Bibliophile Stalker: 11/01/2012

Galactic Chat interviews Joe Abercrombie (podcast).
My Bookish Ways interviews James Renner.
Suvudu (Shawn Speakman) interviews John Joseph Adams.
Civilian Reader interviews James Smythe.
C|Net (Daniel Terdiman) interviews Janice Liedl.
David Brin video on The Postman.
Speculate! Pyr Roundtable with Lou Anders, Brenda Cooper, Gabrielle Harbowy and E.C. Myers (podcast).
Fantasy Book Critic (Liviu Suciu) interviews Christian Cameron.
Chuck Wendig interviews Chris Baty.
The Enchanted Inkpot (Erin Cashman) interviews Lena Goldfinch.
Weird Fiction Review (Marc Laidlaw) interviews Misha Nogha.

Advice/Articles

Chuck Wendig on Failing Versus Quitting (Or, “Your Lack Of Confidence Is Neither Interesting Nor Unique”).
Inkpunks (Sandra Wickham) on Writing About Fighting.
Mary Robinette Kowal on Debut Author Lesson: Audio books.
The Guardian (Damien G. Walter) on London: fantasy's capital city.
The King of Elfland's Second Cousin on Structure and Perspective in Children’s Stories and Films.
Kirkus Reviews (John DeNardo) on How Space Travel Almost Killed Science Fiction.
Flickering Myth (Trevor Hogg) on Digging Up the Past: Frankenweenie Recreated in 3D.
Worlds Without End (Scott Lazerus) on American Science Fiction: Nine Classic Novels of the 1950s from the Library of America.
SFWA (Steven R. Stewart) on The #1 Rule of Everything.
The Comics Reporter on The Ten Least Powerful People In Comics.

Reviews

A. Lee Martinez on Skyfall.
Barnes & Noble Review (Paul Di Filippo) on The Hydrogen Sonata.

Art

Halo 4 concept ships and environments by sparth.

News

Empire State is SciFiNow magazine’s book of the year 2012.

Belkaa, Why Don't You Bark? by Hideo Furukawa

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

November 20, 2012 Writing, Publishing, and Speculative Fiction Links and Plugs

No updates tomorrow!

Interviews and Profiles

Writer's Voice interviews Ursula K. Le Guin (podcast).
On Fiction Writing (Michael Keyton) interviews Ellen Datlow.
Lawrence M. Schoen interviews M.K. Hobson.
SFX interviews Jonathan Green.
My Bookish Ways interviews Rhodi Hawk.
The Future and You interviews Dr. Ben Davis, Terry W. Erwin II, Jim Craig (podcast).
GeekMom (Dak) interviews Yuri Lowenthal.
Jon Sprunk discussion with Bryan Thomas Schmidt.
The Agony Column interviews Craig Childs (podcast).
Cargo Collective (Sarah McCarry) profiles Elizabeth Hand.
SF Squeecast with Elizabeth Bear, Paul Cornell, Seanan McGuire, Lynne M. Thomas, and Catherynne M. Valente (podcast).
HWA Horror Roundtable 5 – The Editor and The Writer.
Adventures in SciFi Publishing interviews Mark Teppo (podcast).

Advice/Articles

Juliette Wade on The Hazards of TMI, or, Why the real world is trickier than the one you created.
Weird Fiction Review (Edward Gauvin) on Echoes: Correspondences II.
Omnivoracious (Susan J. Morris) on Writers Don't Cry 2012 Picks: Five Books for Writers.
Fantasy Matters (Jen) on Of Steampunk and Seven-Year-Old Boys.
The Enchanted Inkpot (Lisa Gail Green) on Thankful For Fantasy.
The Outer Alliance (Dennis R. Upkins) on Attending GMX.
Kate Elliott on Perception and Filtering (Spiritwalker Monday 31).
The Galaxy Express (Heather Massey) on Action-Adventure in Sci-Fi Romance: Issue or Non Issue?
Frederik Pohl on Poul Anderson, Stanislaw Lem, Philip K. Dick and me.
Smart Pop Books (Marguerite Krause) on The Only Sane Man in the Universe.
Neth Space on SFF and Helping Those in Need.
Bare Bones e-zine (Jack Seabrook & Peter Enfantino) on Batman in the 1970s Part 45: November and December 1976.

