Few Writers Understand Plagiarism
I was reminded this week about how little writers understand plagiarism, what it is, who does it, and how serious it is.
Do nice people plagiarize? Sure! Some of the best and most honest people in the world plagiarize, because they “think”
they know what it means and they would never do what they “think” it is.
So, What IS Plagiarism?
Most people believe that plagiarism is someone passing off another’s entire work as their own, or taking large passages
from a copyrighted book without acknowledgment. Nope. Well, okay, that IS plagiarism, but plagiarism is so much
more than that. There are actually four types of plagiarism, as defined on the Bowdoin College website:
Direct Plagiarism
“Direct Plagiarism” is a precise transcription of any part of another’s work, whether published or not, with no quote
marks and no attribution. The new transcription appears to be the work of the plagiarist, rather than the one who
originally authored the work. “Direct Plagiarism” could occur with as little as one unique phrase or passage, such as the
example Bowdoin College gives:
Plagiarist: Long ago, when there was no written history, these islands were the home of millions of happy birds; the
resort of a hundred times more millions of fishes, sea lions, and other creatures. Here lived innumerable creatures
predestined from the creation of the world to lay up a store of wealth for the British farmer, and a store of quite another
sort for an immaculate Republican government.
Original Source: "In ages which have no record these islands were the home of millions of happy birds, the resort of a
hundred times more millions of fishes, of sea lions, and other creatures whose names are not so common; the marine
residence, in fact, of innumerable creatures predestined from the creation of the world to lay up a store of wealth for the
British farmer, and a store of quite another sort for an immaculate Republican government."
Self-Plagiarism
“Self-Plagiarism” is plagiarizing your own previous work without telling the reader that you published it previously
(and where). If you submitted it for an assignment, for example, and later wanted to use parts of your own work for
another assignment, you would need your former as well as your current teachers’ permissions. If you didn’t get it, you
could be subject to penalties for violating self-plagiarism policies. Even if such work is not done in an academic setting,
it’s a good idea to let your readers know that whatever they’re reading is a reprint. You may even get more exposure by
being honest with your readers, when they click on your links to the original work!
Mosaic Plagiarism
When a person takes a passage from another author and then looks for synonyms for the key words in that passage, in
order to change it just a little bit to avoid plagiarism … guess what, folks. That’s plagiarism! It’s also known as “patch
writing” because you patch the original sentence with a few synonyms to make it sound like different work. According
to Bowdoin College, “...this kind of paraphrasing, whether intentional or not, is academically dishonest and
punishable.”
Here’s an example of Mosaic Plagiarism from Bowdoin College:
Plagiarist: Only two years later, all these friendly Sioux were suddenly plunged into new conditions, including starvation, martial
law on all their reservations, and constant urging by their friends and relations to join in warfare against the treacherous government
that had kept faith with neither friend nor foe.
Original Source: "Contrast the condition into which all these friendly Indians are suddenly plunged now, with their condition only
two years previous: martial law now in force on all their reservations; themselves in danger of starvation, and constantly exposed to
the influence of emissaries from their friends and relations, urging them to join in fighting this treacherous government that had kept
faith with nobody--neither with friend nor with foe."
Accidental Plagiarism
According to Bowdoin college, “Accidental Plagiarism occurs when a person neglects to cite their sources, or
misquotes their sources, or unintentionally paraphrases a source by using similar words, groups of words, and/or
sentence structure without attribution.” They go on to say, “Cases of accidental plagiarism are taken as seriously as any
other plagiarism and are subject to the same range of consequences as other types of plagiarism.”
While Bowdoin College’s rules may seem harsh to some authors, they are in place to protect authors from losing the
control and benefits of their own work.
Is Plagiarism Illegal?
Most people think it is, but nope … it isn’t! It may be unethical and dishonest, but it is NOT illegal! So, does that mean
you have nothing to worry about if you plagiarize? Nope … not by a long shot. While plagiarism may be perfectly
legal, copyright infringement, which is related but distinctly different, is most definitely illegal. What’s the difference?
