Thoughts: What to Do When Your Work is Copied
I had another post planned for this spot today, but I decided to bump it into tomorrow because there is something a bit more important that I'd like to post about. I hope you won't mind.
Copyright infringement, intellectual property theft, counterfeiting, copying...whatever you want to call it, it bites the big one!
As a blogger; travelling around the web is my job. A job that has brought me face to face with more copycats than I can stomach. Today was the last straw when one of my sponsors and someone whose work I find to be exquisitely unique and lovely reached out to me to see if I had any advice to share with her regarding a seller who is copying her designs. The sadness in her letter was palpable and it broke my heart.
I'm not a lawyer and certainly don't know all the copyright laws (I still have a lot of questions myself)...but I do know that it is wrong to steal another person's ideas/designs and play them off as your own. Copying takes on so many forms (from blog layouts, product packaging, full design copies, etc) and when you see it happen or it's done to you it really hurts. And not just the original artist, but the design community at large. I really love this independent design community...but time and time again I see this sort of underhandedness go on from within the very community that should be fostering originality and inspiration amongst one another, and it really upsets me.
So, what I wanted to have in answer to my lovely sponsors plea for help was a novel of fighting words and copyright law jargon for her to use to right this wrong, but ultimately I told her what I have learned myself (yes...there are copycats of my work out there too)...and that is this:
Anyone who knows and loves your work will recognize the care and true talent that you put into creating it. Of course this doesn't really help to make it hurt any less. But it helps me to remember that imitators are simply small people without the talent to come up with their own ideas. I have been copied (in all of my businesses) countless times. Each time it does sting, but then I try to allow their wrong-doing to become the fuel for my continued growth as an "artist / designer." It's a great way (though probably not the most fun) to motivate yourself to always strive towards creating new and better things. I'm not perfect...and it is a challenge to keep my chin-up in the face of blatant copycats, but it is possible. Don't let thieves rob you of your passion for creating unique and truly wonderful work. There may be a thousand other imitators out there throughout the years...but you have to remember that YOU are the original!
And finally I want to share a favorite quote of mine that has helped me through so many tough times: "Resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die." (Carrie Fisher) So please if you've been copied or wronged, be as proactive as you feel you need to be to find resolution, but I hope you won't let frustration and anger take you down. I've been there, and it's not a pretty place to be.
So, now I will climb down from my soapbox and would love to hear from you lovely readers. What do you think about knock-offs and copying? Do you believe there is a difference between copying and inspiration? I can't wait to hear what you have to share.
*A small request: please don't use the comment section to call out the name(s) of those you may have been wronged by. I understand the desire to do so, but I don't believe it is a healthy way to bring about positive change...especially not through this blogging platform. Thanks for understanding!
Some additional reading:
- Copyright 101 for Designers by Design*Sponge
- Laws and more from the U.S. Copyright Office
- An incredible wealth of knowledge and wonderful creative community of women can be found at The Switchboards
- Helpful article: What Do You Do When Someone Steals Your Content
Edited to add your article/site recommendations:
- From Molly/Charlotte's Fancy: Copycats by Poppytalk
- From Anna E: Copyright, Trademarks and Pattents by Crafting and MBA
- From Maria-Therese: Copycats
- From Brigitte: More Thoughts on Copyright and Creativity
- From Michelle Watson: Knock if off
- From Caroline: DIY is not Duplicate it Yourself by decor8
- From Amy/Living Locurto: When Logos Look Alike by Logo Design Love
About Me / My Shops, Musings, Web / Tech Help | Thursday, April 15, 2010 
Reader Comments (59)
What a great post! I've learned to not take the copiers so seriously. They're only hurting themselves. It is such a shame it happens so frequently in the web world.
And to the sponsor who had her designs copied, keep your chin up and don't let this get you down! Remember that YOU were the one who originally created your designs and you are far more talented than whoever couldn't come up with their own ideas and felt the need to copy yours.
Ez - thanks for this post. I think it's really useful and timely. It reminded me that Jan of Poppytalk posted about this same topic recently and that the comments were interesting and useful as well, so I would recommend it to people interested in this topic:
http://poppytalk.blogspot.com/2010/03/sidetrack-cafe-no-3-copycats.html
my website layout and coding was copied once. I didn't even know about the existence and the copy of the site until my friend told me about it. I confronted her nicely about the issue but I got a blatant denial
instead. I was promptly taken aback. what made me rather annoyed was that hers was a (very) poor copy of my hard work (I'd put in time and effort into my codings and they were done on notepad).
it was just one incidnt but it did leave a sour after taste. but in the designing community, there is bound to be copycats.
