One of the things I love about the 1632verse is the way the same characters pop up in different stories by differen writers – the way they would pop up in different people’s lives in a real small town. This addresses the basics of asking to use someone else’s character. The short version is: ask nicely on BaensBar.net (1632 Tech forum) and you’ll probably get permission, unless the author with a claim has plans you might impact.
Krystal Reed is one of my characters. Shortly after claiming her, someone else wanted to use her. I knew I was going to write a minimum of one novel with her but I didn’t really know where I was going, so I declined to share. Others on the Bar hopped into the thread and we provided several different options fo the writer that fit their parameters and they were good to go. She’s a good example of a character where you are likely to get very limited permission from the author with a claim. She’s one of my lead characters. I have written three novels that feature her, at this point, as well as short stories. I have one more novel planned. That’s not saying I won’t share. It IS saying there’s a lot more canon around her than most characters outside of the mainline novels.
I have two other characters, sisters name Gude and Demuth. Another author needed a couple of nurses to send to the Three Leagues. They were both in training to be nurses and I no longer needed them at the point he needed nurses, so I modified what I was doing with them in my story a bit and handed them off. They are now mine up to a certain date, and his after that date.
Then I have Irene Flannery. She appeared for one paragraph, about three lines, in 1632. I asked for, and received, permission to write her backstory. She was only there as the only person to die in the Croat Raid, nothing more. There were two or three short stories that mentioned her, so I had to keep those in mind but really all anyone knew was that Irene was an old curmudgeon. I wrote an entire novel on her (Mrs. Flannery’s Flowers) and I’m told Eric said he couldn’t have imagined Irene that way. Irene died early on, but she keeps showing up in my stories. She also makes appearances in Gourmets of Grantville and Red Shield, and she’s going to be in at least one more novel. Irene was someone else’s character who was fully handed over to me, as were some invented down-timers.
The post below says that invented down-timers are owned by whoever created them. That’s true, to a point. If an author stops writing in the universse or releases their claim on a character, it’s up for grabs. In some cases where the characcter is more developed or plays a larger role in events, the editorial board/staff need to approve any new claim for the character.
The original comments were specifically about using one of Eric Flint’s characters, but the principle is the same no matter the author. Most instances of Eric’s name were switched to [the author] to hopefully in the first post make it more clear that these instructions aren’t specific to Eric, even though he was the one the original posts were about.
– Bethanne (Publisher, Eric Flint’s 1632 & Beyond magazine)
29 September 2017 18:26
Kerryn Offord (Gridmaster)
Any down-time character created by someone is owned by them. You never know, they might already have plans for them in the future, and have a back story already in place (Or after using the throwaway character, realize they need a character in the right place etc.. and use someone they have already created. Believe me, it happens all the time.).
You can start a thread in 1632 tech: “Ping [author], Permission to write a back story for an unnamed character in “. Even if [author] misses the thread in 1632Tech, one of the editors is likely to bring it to his notice (He is usually quite good about responding to direct pings… (But not those hidden in existing threads :))
Just tell [the author] that you would like to develop a back story for a currently unnamed character he used. Indicate the book, chapter, and if you have it, the page number. Copy and paste the paragraph in which the unnamed character you want to use appears (So [the author] can have context). Or, if copying from a paper book, include enough text that [the author] can identify who (and what event) you are talking about, and find the text in a digital version. Then lay out a brief description of what you want to do with him/her.
In your case. “Explain how he got to where he was on that day” (Or use the description you posted in your first post.) Unless [the author] has set plans for the individual, he will probably be happy for you to use him in a story (acceptance of the story is another matter).
Note that [the author] may choose to use the character again, using the back story you create (It saves him having to develop the back story himself :))
Additional Considerations
The character being discussed here was unnamed in the original novel they appeared in. Two comments very specific to that character were removed.
28 September 2017 17:18
first off..
Does Eric want to use this character again? If so, you need to check with him about back story. He may actually be happy to let you develop the character’s backstory.
As for the rest. As long as you keep it “historically accurate”…you should probably be safe. There is high politics, and then there is people being around when high politics happens. Concentrate on the lesser identities. Keep canon statements attributed to high figures to a minimum (or historic). Keep events consistent with existing canon and, really, I don’t see why there should be any problem…… If Eric is happy for you to play with the backstory of one of his characters (It is possible that someone…might become a “significant” character (as in, appear again, with a name….:)))
