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The Tension Between Copying and Creating

Posted by AndrewMason on Jun 16, 2009

copycreate

This is a Guest Post by Andrew Mason. You can follow him on Twitter: @Bayshorts.

I’ll admit it. I’m guilty.

I copy ideas all the time. Website designs, css styles, original content….I even tweepeat without due credit. And this question plagues my mental backburner:

At what point does modeling & tweaking original material become copying?

Sure, you can add your own color scheme or snag a font here or there, but when are your “creations” just carbons of someone’s good substance? When is blog fodder just an aggregate of other people’s writing & research ability?

If other “successful” churches are web-campusing their services, should your church follow suite? Is it alright to “open-source” and tweak? And at what point does an original idea belong “to the public?”

Twyla Tharp’s “The Creative Habit” hits on the tension between creating something original & copying those that have gone before you, and this idea easily translates online. She argues that in order to become great, you copy anything talented people have already created. Learn by doing, but add your own flair to the creation. When do the lines blur enough that you can claim a technology, blog subject, or even entire website design as your own?

The concept of “social media” would never have existed in it’s current form without twitter, facebook, myspace, email, and bulletin boards preceding it. So, is copy/tweaking an okay thing?

In the so-called “Church-World,” how much of it is really up for grabs?

Does it matter who gets credit as long as God gets credit?

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AndrewMason

Andrew Mason is a contributer for Church Crunch & "Media Guy" for Bay Shore Community Church. When he's not writing or making videos, he can be spotted running, taking apart iphones, tweetering, and ordering "embarrassing-to-pronounce" coffee drinks (i.e. Caramel-Frappuccino-Macchiato-Panini).You can email him here: Andy [at] bayshorecc [dot] org.

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10 Responses to “The Tension Between Copying and Creating”

  1. Julie
    Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 2:21 pm

    Solomon said it himself: There is nothing new under the sun. I don't see a problem unless the person copying claims undue credit.

    Reply
    • human3rror
      Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 2:23 pm

      good stuff. also need to be aware of the licensing that the person is under as well.

      Reply
  2. Jim
    Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 3:13 pm

    love me some twyla tharp…i use her box idea…

    Reply
    • AndrewMason
      Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 8:59 pm

      Absolutely. I love her "scratching" concept. There's creativity to be found everywhere!

      Reply
  3. JakeSchwein
    Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 3:36 pm

    You would get a different response from the original artist and the copier!!!

    Reply
  4. stephenbateman
    Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 5:37 pm

    Well Shakespeare probably didn't actually write many of "his" plays..but we credit them to him, call him a "great playwright" and all.

    Something I've always appreciated about Mark Driscoll is his intentional citation of material that isn't his own. I think getting inspiration about multi-site from NorthPoint or online church from LifeChurch is phenomenal and can save you tons of work. But taking Andy or Craig's sermon outline and repreaching it as your own is unethical…Where is the line?

    Reply
    • Adam_S
      Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 11:40 pm

      Or at least preaching it as if it were your own.

      Reply
  5. AndrewMason
    Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 8:57 pm

    This is absolutely what I'm wrestling with. Is it wrong that the gospel's being preached if someone else preaches what you came up with? Or you "stood on their shoulders"? Or copied & tweaked their code? Why have sermon outlines available to the public to begin with if you don't already assume people'll usse 'em? And if I were to preach Craig's sermon verbatim, am I trying to build MY church and not God's?

    Reply