umm... ok.

Is it me or do they sound flat? Should probably get some professional recordings/mixing done and more practice time (not in that order).

Yeah, this was stolen from me and my Kickstarter campaign to self-publish the novel about my true story of the one and half-year long quest I went on to get my trilogy scripts to the rock band Green Day and the crazy, meandering journey, only to have Green Day take my ideas, cut me out and apply it to the album trilogy they're currently promoting. The quest started in April 2011, and hey, began when I woke up from a dream. Imagine that. But, ya know, I'm sure it's just a coincidence.

The link to the campaign for my novel with additional information is www.kickstarter.com/projects/214964393/weird-shit-and-coincidences

I wrote the book as a way to come to terms with what happened and to help me heal from it. You know, it takes a special kind of evil to steal from someone's pain and dreams. What the freak kind of person steals from a kickstarter campaign?!

My story is copyrighted and registered with WGA, and I will not hesitate to sue this band if they don't stop this immediately and take down this video. Please let them know before I get a lawyer.

Sincerely,

Melissa Webster

Freelance Journalist/Blogger for Huffington Post

@melissaswebster

We don't even know who you are or what you do. People have similar dreams. Don't be so close minded and feel that people are out to get you. Our quest has nothing to do with you or whatever it is you're involved with. We're trying to open for No Doubt.. that has nothing to do with what you've stated here. Best wishes to you, but next time don't assume... and don't spread rumors.. its all just noise. ;)

Are you stuck on stupid? So let me get this straight you WRITE something for Green Day to use and Noise of Rumors is striving to PERFORM/TOUR with a Grammy award winning band and that’s grounds for them of stealing your idea? Hahahahahahahaha wow then you really are an idiot to think that their dreams are anything similar to yours. Since you can't seem to grasp the concept of what it is they are trying to do let me break it down for you.... they are working on getting their own name out there. Now how does that sound like they're stealing your idea? Because again it’s for themselves to be noticed not to sit and they’re and write something to hand over to someone else. It’s about working with someone to help them get noticed for their MUSIC... not sit on the sidelines and be in the background such as you. I checked out your lame campaign on kickstarter sorry to say not only did it suck in creativity but also it is NOTHING and I repeat NOTHING like NOR's idea to put themselves out there and get noticed… the only thing I can give you that seems to be in common is the fact you both are trying to make a name for yourselves...so I guess you better get a really good lawyer and start suing the entire entertainment industry because I guess everyone in it stole your idea too! Jealousy is an ugly color on you sweetheart.

Sincerely,

Alyse

Melissa, if what youa re saying is true...see what file "sharing" leads to?

Anybody's art is fair game for the taking.

Exactly! It's destroying the creative industries, especially music.

Don't worry. Her claims are false. I didn't know having a dream was copywritten. We also didn't know using the word "quest" was created by her as well. 

Oh, don't even get me started on file sharing and online piracy. I know exactly what you mean. This generation has no decency or respect for art, or the artists, musicians, filmmakers and writers they claim to "support". They're so self-centered, self-righteous and narcissistic, they feel they're entitled to whatever they want and everything is their's for the taking, and don't care even a little how that impacts the people they steal from.

And yes, it's true. They stole the premise of my book, which happens to be a true story and are making a "documentary" off it and claiming it's their own story. They weren't even creative enough to change the language so it wasn't so obvious. They used the same exact premise and used the same exact language to describe it. Idiots. If you're going to steal someone's work and ideas, at least be smart about it.

What the heck is a "volgumentary" anyway?

The greatest ideas are stolen...

I really wish that made me feel better about it. But I haven't even had time to process and get over what Green Day did before I'm having to deal with this crap. It's like having my heart ripped out twice.

Just watched your kickstarter expire with $335 of $2,000 pledged. I get that you're pissed, but I'll go out on a limb & say the band probably never saw your kickstarter. Also very surprised you couldn't get a book as imaginatively titled as "Weird Shit & Coincidences" funded.

What you wrote is called "fan fiction" & it belongs on web forums, not bookshelves. You think you're the only person who's ever tried to get their fan fiction in the hands of a band? lol.

Talk about narcissistic...

Uh, no. I'm a professional screenwriter and also a music journalist for Huffington Post. My work was professional work to pitch to the band for consideration, which is why it was copyrighted. It was never presented on any forum as "fanfiction," and I made that very clear. And even as fanfiction, it is still copyrighted and people aren't allowed to steal it. Grow up.