I feel that copying is flat out obvious. like hidden eloise's work (did I get that right?) as for inspiration, I'd say credit the source of inspiration. like there's a particular tutorial and one wants to try out. I'm sure the person who posted the tutorial would be thrilled and honoured that one had applied the tutorial and gave a certain credit, yes? (:
Thank you for writing this! It feels terrible to be copied. I have had ideas stolen before and it's hard not to "drink the poison."
The flipside is that there's nothing new under the sun. It is possible to come up with strikingly similar ideas. There's the whole notion of a collective consciousness.
Artists have been copying each other for centuries. Look at all the people Picasso copied! How would artists/crafters/bloggers/musicians get their start if they didn't take from things that inspire them?
xoxo
oh man. this is the worst! i agree with micaela. sometimes you just can't take them too seriously. people copy all the time...or borrow or whatever. and everything is so visual in this little internet world that sometimes it happens and people don't even notice. when i first started the glass business, someone copied me and wrote something silly in their necklace...like a really silly quote. i was so mad in the beginning and then just sort of let it go. onward and upward type thing. i now have that silly and ridiculous quote pasted on my inspiration board bc it reminds me to not take any of it too seriously. it also reminds me to keep moving forward and create new things i can feel good about. before i knew it (and hopefully before your sponsor knows it), the "borrower" will move on and start borrowing from someone else and will forget about the sponsor's stuff. sad, but true. and your sponsor will continue creating fresh and new and awesome ideas bc they are probably the best (as all of your sponsors are, if i do say so myself :) ha)
Ez I love that quote you posted by Carrie Fisher. so so true
Thanks for your comments guys! I really appreciate it!
As far as copying goes...I have to disagree in a way. Yes, we all are inspired by the world around us...much like human vacuums really. But I personally feel that the difference between copying and inspiration is pretty clear. To be inspired by something it to be motivated to create something unique to you using a thing or experience as your starting point...not your finished product. Copying involves very little or no creativity and results in only an imitation of something...the beginning and the end are the same because there is no inspiration involved, only mimicry.
I do also believe however that it is possible for more than one person to have the same idea or to mistakenly mimic work they've seen without realizing it. it is always important to carefully assess the circumstance before jumping to conclusions.
Just my two cents. xo Ez
Great post, Ez. This copycat stuff is a biotch and it can definitely bog a good person down s/he lets it.
Well written and great quote too.
I recently had to deal with something similar and stumbled upon a helpful zine as well. I wrote a blog post about the zine (by Pikaland) and added whatever words of widom I had from experience, here
Thank you for writing this! It feels terrible to be copied. I have had ideas stolen before and it's hard not to "drink the poison.".I've learned to not take the copiers so seriously. They're only hurting themselves. It is such a shame it happens so frequently in the web world
Funny you should mention this today... as this morning I was reading the design-focused blog (of a blogger I have always admired and enjoyed) where she was offering up Eames chair knock-offs (and basically called them such). I had this thought... she has no problem ripping off (you can see my bias) the design of another designer. I wonder how she'd feel if someone ripped off (copied... and I agree with Ez on the difference between copy and inspire) her work. Thanks for pushing all of us Ez to be aware of the difference and to work to protect the creative work of those around us.
When I am "inspired" by something... usually I will be inspired by something like a package of beer to create a website for an animal shelter. Or I will be inspired by a pair of couture shoes to create a garden mosaic.
GOOD inspirations are vastly different from the end product. (Like all of the clothing for this summer that is inspired by Herbs and Herbariums).
I think when someone is claiming to be inspired by a "necklace" to create a "necklace" or an "animal shelter website" to create an "animal shelter website" you can tell how close the inspiration has or has not fallen from the tree. Copy cats are using same lines and same everything to make the same item. With zero or very very very few differences.
Great post and even greater message and quotes from you...YOU are the original and Fisher's about resentment.
So true... This is helpful (and I LOVE this blog): http://craftmba.com/2010/03/09/copyright-trademarks-and-patents/
Copycats suck - there's just no other way to do it. Inspiration will naturally come from places that you love, but that's INSPIRATION, not copying. I don't think there is anything wrong with gaining inspiration and ideas from others, but imitation really isn't a form of flattery - it's damn frustration!
