Ascension - The New Advertisement on the Main Page

[Kain S. Branford]

Well, in truth if you look at any name source you can find all sorts of connections. Ever hear of the Legacy of Kain series? And Branford? There's a town in my state called "Branford," as well as a small learning institute.

I can't fight there are some simularities, but the same could be said for a bulk of RPGs and fantasy based books. I wouldn't go saying this is an unofficial Final Fantasy because there's nothing final about the Age of the Twilgiht.

Let me first say that the fact that you've posted in this thread, Brandford, is extremely cool. Props to you. Truth be told, I honestly feel like buying your book now, because I'm intrigued (and if that's supposed to be your marketing ploy, then shame on you... =P)

That said, I suppose I don't understand why you used the names to begin with - yes, there are very obvious references in just about every piece of literature ever written, but usually all come from a credited source. The fact of the matter is that you could have very easily used different names and saved yourself a lot of hassle (both here and, possibly, as I understand it, the Court).

EDIT: Read your "rant" (more like a well-spoken defense). I see your point, though I don't necessarily agree with it. Yet it seems to me that the slightest thing one can do when drawing inspiration is to give credit TO that inspiration. I dunno - maybe a "Special Thanks to Squaresoft" in your Dedication?

References in literature happen everywhere- to the extent that acknowledging what was referenced just jumbles things up and takes away from the story itself. One of my literary heroes, Tomas Cahill, wrote a brilliant essay about how every story told today has a plot that can be traced back to the ancient myths and legends. There are stories which would cause some of you, if they were written today, to demand that a works-cited page be added. The Incans have a story about a great flood that forced a man and his family and all of the animals onto the tallest mountain top. They were sad on that mountain and no one spoke. When the floods diminished, everyone had been quiet for so long that they spoke different languages. That is an obvious "rip-off" of the Bible, but the Incans never heard the Bible. Gilgamesh, FFV, was a hero stolen from the first epic poem we have on record. Many of the espers are either historical or religious figures. That god-awful movie Water World should have acknowledged FF3 for its "the world has been flooded" idea (this one is a stretch). I remember Bannon telling a story that is obviously a rip off of the Pandora's box myth. Mirthil? I'm pretty sure J.R.R. Tolkein used that phrase before the FF series. The Knights of Round... Materia? Several episodes of the Simpsons are rip offs of the Twilight Zone (all of the older Halloween episodes for example, the newer ones are horrible).
My English textbooks since middle school have successfully broken down every story into one of four categories: Man against Man, Man against Nature, Man against Society, or Man versus Himself. I've tried to think of another conflict for a story that won't bore the audience to tears, and I can't think of one (but I'd be interested to hear your theories). A good writer doesn't think up of a new type of conflict. They tell the same stories that have been told since humans have existed, but the better stories tell the same story in a new way, from a new perspective. No story you will ever read is original; it is just told differently. You may disagree, but when you break it down into its smallest elements, it is clear.
The logistics of referencing everything you write are too big because a good story is full of these kinds of allusions. The better stories hide them well; so when you finally recognize them (let's say, four months after reading it), you reach an intellectual high known as an epiphany. This epiphany can only be reached if you draw the conclusion yourself without having someone spoon-feed it to you.
Whew.
I can rant with the best of them.

[Mike McC]

Okay, 1) Atma isn't really a name in FF6. It's more of a bad translation of Ultima. Okay?

2) Its not as if he uses blatently obvious names, like Squall, or Tidus, or Cloud, or any other kinda water-related name Square seems so keen of. As he's stated, thay're all fairly common. These are more of a nod, a reference, perhaps a little 'members only' joke for FF Fans, but plagerism? I think basing a claim of plagerism off of some NAMES without actually reading the book is extremely harsh, and very presumptuous.

3) Kain S. Branford, I think once my income tax return comes in, I shall purchase a copy of your book, as it does indeed look quite groovy.

[Kain S. Branford]

Well, I'm glad all the concerns and bases have been covered. While there's still a looming debate overhead due to the premise and inspirational sources, I hope a good degree of you will give Age of the Twilight: Ascension a chance. I'm certainly flattered by those of you intending to check it out.

I'll be around the board for a while, so if anyone has future concerns having read the book, I'd be glad to answer them. I did advertise on NuklearPower for a reason, and that's simply because out of all the people who do read, most of you are most likely to appreciate this than any other reader. And hey, if you don't like it, think of it this way... your money and sour response will cast me into the pit that so many hack authors, and awful, AWFUL novel-to-movie adaptations have gone before. Well, that is if the dislike is unanimous... in which case, I'll pack my bags.

C'est la vie

[Hamelin]

Originally Posted by Ghost Who Walks

That god-awful movie Water World should have acknowledged FF3 for its "the world has been flooded" idea (this one is a stretch).

My American Studies Teacher Mr. Mead claims he wrote a better screenplay version of Waterworld, which was stolen from him when some people from Hollywood were visiting his college campus. About two years after the date he said this happened Waterworld came out...

I suppose what I'm arguing, and will continue to argue, is that S-E deserves credit for the inspiration that they gave you, Branford. Now, I'm not, as Ghost seems to be stating, arguing that one should credit every source one uses for inspiration in the foreward of one's novel. Here's how I, personally, see it.

The difference between using, say, the name "Apollo" as opposed to "Cecil of Baron" is that "Apollo" is a part of Greek mythology, which is the heritage of the entire world as part of it's history, whereas "Cecil of Baron" was thought up by a company that still exists today. S-E, unlike the Ancient Romans and Greeks, hasn't bequeathed it's entire library of legends and characters to the world.

The same holds true for the Bible, and perhaps even Tolkien (as he essentially started the fantasy genre, though it existed in alternate form with the medieval romance). These works are part of the history of mankind, and are, thus, public domain. On the flip side, S-E's creations are private property, and, although no laws were broken as far as I can tell, rights were still at least mildly infringed upon.

[Kain S. Branford]

Actually, Sonata, I made a note of that recently on my F.A.Q.'s section on my website. While it may seem a bit of a diversion to answer a quesiton with a question, I'll try anyway. How exactly should I show credit for S-E for the inspiration I got from them? The Cecil Lightwind I have from the Quadra Order's Baron is, at best, a tribute, and if asked I'll say "yeah, got the inspiration from Final Fantasy 4." It also works into a point of my story I won't give out just yet.

The Baron in my story doesn't even remain with its name through the duration, the name changes as the plot changes. There's a point where S-E didn't go out of its way to inspire me, so I'm not going to go out of my way to credit them with a seperate page on my book. But like I said, if asked, I'll say "Final Fantasy 4, man... good sh*t."

I can understand your point-of-view, I did expect something like this after all. There is a bit of planning of it (yes, shame on me), but it's very difficult for a beginning author to catch the attention of potentials. And this is only my humble beginning.

To answer your question, something like, "Special Thanks to Square-Enix for great games and greater inspiration," is not at all unheard of.

But I do see your point, though I don't agree with it.