And my book was never even put on a forum or anywhere else on the Internet. It is an actual book I wrote about my personal true story experience to get my scripts to Green Day. Since I spend a lot of time conversing with underground bands and fans, especially in California, and write about them regularly, it is very likely the band saw my Kickstarter campaign or heard about my story. Either way, the proof is in my copyright. Unfortunately, this isn't a coincidence.

Did you patent some method of pestering original content creators to promote your derivative works?

I really don't see how this infringement could've occurred, if your fan fiction was never published & your manuscript (about the trials & tribulations of a fan fiction author) was never published.

And have you ever googled "help us open for"?

Using a lot of bullshit legalease doesn't make you sound any smarter about this subject.

Creative work doesn't have to be published to be copyrighted and legally protected. They're two completely separate things.

My SCREENPLAYS are not and never were "fanfiction," and you continuously calling them fanfiction in your effort to diminish their significance doesn't actually make them fanfiction. And like I said before, even fanfiction is legally protected.

And my BOOK is a book, novel, copyrighted non-fiction document meant for publication. Calling it fanfiction or a manuscript in order to diminish its significance doesn't actually make it one either. And by the way, nonfiction means that it isn't fiction, so calling it fanfiction just makes you look pretty ridiculous.

The concept of my book, based on my true story, IS copyrighted. Since the band stole the concept of my book AND therefore my actual true story, I have valid grounds to sue, as well as the proof I need to win.

I don't have a problem with them being inspired by my methods and using it to go after their own dream. In fact, I encourage them to do so and hope they succeed. But I DO have a problem with them creating a documentary based on a lie and hijacking my own story and creative work in the process. I want the video removed or for them to change the premise and the language so it isn't EXACTLY like my own story.

Besides that, I seriously doubt No Doubt would be too impressed by a band that lied to gain their sympathy. The band needs to find their own voice and come up with their own unique story instead of stealing mine.

A work does need to be "published' in order for copyright protection.  Any first year law student knows that.  Maybe it's what you get for liking Green Day. They suck and so do you. (and Huffington Post)

We really don't even understand what it is that you are claiming as yours. Maybe instead of posting threats you should have tried contacting us if you had some sort of problem. We're sorry you feel this way but we never heard of you or your kickstarter project. You don't know us and you don't know what we've gone thru to get where we are. Just as we don't know about you and yours. Like I said.. our best regards to you. It's a shame we didn't see this sooner and stop the lies before they spread.  

you are very NARCISSTIC to think that because of who you claim to be that the band had to of seen your kickstarter im sorry say youre a nobody not even I have heard of it you or youre so called story or quest of whatever you want to call it and I can promise you I'm not the only because like i said you're a nobody and youre feeding off someone else's recognition. jealous much?

Ideas aren't protected by copyright.  Get legal advice before you start throwing out threats.

All the greatest artists have stolen, appropriated, misappropriated, and been inspired by the ideas of those that came before them.  If you had a case, you would have sued by now.

lol, you can't sue

lol, yeah, I really can.

At the very least, I can get YouTube to remove the video because they're using a premise that is so obviously copyrighted and documented already. Not to mention, they're undermining my work by claiming my story, which again, is copyrighted, as their own.

They would have been smarter to have at the very least, changed the language instead of using my own copyrighted words verbatim.

And then there's the issue of them lying about their "true" story in order to garner sympathy to get No Doubt to give them a chance, because there's no way in hell it's a coincidence and we had the same exact experience.

Just out of curiosity, can you provide proof of the alleged verbatim copyright infringement?

Yes. On the Kickstarter fundraising site, as well as with the book itself. Not to mention, it's my own personal true story and language I've been using to describe it for the last 1.5 years.

you know NOTHING of this band to even make such a claim that their story isnt even true.. thats like saying your isnt true because i can promise you "stole" your ideas from someone else too. YOUR IDEA IS NOT ORGINAL. quit hating on someone because they have achieved so much more and got so much higher than your stupid story 

I wish more bands took the initiative.

Your site's commenting feature just reposts the original post as a comment. Ya know, there's a little program called WordPress that powers about 20 million sites and works quite well. You should give it a try.

I was going to say.... My band opened for No Doubt in 1996. Not that big of a deal. Another non-story.

No Doubt opened for MY BAND in 1986...

Ideas and facts are not copyrightable.  The expression of those ideas and/or facts in a fixed medium of expression are copyrightable.  Thus, if this band took your idea and riffed off of it, without actually copying the words from your book, or the images from your book, etc., then you have a thin copyright infringement case.

