: Re: Making modern references I'm working on a modern fiction drama in an urban setting. I'm trying to be real in terms of conversation threads--music, movies, drugs, etc. Here's my problem: I've

@Bethany377

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I get it... that's the way people talk!
especially movie quotes.
if someone doesn't 'get' one of my Patrick Bateman quotes or Silence of the Lambs quotes/references, they have no business hanging out with me (being close to Halloween ... these examples come to mind)

"Do you like Huey Lewis & The News?"

"[Fredericka Bimmel] ... oh yeah...was she like ... a big fat chick?"

these sort of quotes are so tightly bound to popular culture; as you've assumed there is no real legal risk in having your characters drop quotes or lines from songs in their dialogue.

they aren't "significant enough in comparison to the body of the original work," to be legitimately actionable; ok that's the only phrase in legal-ese in this answer.

if you'll recall, Silvio Dante aka The Soprano Family Consigliere aka the bass player from The E-Street Band was constantly dropping quotes from "*The Godfather" trilogy in the script. My assumption is that David Chase wrote in Steven Van Zant's over-referencing of the film because Van Zant dropped these lines all the time to amuse himself and Chase picked on its organic useful-ness in the writing of this series. At no time would Chase Films or HBO be under any threat of
litigation for this... if anything the copyright holders probably saw revenue off the "modern references," bringing a whole new generation into the fold of people who love (and quote) the films, especially the 1st two.

By definition; nothing should ever be "off-limits" to a writer. Topics are bounded only by the writer (and editor/mktg/publisher/legal/proofreader as appl)
only limits I have for myself is that the idea of kids getting hurt really bothers me, so it's rare that a fictional character in one of my stories would do this; even one designed to be despicable.

This, of course, doesn't stop me in my non-fiction work from attacking what we call "blue-banders" or "cho-mo's" in the LA/OC Metro area.

I hope that I define the "progressive, open-minded thinker" that is only an extreme conservative when it comes to The Constitution. Therefore; taboo subjects do not exist.

the more your characters speak like real people do, on the street, in the present, the more understandishable your dialogs be...and the more your audience connect with your characters on a realistic/emotional level. if any of this makes sense you're on the right track, Stu.

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