Citing blog posts

I am still quite new to blogging so I have never cited someone's blog post before. I've searched Google and have been unsuccessful in finding an answer that pertains directly to my circumstance.

On my blog there is a section where I post projects (mainly crafts) and I found a blog that does some of the same types of crafts. I used her idea on making a mini quiet book for Valentine's Day but I created my own patterns and tutorials for my readers. I think I should cite her post but I am wondering how and what process.

Should I just put a link to her page and be done with it? Or do I need to get her permission first? Also, I am wanting to make the same thing for each major Holiday, which she hasn't done. Would I still need to cite her on those pages when the time comes too?

 

If your post was simply inspired by someone else, the best thing to do is link to their original post early in your own. There's no specific format you have to follow.

If what you're creating is technically a derivative work of someone else's, it might constitute copyright infringement if you don't get their permission first. So you need to figure out if what you're doing is truly your own or if it's built upon something belonging to her, or an edited version of somethign belonging to her. In the latter case, you should run it by her first. As for the other holidays, good form would still involve some kind of credit as you're not sharing an original idea -- you're sharing something you created that was inspired by someone else's original. Do you have to? Probably not. But it's about basic respect. If someone did the same to you, you'd probably want them to credit you if they got their ideas from you.

 

So if what you (want to) do is not a direct copy or an edition of someone else's work, but something inspired by or based on an inherent idea which is theirs and not yours, would just crediting the original source be enough? Wouldn't it be necessary to obtain the permissions from the author whose idea is the base of your work?

 

An idea can't be copyrighted (though certain elements might fall under trademark rules). It's always a good idea to credit your source of inspiration if your work exists solely because of someone else's, is in response to something someone else wrote, etc.

If you simply saw someone talking about a topic and you have a completely different take on that topic, you're always able to do that. And you don't need permission just because someone else had the idea first. The problem is when your work is actually based on that one another single source (as opposed to conducting legitimate research which would involve multiple sources, fact checking, quotes where appropriate, etc.). That's when you cross into plagiarism and potential copyright infringement. But if you're writing something that's your own, and it's not a matter of rewording what someone else said, you should be fine.

 

Totally agree with this statement. There's always an element of self-protection, as well - better safe than sorry, after all - but in the end it's best to show respect. That way, even if the original author gets really upset and antsy about the whole thing, at least they'll know your intentions were good.