Copyright confusion

[shiryuu]

Hi all,

I am trying to understand more about copyright.

Is using concepts to develop a story considered copyright infringement?

For instance: Using the cosmere concept of shards - each having own intent and unique powers, to develop a story.

[Mestiv]

That depends. If your setting will be significantly different from cosmere despite having godlike beings with intents, then I think you're fine. But if you keep the names and the whole realmatic theory, then you're in trouble.

After all, many authors have concepts that have already been used by someone. It just has to be super generic like elves and dwarves, or you need to be distinctive.

I'm no lawyer, so take my opinion as an opinion, not legal advice

[Eerongal]

As above, this is prefaced with "I am not a lawyer", and as such, you should not take this as legal advice.

That said, you need to make a distinction of what you're referring to, trademark or copyright.

In general, copyright is more focused on the copying and distribution of some particular work. That is, you're disallowed from distributing copies of someones work without their permission. Copyright generally doesn't extend to "ideas".

Trademark, however, protects specific implementations of ideas and thoughts. That is, it will protect names of characters, places, etc. so long as they represent your "brand"

 

As a general thing, you cannot copyright or trademark the vague notion of a story. Ideas such as "one main god being splintered into other gods" can't be protected. "Adonalsium", the "Cosmere", etc. probably can't be directly used within your story, but the same concepts they embody totally can. Note that this doesn't protect you from people claiming your ripped off the idea from anyone else.

 

All that being said, the most important thing to do, if you plan on publishing your story, would be to check with your local laws, and probably confer with a copyright lawyer.

[Fifth of Daybreak]

21 hours ago, Eerongal said:

As a general thing, you cannot copyright or trademark the vague notion of a story. Ideas such as "one main god being splintered into other gods" can't be protected. "Adonalsium", the "Cosmere", etc. probably can't be directly used within your story, but the same concepts they embody totally can. Note that this doesn't protect you from people claiming your ripped off the idea from anyone else.

Just to give another example of this concept, Wizards of the Coast originally wanted to trademark their trading card game as simply 'Magic' but they were denied because it was too generic a term to have a trademark, so that's why the game is called 'Magic:The Gathering."

 

Eerongal's explanation fits with everything I understand about it as a layperson.