Megan McCafferty is one classy lady.

She isn't seeking restitution in any form.

And, of course, in case you haven't heard -- Opal has been recalled. 

(How, out of the hundreds of articles on the topic, did I pick that one?  I just couldn't resist the utter LAME-o-sity of the headline.  "Not Novel Enough"?  If you're going to make a pun, at least try for a slightly less obvious one.  Not that I can think of one, but I'm not a headline writer, am I?  Also, it's early and I haven't eaten yet.  Brain is still warming up.)

The article at the NYT is much better, actually.  Read that one instead.

Okay.  I've read in several articles that KV "confessed to copying passages", but as far as I can tell, she still hasn't done that -- she's said that it was unintentional, that she has a photographic memory, blah-di-blah, but I haven't seen an actual CONFESSION.  Just a lot of excuses.

Am I being too harsh?  I don't really think so.  Plagiarism is gross.  As are excuses.

Comments

[Liz B]

I am fast becoming fascinated by the part of this we will never know: the "back room" stuff. First, for the writing -- who wrote what; what part came from an editor; what part from a packager. Second, was it "real". I think the hardest parts of writing can be those "little" moments that establish voice,place, etc in a few words. Precisely those parts that were taken from Megan McC. I've heard it recommended to take books you like and highlight them with different colors to see how authors "do" it -- establish character, transition a scene, etc. So I really would love to look at KV's copies of the books at issue. Third, who was involved with KV's recent interviews? How much say did the publisher & packager have in what KV was and was not saying?

As for the photographic memory/I never take notes defense to plagiarism, I am appalled at how stupid KV is; or her handlers. Because this? Worst. Excuse. Ever. Because now, every thing she ever did or does, for school, work, publishing, needs to be closely examined because KV has established, via her own words, that she has may be copying from someone and just not know it.