Chapter 105: The King of Fanfiction

Writing is a profession marked by extreme polarization. If someone like Zhang Bowen only occasionally publishes a novel, it’s simply not enough to support oneself. But if one has several bestsellers under their belt, even if they never write again for the rest of their life, starvation would never be an issue.

To achieve financial freedom, a million yuan is far from sufficient—especially since Zhang Chu hasn’t even received that money yet; it’s merely a projected figure. He was going to spend the next few years in Yanjing and had originally considered buying a small place for himself. But since his rebirth occurred in 2018, not 2008, that million wouldn’t even be enough to buy a house anymore.

“Ah, money—no matter how much you earn, it’s never enough!” Zhang Chu lamented, patting his head. His primary goal was to gain prestige; earning a little money along the way was a welcome bonus.

But the key issue now was that this was his first time attending a seemingly high-level literary summit. What exactly awaited him at this mystery and suspense literature conference? He hoped he wouldn’t make a fool of himself.

He wanted to consult some senior writers who had been there before, but to his surprise, he didn’t know a single mystery or detective fiction author. His standing was embarrassingly weak.

In the mystery writing group formed by Gu Xinxue, Zhang Chu noticed that whenever he chimed in, hardly anyone responded. Many harbored suspicion or jealousy toward this suddenly popular newcomer. Those who were more neutral wouldn’t greet him out of politeness. Over time, he became like a stealth submarine, invisible and isolated.

His altercation with Qin Mu had somewhat influenced others’ impressions of him. After all, Qin Mu was a veteran in the detective fiction world, and to show respect, others gradually distanced themselves from Zhang Chu.

...

“What? Zhang Chu was invited to the mystery literature summit? What qualifications does he have?” Li Siwei nearly smashed his mouse in frustration.

Though the summit received little media coverage outside the industry, for insiders it was a mark of recognition—proof that you had truly entered the core creative circle.

Li Siwei was hailed as the rising star of detective fiction in the first half of the year. But since Zhang Chu’s sudden emergence in June, whenever potential young authors were mentioned, everyone instinctively picked Zhang Chu over him.

This was only natural. By every measure, Li Siwei was no match for Zhang Chu; they weren’t even on the same level. Li’s book "Escape from Murder Island," released on February 20, sold fewer than 100,000 copies in six months—a decent figure for a newcomer but still short of summit standards.

Meanwhile, Zhang Chu’s “Detective Sherlock,” published less than two months ago, had sold over 500,000 copies. It was a contender for this year’s best-selling mystery novel and unquestionably the strongest newcomer.

No matter how unwilling Li Siwei was to accept it, the facts were undeniable. His own performance indicators simply couldn’t compare. The gap between the two newcomers was vast.

“If my books had that kind of promotion, I’d have sales like that too,” Li Siwei muttered bitterly, forgetting the overwhelming praise he once received from Nanhai Publishing as the future hope of Chinese detective fiction.

“I hope he embarrasses himself at the event,” he sneered.

...

“Not good! Brother Chu, the fan fiction authors are all trembling! How’s it on your end?” Fude Yu, who always followed online novels, sent Zhang Chu a voice message, his tone filled with concern.

What could Zhang Chu say? This was purely an unfortunate misunderstanding.

The long-dormant martial arts community had suddenly been shaken by a major incident: the octogenarian martial arts master Hua Ye had sued Beifei, the third-ranked author on last year’s wealthy writers list, demanding he halt publication of the novel “Qimen Weapons” and pay damages of five million yuan.

For the eighty-year-old Hua Ye, this was a rare bold move in recent years. Following the news, Beifei quickly responded, admitting that “Qimen Weapons” was a fan fiction work and did indeed infringe upon Hua Ye’s rights.

This matter had nothing to do with Zhang Chu at all. Yet when discussions about the commercialization of fan fiction arose, inevitably, Zhang Chu’s name was dragged into the spotlight.

After all, Zhang Chu rose to fame with “Detective Sherlock,” and even international foundations issued statements condemning it. Would this work one day face a lawsuit?

Except for “Psychological Crime,” an original piece, Zhang Chu’s ongoing work “Journey to the West Diary” was also a fan fiction adaptation of the classic “Journey to the West.” Online, he was even dubbed the “King of Fan Fiction.”

Since ancient times, there has never been a definitive first place in literature or martial arts. The title “King of Fan Fiction” was, in essence, putting Zhang Chu on a blazing hot stove.

Now with Hua Ye’s lawsuit against Beifei emerging, all eyes turned to Zhang Chu, waiting for his inevitable downfall.

In truth, fan fiction has always existed. For example, “The Plum in the Golden Vase,” strictly speaking, is a fan work based on “Water Margin.” The internet merely amplified its popularity.

Moreover, fan fiction now extends beyond literature—films, games, and even comics abound with fan-created works. Fan fiction has become a significant promotional tool for entertainment products.

Zhang Chu’s “Detective Sherlock” was, in fact, an officially sanctioned promotional piece inspired by the film “The Great Detective Holmes.” It became a representative work of fan fiction due to its publication and commercial success.

Fan fiction inevitably borrows heavily from original plots and characters, which are protected under intellectual property laws like the Berne Convention.

However, the law does not entirely close the door on the commercialization of fan fiction. Works like Zhang Chu’s “Detective Sherlock” no longer infringe once the original copyrights expire.

Another example abroad is “Fifty Shades of Grey,” which originated from fan fiction on the “Twilight” vampire novel forums. The protagonists were modeled after “Twilight’s” leads, yet this did not hinder “Fifty Shades” from achieving immense commercial success.

The author repeatedly revised the text to deliberately avoid proprietary terms from the original, retaining only its spirit.

This is somewhat akin to common tropes in online novels: many writers churn out stories about broken engagements or underdog protagonists. Though some plots and scenes may be similar, they don’t constitute infringement.

It’s no exaggeration to say that Hua Ye’s lawsuit has sent shockwaves through the fan fiction community. The future of fan fiction’s commercialization now rests heavily on Zhang Chu. The fate of his two works will influence countless others.

In a sense, “Detective Sherlock” serves as a guiding beacon.