Author Claims Bloomsbury Stole Plotline for Goblet of Fire

[rattlesnakeroot]

This is one for the scrapbook!

Or perhaps the "What goes around comes around X-Files."

The estate of a deceased writer named Adrian Jacobs is claiming that Bloomsbury Publishing and J. K. Rowling stole the plot of his book The Adventures of Willy the Wizard -- No 1 Livid Land.

According to Reuters a statement from Bloomsbury said:

The allegations

Comments

[bluestockingbb]

Wow! They waited kind of late to pull this one. It would have made more sense to do this during HP's hey day.

[rattlesnakeroot]

I wondered that, too, unless this son and grandson never put two and two together until now. I'd like to know their ages. It's possible they just found out about the connection between Jacobs' book, Bloomsbury, and Harry Potter. I think we are only aware of it because we are in fandom.

I figure a relative or attorney might have pointed out a similarity and the lawsuit grew from there. But it's hard to see how wizards, trains, and bathrooms adds up to plagiarism.

[clair_de_lalune]

That's interesting, but the case sounds a bit weak to me ... some similarities to various events in one book doesn't seem like enough to make a case for plagiarism (copyright infringement?), especially when GoF is only a small portion of the whole series.

[rattlesnakeroot]

Yeah, but I admit I am intrigued that this man actually had dealings with Christopher Little. What that means is that he might have had that booklet in his office when another Wizarding book floated in from JKR.

Other authors who have cried plagiarism towards JKR had no such dealings with Bloomsbury, which was JKR's original publisher. There was the American "Rah and the Muggles" case which was against Scholastic and WB, not Bloomsbury. JKR won that:
BBC Story: Rowling wins Potter plagiarism caseNancy Stouffer alleged that JKR stole the name "Harry Potter" from her character "Larry Potter

[rattlesnakeroot]

Here is one of the interviews in which JKR mentions how difficult it was for her writing GoF:

BBC Interview 2003

The press kept reporting that she had problems with OotP, when really it was GoF.

And here's another quote about it:

BBC Newsround 2000

Last time we spoke you said there'd be a Weasley cousin. It didn't appear. You've deceived me

[lunas_ceiling]

Did she really claim that she drank herself to sleep? I know she has claimed that she was using nicorette and smoking, giving her jitters I guess. The Bloomsbury connection would certainly add a connection but dare I say we will never see JKR on the stand while someone uses word counts and pie charts of doom to make a case of infringement against her. The irony would be delicious however.

[alwaysholly]

I just got done reading about this. I was also intrigued that they both had dealing with the same agent. I doubt that this case will go anywhere though.

[rattlesnakeroot]

It's just bizarre! I'm going to follow this closely.

potter

[anonymous]

This is so bizarre as if JKR would copy from some tin pot phamplet of a book.

I hope Bloomsbury & JKR counter sue and send this family bankrupt!!!