This is the Internet. I’m sure this has happened to many of us. You bust your ass on a piece and feel confident enough to show it off to everyone, hoping it will be well received, and add another peg to your list of accomplishment. Then you look and see that shufflewaffle787 or some other villain has gone about claiming your work as their own.
In the past I used to flip my ever loving shit when that happened. I would contact administration, file complaints, and by the time I got it down the process has drained me of my creativity. Now when it happens I feel very different about it. When someone passes off my stuff as their own it is bitter sweet. On one hand they are theives and on the other hand they liked my shit so much that they ran with it.
Something about what I did was worth stealing. Crazy right? To think that way. What if they make money off it? What if they get famous? Well, we have seen that happen and it is very hard to win against those situations. Even though they have taken a bit of your work they can’t take all of you. They don’t have your vision.
Example I worked on a story with a group of friends. I built the premise , defined the characters, wrote the script, etc. Long story short there was a falling out and we split. It was a year later I saw my material appear on you tube in the form of a Web series. I was furious I was looking for blood but then I figured, let me watch it. I did and too my surprise IT WAS TERRIBLE. It was poorly received , low views, and was sloppily put together. They literally ran it into the ground and you know why? They stole the concept but not the heart.
Now I may sound a bit egotistical here. Why would your iteration not fail just the same? Well, if you aren’t confident in your work it will fail regardless. I’m certain had it been done with the proper attention to detail, careful planning, and casting it would have been better by degrees. Point is, after that I was hit with a realization. I’m not writing for fame, I’m not creating to be known, I’m just looking to express myself in the only way I know how. If I can get people to understand and know my brand, my style, my way, the theives will slowly start to disappear and the only thing left will be the source.