: Re: Is it permitted to mention a real life work of fiction in your story? I am working on a new project that draws influence from a currently running television show. What I want to do is make

You're probably worried about "defamation" when you fear "mentioning" a real life story

Defamation occurs when you say something that is:

certifiably untrue
as a statement of fact, not opinion
that is highly offensive to a reasonable person.

Your statement, "we're not anything like that show" doesn't meet any of these tests. It can't be proven or disproven (not certifiably untrue), because it is a statement of opinion, not fact. Nor is it highly offensive to a reasonable person (everyone has their own view of what is like or unlike something).

You would be on shakier ground if you said something like, "Show X is pornographic." That is something that:

can be disproven
can be taken as a statement of fact
would be offensive to most people.

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: Re: Is it permitted to mention a real life work of fiction in your story? I am working on a new project that draws influence from a currently running television show. What I want to do is make

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: Can success create its own crisis? I am writing a story with a three crisis structure. The first is an external crisis that has the hero rushing to the rescue of the heroine. Then their relationship

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