Influence without Plagiarism

The creative process is different for each person and in some cases, we look to other authors work to become inspired. It is a important to make sure our voice can be seen in our work over the individual who has given us inspiration.  Cassandra Lip,  managing editor of Writer's Digest, gives us some helpful tips to avoid plagiarism while also drawing influence from other authors. 

Influence Without Plagiarism 6 Steps 

1. Don’t make any attempt to pass off others’ work as your own.
2. If you feel tempted to plagiarize, ask yourself why you feel so compelled to borrow in the first place.
3. If you use inspiration from others, ensure that your work is original and transformative
4. If borrowing lines, indicate which lines are borrowed and where they came from
5. Ensure that poems modeled “after” another writer do not copy them.
6. Try writing a cento, Golden Shovel or found poem to honor other voices.

Find out more about these tips by following the link in the citation.

 

Lipp, Cassandra. How to Draw Influence from Other Writers Without Plagiarizing: 6 Tips to Avoid an Ailey O’Toole Situation. Writer’s Digest. 14 Dec. 2018, https://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/by-writing-genre/poetry/how-to-draw-influence-from-other-writers-without-plagiarizing-6-tips-to-avoid-an-ailey-otoole-situation