It really irks me when I work so hard to do something - post about something on my blog, cook, paint, anything - and I quickly find copycats with a complete lack of credit. It makes me so mad and frustrated, and even more so because there is just so much of it going on, it drives me bonkers. OY. I'm getting all worked up.
I've had endless discussion with other designers and also gone to great depths on my blog and facebook page about this. Seems like it's everywhere and happens to everyone. There is no way around it. I've had my entire blog stolen, found my original designs (that were free downloads) being sold on Etsy and seen my images and ideas copied all around the blog world.
I like the advice you gave your friend. I do think there is a difference in inspiration and being copied. I am flattered when someone is inspired by a party, craft or idea that I had. But when they totally copy what I did and claim as their own... that's just wrong on so many levels plus illegal. Most bloggers and many people who have Etsy shops are not professional designers and have no idea about copyright laws. I think it's our job to make people aware. I love this post!! Thanks!
Although there are doubtless many unscrupulous people out there who would willingly copy the work of another person for their own gain, it is important to try to keep in mind (before accusing other people - and I like the stipulation about not pointing fingers in this post) that not all copying is necessarily intentional. There is a good body of research out there about a concept called unconscious plagiarism, which unintentional copying of other's work. People generate "new" ideas that think they came up with them themselves, when they really saw it before. The problem comes when they don't remember the original source, thereby thinking that this idea is their own. Interestingly, people are more likely to engage in this if they think the original source is an "expert" (so if the copying of your sponsor's work was in fact unintentional, your sponsor can be flattered - it was probably copied because it was highly regarded in the first place- although this is probably also true of intentional copying).
This is not to say that there is no blatant copying going on, as there are an unfortunately people who do cheat to get ahead, but just to consider all possibilities before jumping to conclusions.
usually sites&blogs copy some of my posts&sets, especially the how to wear ones, that's why I put my blog address on every set I make.
I love that Carrie Fisher quote. I recently posted on this from a slightly different perspective: writing. I'm not a designer or "artist" in the traditional sense, so it's difficult for me to identify the line between inspiration and copying in a visual medium.
http://covetchicago.typepad.com/covet/2010/04/more-thoughts-on-copyright-and-creativity.html
I will venture into dangerous territory here, and say that while there are quite egregious examples of copying, I often tend to think that many of the claims are perhaps exaggerated. This isn't to say that copying (stealing) isn't happening. But, on the other hand, no one has a claim to graph paper or bird motifs or chevron.
Thank you for taking the time to post such a rational and well-thought lesson. Artists unite! :)
I recently saw a mimi&lu knockoff and you can read about my feelings on that experience- http://mimiandlu.blogspot.com/2010/03/knock-it-off.html
My feeling is that there is def. the possibility of unconscious copying-there are only so many shapes you can bend an earring into, but sometimes it's fairly apparent it's a knock off. I've learned to use that as part of my motivation to create even more distinct designs and move on to the next thing.
great post!
This is a huge issue, made even more rampant by the rise in online content. It's all too easy to copy and paste, and I can only imagine how hurtful and demoralizing it must be for artists and makers to see their original works copied. I'm in academia, and as in art and design and craft, we trade in ideas. When those ideas are copied, or when they are used without attribution, and ESPECIALLY when they are sold for profit, it's a violation.
There was a thoughtful post on decor8 about this recently, with lots of insightful comments:
http://decor8blog.com/2010/03/12/real-talk-diy-is-not-duplicate-it-yourself/
P.S.:Love that Carrie Fisher quote.
I totally agree with previous comments that there are ideas you sometimes had no idea you copied because it was in your mind from something you might have seen recently. That is a proven fact. I'm sure I've done that without realizing it many times. We are all influenced by the same images for sure. Evident in this post by Logo Design Love about similar logos: http://www.logodesignlove.com/similar-original-logos
My problem is with people who take original photos, design and illustrations to use for commercial purposes to benefit themselves, promote their shop or try to get more blog readers without asking first. I am flattered when individuals use my work at home for a project or party. It's really fun to see when they send me photos!
This is a very emotional topic. Copying is par for the course for a successful product. We see this on a smaller level in the craft world where it is very personal, but it clearly exists on a corporate level as well.
A few months ago, another Etsy seller copied my most popular pair of red shoes exactly--even took words and phrases from my listing description. When I threatened to issue her a cease and desist letter, she made an emotional appeal on a faith level about grace and mercy. I was shocked to realize that this other seller had actually bought from me very recently and wrote that very emotional and religious appeal under a fake name! Long story made short, I realized that everyone has a different perspective about where the lines of inspiration and copying blur. In the end, it gave me the final conviction I need to not feel bad about taking a heavy hand in protecting my business in as much as the law will allow.
