized? At this moment, I use Google to check if some papers are plagiarized or not, but I think that are other smarter methods
dole doug
  • 181
  • 3
8
votes
3 answers

I'm afraid of [accidental] plagiarism

I've recently written a screenplay about an alien invasion. A friend immediately commented that he found similarities (some general ideas, plot devices) with Half-Life 2: Ep 2, which I haven't even played - and from what he tells me, the…
ggambetta
  • 1,707
  • 13
  • 23
1
2 3
…
8 9