Reviews

My Bookish Ways reviews The Man From Primrose Lane.
Staffer's Book Review reviews The Forge of Darkness.

Art

News

The Unreal and the Real: Outer Space, Inner Lands by Ursula K. Le Guin

Monday, November 19, 2012

Stalking Manila: The Ignorance of Copyright

The latest buzzword in the local literary scene is plagiarism, partially thanks to the controversy surrounding Senator Sotto and his numerous responses. Previously, such concerns were limited to the academe, such as prominent businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan's speech, or award-winning author Alfred Yuson's feature article. Both incidents seemed to have been forgotten from the public eye after the parties involved admitted and apologized for their transgression. Some incidents never even make it to the news, which was probably the case with Andrew E. and his 90's hit "Humanap Ka ng Panget," the lyrics of which was translated from DJ Cash Money & MC Marvelous's "Find an Ugly Woman." These all boil down to violations of copyright (and is probably a more apt description than plagiarism), but what's disturbing with the latest incident is how several public officials are ignorant of the law (to say nothing of the ethics in which the copied texts were utilized). Senator Sotto might be protected by Parliamentary Immunity, but here are some problematic key statements:

1) The Internet and Public Domain

“You have a blog, it is meant to be shared, it’s in the public domain, so it’s not plagiarism,” - Atty. Hector A. Villacorta, Chief of Staff of Sen. Sotto.

Just because something is on the Internet doesn't mean it's part of the Public Domain. They are actually protected by copyright (and the Philippines is one of the members of the World International Property Organization). Some works on the Internet fall under the Creative Commons, but such works are indicated as such, using the corresponding Creative Commons license, and requires attribution.

Tip: When in doubt, or if there is no indication whether a work falls under Public Domain or the Creative Commons, assume that it is protected by copyright.

Recommended Reading: 10 common misconceptions about the public domain.

Further Reading on the Controversy: Something new to Sottocopy.

2) Translation and Copyright

“I found the idea good. I translated it into Tagalog. So what’s the problem?” - Sen. Sotto

While there is originality and creativity in the act of translation, it is considered derivative work, and "only the copyright owner can authorize a translation that will be distributed." Considering Sen. Sotto a) claimed that the speech was his, b) offered no attribution, and c) did not have permission from the copyright owner, the speech was in violation of copyright laws—assuming that the speech in question falls under copyright. However, the text falls under Public Domain, so is a valid derivative work. Unfortunately, those coming to Sen. Sotto's defense neglect to mention this (whether his actions were ethical or moral is another matter).

Tip: Short of Fair Use (which in itself is debatable depending on the context) or Public Domain, translations without permission are in violation of copyright.

Recommended Reading: Online Translation - Dealing with Copyright and Plagiarism Issues Part I - Idiot's Guide to Online Copyright Issues.

Further Reading on the Controversy: Sotto apologizes to Kennedy family but denies plagiarizing speeches and “#Sinotto: Copyright over Translations”.

3) Laws and Copying

“In fact as an institution, we copy laws written by other countries.” - Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile

This is permissible because such laws are usually not protected by copyright (at least that is the case with US Laws). Suffice to say, texts of legal nature are excluded under Philippine Copyright Law.

Tip: If the work falls under the Public Domain, you can use it. Just be aware that works protected by Copyright and those that fall under Public Domain vary from country to country.

Recommended Reading: The Public Domain.

Further Reading on the Controversy: Sotto on apology call: Huh, for what?

November 19, 2012 Writing, Publishing, and Speculative Fiction Links and Plugs

Just wanted to mention the SF Signal review of one of my favorite collections for the year, Crackpot Palace by Jeffrey Ford.

Interviews and Profiles