Just recently I've been recognized in my little corner of the internet for some wedding invitations and just recently have I started noticing knock-offs (as I like to call them). I always take comfort in the fact that A) they're not as good as mine and B) it's usually not another designer knocking me off but somebody's cousin who offered to help out with wedding invites. For now, because the knock-offs don't feel malicious or blatant, I'm taking the high-road and am choosing to be flattered that someone was inspired by my designs.
Then there is the whole other topic of inspiration and trends as it relates to copycats which is a whole other bag of philosophical worms. As I designer I have always pulled inspiration from my peers but it has ALWAYS developed into something unique that I can call my own. Perhaps that is the difference between a designer with talent (if I don't say so myself) and somebody's cousin with a mac.
Great post! My husband & I discuss this a lot. His advice to me (as it has happened a lot over the years) is to remember that is better to the one stolen from because we can always think of new ideas.
It can be a tough line to draw. I think techniques are fair game, and it's hard to say definitively that someone copied an idea (because history teaches us that it is possible for different people to come up with the same idea independently).
I get concerned when I find a shop where the styling is similar enough to mine that an outside observer might find it hard to tell the difference. But you can't really copyright styling. I do draw the line if I find someone who has copied my actual text. That's a pretty clear violation and I will contact people with a strongly worded email and ask them to remove it.
I've found that copycats, when confronted, often seem completely clueless. It isn't always malicious, just someone with a very different sense of how much "inspiration" you can reasonably draw from another artist before you've crossed the line.
I was just having this conversation with another soap maker this afternoon. There are people who are inspired and use ideas from your sheer talent and then there are copiers. The people who copy and don't then grow and create their own masterpieces are just mimickers and it's really sort of sad. They have no true fulfillment or bones.
We all know who these people are.
Those of us who create original beauty in whatever we do - well, our creations may be an inspiration to someone as others have been inspirations to us. We all pull ideas from the world. From people, things, art. I think there is a tiny bit of copying in some of what we do, even without knowing it. Isn't that why we study? To learn? To become better? To gain knowledge?
I make soap so I look at other soap makers and their beautiful soaps. Do I want my soap to look like theirs so we are twinsies? Nope. Do I wish I could have made something that looked so special? Yup. So perhaps I take whatever aspect of the soap that moved me and tuck it away in my brain for the next creative moment I have during my crazy soapmaking craze and I whip out my own version of it as how it relates to my soap with whatever colors and scent I might be working with. I don't want my soap to look like theirs. I want to see what MY soap looks like with a different aspect intertwined into it.
But the copycats and the wannabes just crank out the same stuff. There really IS no "their stuff".
And yes, we know who they are.
Joanna
The Soap Bar Blog
First of all, I'd like to start with... I absolutely LOVE your blog, your Etsy shop, your concern for your readers, and your generosity in giving free printables (that are adorable - I've sent many people to your websites)!
Secondly, I'm glad to hear your move and transition into a new home has gone smoothly; I, myself, with my husband and two infant sons under two are about to move in a couple weeks and I know the stresses of a big move and lifestyle change.
And to my main point :) I am now a stay-at-home mama, but for five years I taught sophomore English and was privy to more plagiarism and copying than I'd like to admit. I was disillusioned my first year of teaching, and made aware that there are plenty of those out there who are entirely lacking a creative bone and feel like they'd be more successful compromising whatever integrity they may have. Sad, but so true. And we're talkin', I was teaching predominantly fifteen and sixteen-year-olds! You wrote it best when stating, "Anyone who knows and loves your work will recognize the care and true talent that you put into creating it." There are those of us, hopefully all your readers, who sometimes look to others for additional inspiration, especially when we feel a little muddled in our thoughts and daily life fades our colors a little, but that does not give anyone a right to call another's work his/her own... perhaps an innovation, perhaps "inspired by," perhaps a rendering similar to the original.
Just the way a movie is based on play, which was based on a novel, which was inspired by someone's storytelling, and the storytelling was based on someone's true experiences, creative genius should be given it's due credit and acclaim.
Great post. There are so many different sides to this issue. Diane over at Crafty pod talked about this recently, and had a pit of a different take. She talked a lot about how we have cross polination in the crafty world. Both totally valid points