Two lawsuits filed last month claim that writers improperly based fictional characters on the complainants. [Matthew Heller, OnPoint News] A much noted case last November, in which a Georgia jury awarded $100,000 to a woman who said she had been wrongly used as the basis in part for a character in the novel “The Red Hat Club”, may have encouraged the filing of such suits.
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Then why mention publicly that some material is factual if you’re writing fiction?
I write military science fiction and yes, I have based characters on people I knew during my time in the Navy. If I get sued, at least I’ll have the ridicule factor when I ask them on the stand if they ever flew around in spaceships. I do use different names and the descriptions are not the same.
“Yes, I am the frightful harridan who lies constantly and has sex with small domestic animals. ”
Bob
Writers are now falling into the sued if you do and sued if you don’t category.
Write an autobiography but add a little fiction – get sued.
Write a fictional story but add a little truth – get sued.
If I write a true story with a lot of fiction, does that make me a lawyer?
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Stories have to come from SOMEWHERE. No story is entirely made up from someone’s imagination. This is getting to be silly.