: Re: Dealing with potential copyright issues: manga I have been spinning yarn around Kuchiyose Edo Tensei, a reincarnation technique I came across in the popular anime/manga series Naruto. Further developing

@Candy753

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DISCLAIMER: I am not a legal professional. The advice provided in this answer is not exhaustive and should not be considered complete.
This information is worth exactly what you paid for it - nothing. If
you want to do your own research, you may use this answer as a
starting place, along with other research tools (search engines,
etc.). If you are still unsure after this answer, please consult a
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In General

The answer is heavily dependent on whether those terms have been a part of Japanese culture for a long time or the terms were made up by the mangaka (Masashi Kishimoto in the case of Naruto). It would be unwise to go forward assuming that this is one of the many instances where manga is loosely based on Japanese mythology/folklore. Some time should be spent researching Japanese culture and mythology/folklore regarding reincarnation and bloodlines (especially the relation between the two).

If the terms are original works, or, in other words, created by the mangaka, then the mangaka probably has rights to the terms (much like George Lucas and Lucas arts have a copyright on the word "Droid"). If, from your research, the words are old and have been used in works before his, then you should be safe.

The concepts behind Kuchiyose Edo Tensei and kekkei genkai would probably be fine for use under a different name, especially if modified to a certain extent. You would need to come up with your own terms, and you'd probably be safer making the terms significantly different from what the mangaka used. You will still want to do that research though.

In short, make sure to do some thorough and careful research about the concepts and ideas behind Kuchiyose Edo Tensei and kekkei genkai and their connections to Japanese culture, mythology, and folklore, before taking the next step. Copyright is a landmine you don't want to step on.

Fan Fiction

Works of Fan Fiction are an interesting gray area. Generally, fan fiction is in the same boat as any other work. It is a violation of copyright. However, works of fan fiction are rarely acted upon (otherwise, such sites as fanfiction.net would not exist). You still need to be careful when writing fan fiction, though. When writing a Fan Fiction work, you need to make sure to do a few things:

NEVER use a work of fan fiction for profit. This can and will get you in big trouble. Charging for the work also affects the damages in court if you end up getting sued.
Don’t use real people’s names unless you know them and/or have gotten their permission.
Make sure the author is not on any list of authors who would not like you to write fan fictions (one such list is hosted on fanfiction.net).
Use a pen name (for the unlikely event of someone actually pursuing copyright laws related to fanfics).

Guidelines and clarifications concerning what is and what is not a violation of copyright are in Brad Templeton's article, 10 Big Myths about copyright explained. This applies to all works, fan fiction or otherwise. More information is available in the FAQs on Fanfic, etc. on vampwriter.com. More information, in a very well-summarized form, is in this post on Yahoo! Answers. All of these are worth a good read.

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