If I remember right, I was still a few years shy to being in my 20s when somebody first plagiarized my writings online. It was ridiculous. The person, whose Internet moniker I've already forgotten, was smart enough to leave a comment on my Tabulas' chatbox, with a link to her blog. And there I found her love and abuse of copy/paste. I can't even remember what she thought was profound in my writings then, when all of those were just brain farts and personal rants, most of which were written in Tagalog. Aside from claiming my words as hers, what ticked me most is that she was her college paper's editor-in-chief (it waspublicly posted on her Friendster profile). Wasn't that just grand?

I messaged the twerp and told her how stealing is inappropriate. Fortunately, she didn't argue with me and, instead, she admitted her lameness and took down her unoriginal posts. That was fair enough, so I let it pass. I still wonder from time to time, though, if she actually made it as a professional editor or writer. Good for her if she did, but I hope she learned her lesson as early as then.

Because of my previous educational pursuits, it never occurred to me that I was going to be a writer someday. Fast-forward to now, I am aware that writing is one of my true loves and I've been working hard to make a credible name, in terms of publication. And it isn't that easy. Luckily, none of my writings have been stolen again (nothing that I am aware of). So, I'm thankful.

Everything is available on the Internet. Fact-wise, nothing is purely original anymore. 'Everything is a copy of a copy of a copy.' Hey, even this line was taken from a book/film. But anyway, what matters most is how you modify all those existing ideas, how you mold them as your own, and how you recognize what/who inspired you to make them. So, just a friendly reminder from yours truly:

Always give credit where it is due. This applies to all: pictures, texts, amateur photographers, famous writers, even the dead ones.
— Erin (@basterda) October 30, 2012

You don't have to be a genius to understand this; you just need to understand what respecting people means. You're welcome.
— Erin (@basterda) October 30, 2012

Or, ask permission. That's not too much to ask, anyway, isn't it?