fear the bitches
So, way back in June I fell in love with the blog Smart Bitches Who Love Trashy Books and linked specifically to a review Smart Bitch Sarah had written about Savage Moon by Cassie Edwards, which had earned itself the grade of "F." In fact, in the Bitches' article comparing romance writers to foods, their comment was "Cassie Edwards: Potted Meat Food product. It's marketed as food, and it tries very, very hard to be food, but ultimately, it's Food Product. Frighteningly ubiquitous, and therefore even more terrifying." At that point, I laughed, decided that I never, ever wanted to read a book by Cassie Edwards, and forgot about it.
Apparently, as a writer, she's also a plagiarist. The other Smart Bitch reviewers, Candy, gave a Cassie Edwards book to a friend to read as an example of the worst of the romance genre. This friend is apparently very observant, and she noted that some of the passages in the book seemed a little...off. Now, the Bitches have commented before on how Edwards' writing often seems to quote Wikipedia articles, but apparently it's worse than that. This friend went to Google for help and hit gold. The whole process begins with this entry, follows up with investigations of four other books, then gives Signet's official statement after having been sent their findings. The next, was the AP article which showed up containing Ms. Edwards' response. Or rather, her husband's response, since the lady apparently can't talk without a man to hold her hand. The AP article was cool enough, but then Nora Roberts, herself a Smart Bitches reader, waded into the fray and--lo and behold--the New York Times and USA Today picked up the story.
The most recent development is Signet's revised statement.
The thing that gets me is that apparently no one in the publishing industry knows what plagiarism is or why, morally if not legally, it might be wrong. Dur, dur, dur. Not that these things haven't happened before, but apparently people only care when the victim in the matter is a powerful, wealthy, publishing and book-selling machine...well, only when it's Nora Roberts. Of course, the best part of that fiasco was this quote: '''I recently learned that my essentially random and non-pervasive acts of copying are attributable to a psychological problem that I never even suspected I had,' Mrs. Dailey said. 'I have already begun treatment for the disorder and have been assured that, with treatment, this behavior can be prevented in the future.'''
In a big departure from that, I just had to stick a plug in here for the Forbes Fictional Fifteen, which lists the 15 wealthiest fictional characters, from Montgomery Burns, to Lucius Malfoy, to Princess Peach. Scroll through, I guarantee a giggle. (h/t
buttfacemakani)
Apparently, as a writer, she's also a plagiarist. The other Smart Bitch reviewers, Candy, gave a Cassie Edwards book to a friend to read as an example of the worst of the romance genre. This friend is apparently very observant, and she noted that some of the passages in the book seemed a little...off. Now, the Bitches have commented before on how Edwards' writing often seems to quote Wikipedia articles, but apparently it's worse than that. This friend went to Google for help and hit gold. The whole process begins with this entry, follows up with investigations of four other books, then gives Signet's official statement after having been sent their findings. The next, was the AP article which showed up containing Ms. Edwards' response. Or rather, her husband's response, since the lady apparently can't talk without a man to hold her hand. The AP article was cool enough, but then Nora Roberts, herself a Smart Bitches reader, waded into the fray and--lo and behold--the New York Times and USA Today picked up the story.
The most recent development is Signet's revised statement.
The thing that gets me is that apparently no one in the publishing industry knows what plagiarism is or why, morally if not legally, it might be wrong. Dur, dur, dur. Not that these things haven't happened before, but apparently people only care when the victim in the matter is a powerful, wealthy, publishing and book-selling machine...well, only when it's Nora Roberts. Of course, the best part of that fiasco was this quote: '''I recently learned that my essentially random and non-pervasive acts of copying are attributable to a psychological problem that I never even suspected I had,' Mrs. Dailey said. 'I have already begun treatment for the disorder and have been assured that, with treatment, this behavior can be prevented in the future.'''
In a big departure from that, I just had to stick a plug in here for the Forbes Fictional Fifteen, which lists the 15 wealthiest fictional characters, from Montgomery Burns, to Lucius Malfoy, to Princess Peach. Scroll through, I guarantee a giggle. (h/t
buttfacemakani)