I figure I should introduce myself before I start. My name's Rona, and I was once an active member of Arlong Park's One Piece Collectibles section. My deviantART username is also Sephirona, and I had an old art thread here on APforums with a few old artworks before I left as well: http://www.apforums.net/showthread.php?t=21653 Those of you who are artists here understand that the fanart we draw involves characters that do not belong to us, but know that our art is the product of our own imagination in its own right. We envision the idea and express it by drawing our versions with unique poses, shading styles, and quirks.
My question is this - for those of you who regularly draw fanart (be it One Piece fanart or not) - what steps have you taken to protect yourself from those who claim your art as theirs and tell you that you have no rights to it because you do not own the idea of the character? Do you prefer to sit back because you think it can't be helped? Have you had people attempt to sell your work for their personal profit?
http://sephirona.deviantart.com/art/Rob-Lucci-Monochrome-110461841 I'll concede that the watermarks I placed on it in 2009 are really ugly - and yes, I was that paranoid back then. And clearly, watermarks really don't protect you if a thief really wants to steal your work. These days, for the benefit of those who view my art and for the sake of aesthetics, I use only small pixel watermarks. I don't want to punish honest people who can appreciate what I draw in my spare time - I draw to share my love for my favorite series with such individuals.
And to the mods - I apologize if this has been posted in the wrong section, but I figured I'd post it here since the sticky for Fanart Permission is in this subsection. Please feel free to move it if you feel like it belongs in a different part of the site. Thanks!