If a work falls under the rules of copyright, then you may get into legal trouble if you plagiarize any part of that work. If
the work is in the “public domain,” such as Cervantes’ Don Quixote, then you may plagiarize to your heart’s content
without fearing a lawsuit. I’m not advising this, because it’s STILL unethical, dishonest, and your reputation may
suffer, but it isn’t illegal.
The trouble with taking things off the internet, however, is that most written works, including Wikipedia articles, are
copyrighted. You may not be able to tell, but if you use something, you could face serious copyright infringement
lawsuits, which can result in the loss of many thousands or even millions of dollars. In my career as an editor, I once dropped a client for a small amount of plagiarism that he refused to properly cite. He laughed and said I was being too
“prissy” and that everyone copies a line or two. He wasn’t laughing six months later when he called and said, “You
won’t believe it, but I’ve just been sued for plagiarism on my first best seller! I should have listened to you!” Yes, I did
believe it, although technically, he was sued for copyright infringement, not plagiarism, for something he lifted off the
internet. Before it was over, the incident cost him $12,000, and that was getting off cheaply compared to other cases.
So Why Does “Everyone” Do It?
It sure seems like “everyone” plagiarizes, doesn’t it? Everyone is taking things off the internet and reposting them.
Everyone is lifting a few sentences to put on their blogs or in their articles, right? Wrong … not everyone. There is one
tiny group of authors who never plagiarize anything. Who are they? Do they even matter if their numbers are so tiny?
Yes, they do, because they’re the ones at the top of the heap … the ones who are making millions on their work. Most
of us will never hit their heights, but nearly all of us hope that we will, someday. You know why they don’t plagiarize?
Because they know they are targets for lawsuits. They know that people will scrutinize their works looking for ways to
make some $$. Successful authors do not, as a rule, plagiarize even one sentence. They don’t want to be bogged down
in endless hassles, endless hearings, and endless settlements that cost them time and money.
Aunt Sally or other small-potatoes writers have little to worry about, because they don’t have anything worth the bother
of suing. But does Aunt Sally or that small-potatoes writer really want to stay small forever? And how can they know
what article or book of theirs will somehow go viral and turn into an overnight sensation, as happened with my former
client? Don’t we all dream of that? The dream can easily turn into a nightmare if we have to worry about what our work
contains. And it isn’t just the book that goes viral that plagiarism hunters will scrutinize. If even ONE of your books
goes viral, plag-hunters will check EVERY SINGLE WORK YOU’VE EVER WRITTEN. With just that one success,
you’ve become “lawsuit bait” and must worry about everything you write in future OR have ever written in the past!
Authors who sell few copies for the rest of their lives will probably never have to worry about coming under the
scrutiny of lawyers or other writers. But most authors do not want to sabotage their careers or their futures by doing
something that can kill their chances of hitting the stars. They want to be known, to have their works praised … and
let’s face it … most of us would love to make a living on our writing and never sweat a 9-5 job again.
In order to get big, you have to think big. And thinking big means avoiding anything that will kill your future stardom.
It’s not just the lawsuits you have to worry about, it’s what the lawsuits generate: a loss of income, loss of reputation,
loss of prestige, and loss of future ability to write, if Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other stores drop your account and
refuse to sell your books. All of these things should be important to you now, while you’re still dreaming of that New
York Times bestseller. So don’t plagiarize … not one sentence, not one phrase. Check the examples by Bowdoin
College and arm yourself for your future success and fame.
May all your writing dreams come true!
Kathleen Cook is a retired editor and the author of more than twenty books. A former copy writer/editor for
Demand Studios, she also served as the Fictional Religion Editor for the ODP (Open Directory Project) in the late
90s. She is currently the Arizona Authors Association Editor as well as its website administrator.
