Plagiarism

What is plagiarism?

Taking someone’s ideas or work and advertising it as your own is plagiarism. It’s a violation of copyright. Plagiarism isn’t always as simple as copying and pasting an entire story word-for-word. Just like plagiarists, plagiarism comes in many shapes and forms. Here are some forms:

• Copying the original plot and events of a story and re-arranging them in your own story
• Translating a story writen by another person to another language and passing it off as being your own work
• Copying singular, original quotes and passing them as your own
• Character names, book titles, and tropes cannot be claimed

Why does Plagiarism matter?

Plagiarism infringes the hard work and time authors invest in creating their story. Even if you copy a story and publish it for free, it is still illegal and may result in legal action taken against you by the writer. You cannot translate or distribute any story you don’t own or have explicit consent to handle, and you also cannot take anyone’s ideas and pass them as your own.

I think someone has been plagiarized

If you think someone has been plagiarized, please message them privately and inform them of your suspicion. Only the original copyright owner of a work or the authorized representative of the copyright owner can take legal action against an allegedly plagarizing work.

I’ve been plagiarized. What do I do?

Only the original copyright owner of a work or the authorized representative of the copyright owner can submit an official DMCA takedown request.

First, do your research of what plagiarism is and don’t be afraid of asking for a second opinion. You can search the Plagiarism forums for more information, but make sure to not name-shame by pointing who is allegedly plagiarizing.

It’s important to not act on emotion. We understand how frustrating it can be when we’re told or we suspect that someone took our ideas, but wrongfully blaming someone can be harmful to their reputation.

If a story violates Lutionary’s Content Guidelines or Terms of Service by infringing copyright, it will be removed.

If you’re ready to make a report, email us at hello@lutionary.com and let us investigate.

How do I check if I’ve been plagiarized?

Plagiarism can be hard to track. Character names and locations are changed, and sometimes only ideas are taken. The easiest form of plagirarism to track down is direct plagiarism, where word-for-word was copied and pasted.

To do this, go to Google.com and search for a unique quote in your story that does not contain character names or locations. Make sure to enclose the sentence with quotes, and don’t be afraid of searching longer parts like a paragraph.