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Everybody is the “Bad Art Friend”
Two Wrongs Are Just Wrong
I can’t believe I’m writing this. But it’s like an itch in my brain that I can’t scratch.
Ever since I read the infamous article entitled Who Is the Bad Art Friend?, I’ve been somewhat consumed by this harrowing, dramatic, and somewhat pathetic story of two (adult) female writers and their high school-like tendencies which have led to multiple lawsuits and now an NYT article. And I have a lot of feelings… most of which I’m going to talk about now.
To sum up: Dawn Dorland and Sonya Larson were in a petty grudge match over the fact that Larson plagiarized Dorland’s heartfelt — if not a little needy and self-congratulatory — letter to the person she donated a kidney to. Whatever you think about the lawsuits or either woman, Larson did plagiarize and turned someone she knew personally into the villain of a short story she wrote… then seemed surprised when said person found out. Then Dorland pitched the story to the NYT and now we all have to live with the knowledge of these two petty women.
But, I’m not here to talk about the ethics of writing from life — though if I was in Larson’s shoes, I would’ve made damn sure none of it was as recognizable as it turned out to be — or the line between plagiarism and inspiration. Nor am I going to talk about the absolute insanity…
