fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #5943 ]

⌈ Secret Post #5943 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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06. [SPOILERS for Triangle Strategy and Devil Survivor]

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07. [WARNING for homophobia, physical assault/violence]

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08. [WARNING for nudity/non-con scene]

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09. [WARNING for discussion of rape]

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

DA

The saddest thing about this is titles are not copyrightable. (Too many are 1 or 2 words and it's just not feasible.)

I don't believe for a moment a major publishing company came up with a title and didn't do a basic google or title list search to see if someone else was already using it and missed Nora Roberts. Really, it's a halfway decent marketing tactic to use a similar/same title as another book especially for google or amazon searches. Which means Adeyemi probably didn't email her agent/marketing team either. Oops.

I don't know... I think the saddest thing is thinking that "Blood and Bone" was so creative that the only way that someone else could have come up with that title was to steal your thoughts. I guarantee you that there are multiple fanfics titled some variation of "Blood and Bone" in zines that were printed before Adeyemi was born.

It speaks of a person with very little experience as a reader, but who just decided to write a book and somehow won the publishing lottery.

Go read her wiki page. If it's the same as the last time I read it, you've hit the nail on the head.

I had similar feels when I read the City of Brass's page "I started this as a world building exercise." Me: "it shows."

IIRC, that was because Nora Robert's book hadn't been published yet, so it's not like they could've Googled and spotted it on Amazon.com. Mind you, Roberts had written AND sent it in to her publisher a year before Adeyemi's book. But honestly, a publishing company isn't going to be too worried about doing a thorough search to make sure their titles are unique, because it's a given that they won't be. They'll obviously try to avoid being too close to a famous work, but "blood and bone" is not a unique phrase. Publishers know that there are going to be titles that sound similar, and it's unavoidable and not a big deal. It's 100% not plagiarism. Adeyemi didn't know* this extremely basic fact and she didn't ask her agent or editor, she just went straight to social media to tattle and whine about it.

Even once she found out she was wrong, she dragged her heels in apologizing, didn't take down her accusation tweet and basically did everything she could to NOT publicly appear remorseful for being so trigger happy in accusing another author of plagiarism. I have zero respect for her because of that. It'd be embarrassing and stupid to make the mistake of not understanding you can't plagiarize a title, but it's plain shitty to make that mistake and then not own up to it until the internet yells so loudly you have to kinda sorta apologize.

* Or thought she could accuse a big name author for publicity and get away with it. This is where my cynicism comes into play, because if Adeyemi could've scored the hit she was going for, then "plucky up and coming female POC author fights back against mean ol' rich white lady whole stole her amazing idea" would've earned her tons of internet cookies and sympathy. You'd have to be stupid AND dishonest to attempt such a thing, but people can be stupid and dishonest.

SA

I wasn't sure of the entire timeline. It also depends on when books go up for pre-sale too. So, books can go up on goodreads and amazon at least a YEAR in advance before they're published to get those sales. Now, I don't know exact dates for any of this, so I won't speculate. But you're right, publishers don't care.

Having read Children of Blood and Bone, and SEEING Adeyemi's response to all this, she also just comes off as a person who doesn't want to listen even if they do ask. Because, that book needed major edits and massive world building. (She needed more than a magic system. She needed... a world. Make me believe in fantasy Africa!) But she also had a TV or Movie deal optioned her mouth also derailed. (She wanted control over the scripts/writing room. Haha, no.)

You have every right to be cynical.

Ugh, that's just disappointing. I really don't like saying this, but while I love how more POC fantasy authors are emerging and the non-European fantasy genre is expanding, some of the authors just aren't very good. They get a lot of mileage out of being the first wave at a time when publishers are keen to expand the genre, but it seems like the bar is really low.

I'm not surprised that Adeyemi is how you described, because that's how she comes off on her first tweet when she made the initial accusation - like she invented sliced bread, her shit don't stink, etc. etc. so OF COURSE this Nora Roberts beyotch must be trying to steal her genius, totally unique title. The whole "shamelessly profit" remark was particularly laughable, like oh yeah, I'm sure Nora Roberts envies your fame and riches, n00b author. She clearly doesn't know how publishing works and she ought to be embarrassed by her ignorance and behavior, but lacks the sense to be.

[ SECRET POST #5943 ]

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