I watch TV just like everyone else. I also surf the internet, read, and do everything else that one does online.
This how I, and probably many other writers, get our topics, and sometimes get our inspiration. They say no computer is an island. Well, neither are writers. Instead, we are like sponges, soaking up what is going on around us. Never tell a friend you know is a writer about your latest dating disaster. It might wind up in a book.
But that is why there is that disclaimer at the beginning of every book, electronic or print. The following people, places, and events are a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real people, places or events is completely coincidental.
So, when you read a book, think about how much in the book is something that is a part of the author’s life or the life of someone he or she knows.
Then also, there is the little matter of imitation. Every so often, you hear about someone in Hollywood filing a lawsuit against someone, claiming they “stole” an idea of theirs, usually by pointing out the many similarities between their idea and the idea being used by another.
Unfortunately, there are no unique ideas. Everyone comes up with the same idea at some point in time. The difference is in how you use it.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. You just have to be careful, as a writer, with just how much imitation there is, and what exactly you are imitating. Right now I’m working on an idea about a US Senator who hires a beautiful secretary. Shades of Scandal? You bet. I’ve seen the series and love the chemistry between the characters, but I could never successfully imitate that chemistry.
But as a writer, the best part is that I can create my own chemistry between two completely new characters. So I create. But I’m also careful not to imitate too closely.
See you next time!
Peace, out. Namaste.
Jon Bradbury is the published writer of eleven ebooks, including Worst Kept Secret, The Professor, and Sugar Daddy, and is currently hard at work madly producing more. He can be contacted by following his Twitter feed @JonB1969
June 14th, 2013
Jon Bradbury 
