The novice's guide to copyright · 12:33am Jun 11th, 2021
Hey all,
Chapter 8 contains a first for me: a character taken straight from another Fo:E fic. We now have a (miniscule) crossover with Fallout Equestria: The Chrysalis by Phoenix_Dragon. Back when I first joined fimfiction, I sent Phoenix a note and asked if they were OK with me using a character they'd created. I had no idea whether or not I was supposed to do this and figured better safe than sorry. Phoenix sent a very kind reply granting permission, and I'm finally taking advantage of it!
Referencing The Chrysalis in my fic was one of the primary goals I had when I started. I think Chrysalis is the best sidefic in the Fo:E universe, bar none. I honestly don't think anything I write could ever hold a candle to Phoenix_Dragon, and it was a real honor to get permission to use one of their characters! Here's my shameless plug: if you haven't read Chrysalis or their other 3 fics, you need to check them out! They're stories I can lose myself in time and again.
The title promised a guide to copyright, and I've finally gotten to that point. Including the Phoenix_Dragon character got me thinking of copyright, and my limited understanding of it. Keep in mind, my knowledge comes from a small part of a single college lecture in 2018, so its accuracy should be considered suspect at best. Still, there's one part of the lecture that stuck out to me: copyright automatically applies at the moment material is created. There's nothing required like registering a trademark, paying a fee, lawyering up, anything. If you created it, you own the copyright. End of story.
So when I decided I wanted to include a Phoenix_Dragon character, I knew I should check with them if it was okay. Not just because I was worried about breaking one of the site's unwritten rules, but because the character belongs exclusively to them.
What does this mean for creating sidefics or crossovers? Beats the hell out of me. It's probably best to check with the author first, at least for politeness' sake if not for ownership concerns. Be kind to each other!
