Is fan fiction protected by copyright law?

In Washington, fan fiction is not automatically protected by copyright law. Generally, copyright law protects creative and original works by keeping them from unauthorized use or replication. Therefore, fan fiction, which is based on an existing copyrighted work, may not be protected by copyright law. However, there are exceptions. Fan fiction may be protected by copyright law if the author of the fan fiction can show that the work is an original transformation of the copyrighted source material. In addition, if the fan fiction is a parody of the original copyrighted work, it may be protected by copyright law as long as the parody does not replace the original work. It is important to be aware that even if fan fiction is protected by copyright law, the author of the fan fiction may not have the right to reproduce or distribute the fan fiction without the permission of the creator of the original work. This means that even if the fan fiction is protected by copyright law, the author would need to obtain permission from the original creator in order to share it. Overall, fan fiction is not automatically protected by copyright law in Washington. The author must demonstrate that their fan fiction is an original transformation of the source material, or that it is a parody of the original work. Additionally, the author must obtain permission from the original creator before they can share their fan fiction.

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