**Note: this chapter was inspired by a recent conversation about this issue with one of my readers (a new writer who reads this book), and I want to emphasize that this chapter is not meant to call her out or make her feel bad. What I'm going to discuss is a common pitfall that all writers fall into from time to time; that incident just reminded me that this is a rookie mistake associated with ideas. If you know who this is, do not harass them or be mean. I am grateful for her support on Alura and her kindness to me.
When I was eleven, I bought a book called Spilling Ink: A Young Writer's Handbook, by Anne Mazer and Ellen Potter. The book is a middle-grade read, but it's extremely helpful if you want the bare basics of good writing (kind of like this book, actually). In the book, Anne discusses the magpie nature of writing. "Magpies are birds that are attracted to shiny pieces of fabric and glittery threads. Writers are people who are attracted to revealing detail, half-remembered history, and glimpses of people on the bus. We weave our stories out of memory, imagination, and observation" (Mazer 213).
The subject of that chapter is exactly what I'm going to discuss today: plagiarism. Writers take inspiration from everywhere, and often from media we consume (if you're reading this after my chapter "Rookie Mistakes: Common Description Pitfalls", you'll know that this is why clichés show up in our work). General ideas, tropes, and themes - heck, even character arcs and traits - are all completely fine to use, since you can put your own unique spin on whatever you're drawing inspiration from.
However, there comes a time when drawing inspiration can turn into accidental plagiarism. For example, when I was younger (around 8-11 years old, so this is before I was active on Wattpad), I would steal dialogue word-for-word that I liked from movies, TV shows, books, and even video games and put it in the mouths of my characters. I didn't know any better - the line sounded nice, so I would use it, often without realizing where it was from. Looking back on my stories from that age, I can recognize exactly where I got those lines from and why I thought it was a good idea to put them in my books.
It's tempting to do this, but don't. If you see a description or a piece of dialogue that looks familiar, cut it out. Writers, especially new writers, often don't realize that they took text from someone else's work. However, if you catch yourself doing this, replace it when you're editing. It's better to be on the safe side than to be caught in an error (even if you didn't mean to commit it). Having at least one beta reader (more on those later) who watches and reads the same fiction as you also helps, because they might catch your errors where you can't.
And above all, do not intentionally plagiarize someone else's work. This goes without saying, but intentional plagiarism is dishonorable and illegal in the real world. I once had someone tell me that I should be flattered if someone reposts my book and passes it off as their own, but that sentiment is silly. Why would I be flattered at someone who didn't feel like writing their own content and has to step on the feet of hardworking authors in order to gain a following? Plus, you have your own interesting ideas to explore. Put in the effort and make your own original stories. Add something instead of stealing glory from those who worked for it.