: Re: Legal ramifications for writing about fictional relationships with celebs I’m thinking about developing a blog where the main character is fictional and has fictional relationships with well known

@Megan928

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I'm not a lawyer and my answer is based on the writing workshops I attended years ago.

At workshop, I was told that celebrities in your story ought to be "minor characters" so that the reader doesn't lose focus on your main characters. For instance, you might your main character see a (celebrity) Jane Doe concert with their boyfriend/girlfriend, and then react to something that she might have said or done at such a concert (as long as it is not clearly out of character). Here, the connection with the celebrity is "incidental," and it's understood that such a public figure would say or do things that impact the lives of millions of people, (hopefully) in a positive way. As long as these interactions are "random," your characters can go about their business (and Jane can go about hers) without being "the worse off for the wear."

The problem may arise if you allege that your fictitious character dated Jane, or was her BFF. Then the statements in your novel could potentially impact Jane's life, and if that's the case, it could be actionable, depending on the circumstances.

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