I was talking to one of my non-writer friends and he asked me about my book. I told them I was still on track to finish it this year and then of course, he asked that question most writers get:
“So, what is it about?”
I always answer the same way I usually do, “It’s a novel about fate vs. free will.”
My friend then asked, “That’s it? You’re not gonna go into detail about it? You afraid that I’m gonna steal your idea?”
This got me thinking. I rarely share the in-depth details of my novel with other writers unless they are in my critique group or a good writer friend. I wondered why is. Could it be that I am subconsciously protecting myself from idea theft?
Although I haven’t seen it personally, I have heard stories of writers taking ideas that they’ve heard from other writers. And then there is the case of multiple discovery I remember reading about in a New Yorker article written by Malcolm Gladwell.
For me, I just come from a place where I feel that until I’m finished with a project and I know fully what it’s about that I just keep it simple and general.
What about you writer friends: Do you share what your work is about? Or do you keep it close to wraps? Do you think idea theft exists or do you believe that there is room for the same story written by different authors?
Karen, I don’t worry so much about idea theft. It takes so much time and energy to write a novel, and no two would ever turn out the same. But I am a bit quiet about my writing, when people ask, something I’m working on changing.
I do worry about idea theft. Not to the point of paranoia, but it has crossed my mind every now and then. However, I have shared my idea when posting my query for critique during WriteOnCon — I actually debated on whether I should. But the advice I’ve gotten from WOC outweighed the potential idea theft for me. (Or, at least, I’m hoping.)
I keep it close. I tell my closest friends and critique partners, but I don’t broadcast it out there on the internet like some writers do. You won’t find summaries of any of my non-completed WIPs out there. I did get burned once, back in college, when someone I thought was a friend stole an idea and used it for the class final feature writing project (thereby precluding me from using it). Even though we would have written two very different stories, that stung and I never forgot it.
Andrea: I think this is mostly why I stay quiet. My novel has changed SO much since its inception and so I just like to keep it general until I know what it’s about. Ha.
Emy: I think this is a decision that writers must make. Sometimes the feedback that you receive outweighs the threat of idea theft. Actually, I believe when you are at the querying stage, you don’t have as much as problem because your work is about to go on submission, so writers would have to write lightning fast to catch up to you.
Meredith: Wow, that sucks. I hate when that happens! I don’t think it’s a good idea to have chapter excerpts or writing samples on the Web. But that’s just me. :)
I find it hard to share simple because I’m still working on how to pitch it :/ I usually keep it really, really simple. Stories I plan on submitting I don’t post on my blog or anywhere else for that matter, but I do like to post samples just to share and entertain readers :)
Sometimes idea theft happens without writers intentionally doing it. So I think it’s better to keep our ideas close to the vest while we are writing and revising. I also find that my creative process works better if I’m not telling everyone about it.