Cassie Edwards

I must say up front that I am not a Cassie Edwards fan. I have read one or two of her books and other than a few name (and tribe) they could have been the same book. There are several writers that do that - some do it well - some do not. Cassie Edwards fits in the "does not do it well" category.

Anyway, I know this subject has been addressed ad nauseum by other writers, blogs, etc. I don't really have anything new to say. My favorite comment on this whole thing was by Nora Roberts (all hail the Queen) who wrote in an e-mail to the AP, "Given the side-by-side comparisons I've read, it seems clear Ms. Edwards copied considerable portions of previously published work and used them in her books without attribution to the original source. By my definition, copying another's work and passing it as your own equals plagiarism. As a writer, a reader and a victim of plagiarism, I feel very strongly on this issue. I'm not a lawyer, but I can't see it as fair use, or fair anything when one writer takes another's work."

Readers nowadays expect writers to do their homework. It is not enough to have a good story, one needs to have an intriguing and accurate background. As such, more in depth research and study is required. It is one thing to work the results of that research and study into your story. It is quite another to copy almost word for word information from those results. It is just plain wrong. Whether she knew she had to attribute the source or not, copying is copying is copying, and that is theft, pure and simple.

Shame on you, Cassie.