If you were correct in your copyright infringement analysis that ideas or facts are copyrightable, then we wouldn't have two TV shows called "Modern Family" and "The New Normal", or two movies called "A Bugs Life" and "Antz" (released in the same year), etc. etc.  If the ideas are the same or substantially similar, BUT the expression of those ideas are different, OR, they use similar scenes a faire (traditionally used relationships, scenes, characters, dramas, tropes, etc.), then again, you probably have a very thin infringement case.

Again, you have to own a copyright in the work (check - registration is not necessarily required btw); the alleged infringer has to have access to your work (check, allegedly via kickstarter, though you'd have to prove that even circumstantially); and actual copying, or substantial similarity between actual expressions of ideas in a tangible medium.

The words they use to describe the mission are taken verbatim from the way my "quest" is described in the video and synopsis on my Kickstarter campaign, and are reinforced in my book, again verbatim. And again, it's my true life event story, which automatically belongs to me.

In fact, on the Kickstarter page, there's an image of an excerpt from my book that begins with the chapter title of "Quest," along with a description.

The video on my Kickstarter page describes my "quest" in the exact same sequence this band describes their's in their video. The similiarities are so ridiculously the same, and the language is so ridiculously the same, I honestly don't understand why they would even do this. Why would they want to present themselves to a band they want to take them seriously by hijacking someone else's story in such an obvious way? It's completely unprofessional. They could have easily gotten inspired by my story and created something unique of their own, without using my language and premise, and undermining my story in the process.

I swear, sometimes I really hate Green Day and wish I'd never heard their music or created these scripts or cared enough to try to collaborate with the band, because the people on the underground music scene freaking suck and I'm so sick of dealing with them.

Melissa's complaint is so sad.  I watched he Kickstarter video.  Nothing compelling there.  Not a new idea at all.  Nobody cares that she thinks Green Day used her idea.  That line is a dime a dozen in the entertainment business.

The bands attempt to open for No Doubt was more engaing and had more real story elements, but still nothing new either.

Spend more time creating compelling content.

You're right. It is really sad. It's sad that Green Day takes what they want from my work and takes credit for it as if it was their's and nobody cares because it's so common in this industry.

What's even sadder is that you consider this band's story elements more compelling than mine even though they're exactly the same and they modeled what they did after my own "quest."

What's even sadder than THAT is that MY scripts were original and compelling enough for Green Day to steal from them, confirming they weren't just typical fanfiction, yet my work is dismissed as fanfiction and I'm dismissed as a disgruntled and unrealistic writer.

What's even sadder than THAT is that my work and my quest were original and compelling enough that Noise of Rumors did the same exact thing, yet you insult me.

What's even sadder than THAT is they stole their story from my story about Green Day stealing from me.

The whole thing is a giant slap in the face and all of it was unnecessary, and only denotes a lack of originality on both Green Day's part and this band. Yet I'm the only one getting hurt by it.

Melissa, you are a terrible, ignorant person.  I understand you feel slighted, but the law isn't going to change to accomodate your feelings. No one cares about your story (as evidenced by your Kickstarter campaign) and no one cares about Green Day (as evidenced by Green Day's music since "Dookie").  Just give it up.

hahaha oh wow...if only you knew how this idea actually started... and trust me it wasnt from your bullshit. :)

youre just a sad pathetic person consumed by jealousy. 

Dear Melissa, 

Go fall off the face of the earth and then shoot yourself in the brain simultaneously.

YOU DESERVE NOTHING. 

Love, 

Everyone

lol sue an unknown band tried caused if you sued green day, you'd just get lol'ed by the world. haha 

Melissa,

You are an idiot.

The language NOR "copied" is called English.

The only similarities between both videos is that they both used the words "quest" and "journey". You didn't make those words up yourself so wtf are you talking about when you say they "used your language"?!?! Yeah it's called English dumbass!

Nobody knows who you are and nobody cares.

Get over your Green Day bullshit already and stop being jealous that NOR is getting recognition and you aren't. 

So Melissa,

You're the only one allowed to use the words "quest" and "journey"? 

Are you also going to sue me because I used those words in this comment?

Dear Melissa, 

 As you can clearly see no one is going to side with you, not even a lawyer, considering I'm a 3rd law student and I've looked over your "claims" you have no case. so shut your face and get over yourself. I'm in complete support of Noise of Rumors and it's clear so are many others so I suggest you DO NOT MESS WITH AN ARMY