The Official Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Group
| Mailing List | |
|---|---|
| Name: | The Official Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Group |
| Date(s): | Aug 8, 2003-most active until about 2013 |
| Moderated: | yes |
| Moderators/List Maintainers: | Blood Rose, Wiley, and Veerle |
| Founder(s): | Blood Rose, Wiley, and Veerle |
| Type: | |
| Fandom: | Chelsea Quinn Yarbro |
| URL: | The Official Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Group info page |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Official Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Group was a public Yahoo! Groups mailing list for fans of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. The list owners and moderators were Blood Rose, Wiley, and Veerle.
It was founded in August 2003.
On its front page:
NO Fanfic or other personal works to be posted.This is a group dedicated to the highly esteemed author Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.
As faithful readers we will discuss all of CQY's works in her many guises. Le Comte de Saint-Germain, Michael, as well as her other short fiction, History, Sci-Fi and Fantasy titles.
We'll try to keep you informed of interviews, short fiction and personal appearances.
We are here to have fun and to discuss one of the most prolific storytellers of our generation. Won't you join us?
♥ ♥ Please note ♥ ♥
CHELSEA QUINN YARBRO does NOT ENDORSE FAN FICTION
Any attempt to violate her copyright will result in criminal prosecution by her legal services.
Since becoming the official Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Group we will no longer be able to post personal poetry or other works by members.
No solicitations without prior consent.
Just in case there was any doubt about the fic thing, the very short welcome letter to members stated:
Dear Friends, Welcome to the CQYarbro discussion group at Yahoo! Groups. This is NOT a fan ficiton [sic] group. Chelsea Quinn Yarbro does NOT endorse or appreciate fanfiction.
CQY's Attorney was a Member
Robin A. Dubner posted in 2008:
As CQY's attorney, I have prosecuted several copyright infringement actions for her regarding fans using her characters in their own stories. She is very serious about this issue, as Judy writes. Fans who incorporate her ideas or characters in their own works will not be happy when CQY or I hear about it.
Robin A. Dubner -- "St. Germain's Staunch Defender" [1]
One of the mailing list moderators replied:
It is good to know the count has a "staunch defender". Thank you, Robin, for defending St Germain. Sometimes he really needs it.I think we should better put an end to this fan fiction topic before one of us says something to regret.
Veerle
Step Lightly
List members were warned to step lightly and censor their discussion due to danger of spoiling Yarbro's plans for books.
In December 2004, one of the moderators explained to fans why she had deleted a thread that talked about fanfic and speculations, and explained that Yarbro wouldn't particpate in chats with fans:
Regarding these wish lists/what we'd like to see threads....I'm all for them and enjoy the speculation. Everything from man on man sex to Roger's wife are all suggestions I've mentioned in the past and have enjoyed discussing, but just to make you all aware: Every time we make an obvious or oblique suggestion on list about what we'd like to see in a Saint-Germain novel, that's pretty much the same thing as making sure it will never be written.
You see, it's been explained to me that, though discussion is what we're here for and Quinn is very good about allowing any and all conversation to take place here, including everything from heated debate to saucy language to birthday messages and personal greetings, any *specific* 'requests', are "intellectual property", i.e,, though not actual copywritten material, can't be used in print if they were someone else's idea.
Now, *we* know that, if Quinn ever decided to write, let's say, a Roger book about his early life in Gades, and some of our suggestions were used, we'd never dream of suing even if they were our ideas, but believe it or not, it would become a legal tangle that she could live without. That's why the fanfic thread had to be pulled. Though none of us had actually written any and have/had no intention of ever writing any, the ideas I had itemized were so specific, it was borderline infringement, but in MY favor. If Quinn had any of those ideas, they could never be used because I've already public ally suggested them and technically, they're my property.
This is legal advice that's been passed on to me from the author herself, and I'm simply passing it on to all of you. This is a lovely bunch of people we have here who all have something and someone very special in common and I want to keep it that way.
And one more thing. Regarding a chat, not to speak for anyone, but it probably won't happen because Quinn is a very private person with very good reason. Some fans aren't as cool as we are and unfortunately, it's effected the way she now has to interact with them. Now, of course, that's not saying *we're* nutjobs because if we were, we wouldn't be here. Just the fact that we're Quinn's 'official' group speaks volumes about us, but it's just the way it is.
I hope I haven't gone on too long and that what I've said makes sense and is palatable to everyone. It's just that I'd hate to have members holding out for something they've suggested that won't see the light of day simply because of a legal technicality. And I know it seems as if I'm always the one throwing cold water on stuff, but as co-founder, co-owner and co-moderator, it's my job to look out for *everyone*.
Now, please don't go giving us the silent treatment. As Lois Bujold is always telling me, "Fan-Ac is for the fans....Carry On."
Eclipse
One fan's response (one that garnered no response itself):
All that you said, Eclipse, makes perfect sense (in a sadly sue-happy-times sort of way). But to my thinking, a group like this, one with only 50 members and messageboards not open to the public [2], I don't really see it as 'publishing'. I see this group more as a party where people with a similar interest are getting together and gossiping in a separate room, and it just happens to be electronically not physically. This stuff isn't really out in the open, ya know? And I think it's pretty far from 'serious'. Just gossip and chatter. ;) But this is all just my take on this, and if we lived in MY world, there wouldn't be _any_ problems. (or nutjobs) (...aside from me) :) -- Lisa
References
- ^ July 14, 2008, note this is about two months after An Archive of Our Own was founded; the topic of fanworks had become a wider discussion with increased visibility, and Dubner was reiterating Yarbros' long-standing opinions in light of these conversations.
- ^ Actually, it was a public Yahoo! Group with automatic membership.