How far can you go before you are branded a copycat?

[Ghost of Harrenhal]

After a lot of research and scanning baby name books and websites and looking up the meanings of many names, I landed on Brandon for the name of my main character. It wasn't until I had replaced most of the placeholder names in the first few chapters to Brandon that it hit me that Bran Stark in the Song of Ice and Fire series is short for Brandon.

Why does this even matter, do you ask? Well because the ASOIAF series has been a huge inspiration to me to veer away from generic fantasy and more to "alternate history" I guess you could call it. There are no wizards and elves in my story just the good old folk that would have been around between 500 and 1000 years ago. They are pretty much just Lords, Knights or Peasants.

I've also adapted a POV writing style since reading the books which it struck me George also uses. I suddenly feel like my sub conscious has just been rewriting these books and now I don't know if I have to scrap everything and start again. I hope I'm overreacting.

So what do you think? How many of these things (maybe there are more I just can't tell anymore) are acceptable before everyone thinks I'm just copying another writer? I feel kind of glad I've caught this now but I really want to keep my main character's name. Brandon just fits him so perfectly!

[Theed]

I don't really think that's stealing ideas, copycatting or any of that. When you get into the thick of the plot, the cast of characters, etc -- it's those things that I'd be concerned with if they seemed too much the same. But I wouldn't be worried right now; the things you're doing right now have been done before ASOIAF too.

[Moogle]

A similar name is not important, but if your character is similar to the one in Martin's books, you could be writing yourself into a hole.

[j. d. worthington]

Tell your own story, in whatever way seems to fit it best. The type of authorial voice used is not plagiarism, nor are a few incidental similarities here and there. But, as has been said, when you are obviously copying character traits, or several characters' names (for similar characters, or just en bloc), or you have a plot or series of incidents that are similar to identical... then you're in trouble.

Most writers are influenced by other writers, especially when they start out. Lovecraft was highly influenced by Poe, then Dunsany (and, I would argue, also by Thomas Moore, in some ways). Nonetheless, his work is quite distinctive, and only a fool would call him a plagiarist. Poe was influenced by Bulwer and Dickens by both. Robert E. Howard was heavily influenced by Talbot Mundy and Robert W. Chambers, among others. Harlan Ellison has noted that he was influenced to a considerable degree by Clark Ashton Smith. Michael Moorcock has a strong streak of Mervyn Peake in him at times. And so it goes.

Just don't copy deliberately, tell your story in your own words, with your own characters, and go from there. Worrying about this sort of thing will do nothing but tie you in knots and stifle your ability to write -- so DON'T! (Worry about it, that is.)

[Ghost of Harrenhal]

Well thank you those of you who have replied. I certainly feel like I was overreacting now but it just all hit me at once that it seemed I was getting all these ideas after reading Martin's books.


The two characters are nothing alike so I suppose I needn't worry about it too much. Thank you.

[Quokka]

Considering Brandon is a real name and reasonably common I think you're pretty safe, just don't go calling his friends anything like Garion, Ender, Elric.....

[Malloriel]

I would agree with JD most strongly here. I started, and I do believe many writers start, by copying the writers they enjoy the most. Trying on styles and genres and voices and perspectives, finding what fits US the best, and then sculpting and honing that to a distinctive voice set apart from the chorus. There's no shame in that, since I think it's pretty unavoidable. Just don't be surprised or upset when compared to those writers later. ^_^

[glandowski]

You should be okay.

Names are names - it's the story line you have to worry about - so ditch that 'Luke' character with the 'laser sword' and the 'father/son issues'...

[Urlik]

you only need to worry if you use a name rhyming with arry in conjunction with a surname rhyming with otter.
if you include an owl and a broomstick along with an old castle near a forbidden forest, then you are in big trouble

[scalem X]

I remember one of my characters being called 'Luwin'. I encourage using common names, rather than unpronounceable ones. It types easier too.

If anything your editor will change it.

[The Curious Orange]

GRRM was the prime influence on my own decision to stop dithering around with silly SF stories and give epic fantasy a go. Some of the elements of my world are very Matin-esque, most obviously the fact that in the first drafts I'd subconciously called all my knights "Ser" - something that I amended as soon as it was pointed out to me!

But there are other influences in there as well, particularly Robert Jordan, Robin Hobb and Steven Erikson, and I find that it's those other influences that stops it being too comparable to any one author's work. In fact, GRRM is probably a lot lower in the final mix than I originally intended...

What GRRM writes is more historical in nature than it is fantasy. He gets down into the nitty-gritty of how the ordinary people actually live. Try watching Monty Python and the Holy Grail sometimes - everyone's cold, wet, filthy, covered in mud, everything looks badly built on a low budget - the end result is more historically accurate than any mega-budget Hollywood blockbuster CGI-fest. Real people bicker, and are obstructive and stupid. The idea that everyone fell over themselves to help Arthur is nutty. Writing something gritty is good.

And GRRM didn't invent multiple storylines or multiple POV's either.

[Ghost of Harrenhal]

Originally Posted by The Curious Orange

GRRM was the prime influence on my own decision to stop dithering around with silly SF stories and give epic fantasy a go. Some of the elements of my world are very Matin-esque, most obviously the fact that in the first drafts I'd subconciously called all my knights "Ser" - something that I amended as soon as it was pointed out to me!

But there are other influences in there as well, particularly Robert Jordan, Robin Hobb and Steven Erikson, and I find that it's those other influences that stops it being too comparable to any one author's work. In fact, GRRM is probably a lot lower in the final mix than I originally intended...

What GRRM writes is more historical in nature than it is fantasy. He gets down into the nitty-gritty of how the ordinary people actually live. Try watching Monty Python and the Holy Grail sometimes - everyone's cold, wet, filthy, covered in mud, everything looks badly built on a low budget - the end result is more historically accurate than any mega-budget Hollywood blockbuster CGI-fest. Real people bicker, and are obstructive and stupid. The idea that everyone fell over themselves to help Arthur is nutty. Writing something gritty is good.

And GRRM didn't invent multiple storylines or multiple POV's either.

That's the main influence he has had on me I suppose, the one that wasn't subconscious. Writing a world that wasn't fantasy as such but more historically accurate. It's actually easier to write about in my opinion.