Creator Spotlight with Photographer and Writer Ralf G. Will
This week, we are pleased to introduce photographer and writer Ralf G. Will. After you read his spotlight blog, check out his website and Amazon page.
What was the inspiration behind becoming a creator? What do you enjoy most about creative process?
I enjoy telling a good story, crafting a spellbinding article, and enhancing my work with photographic images. This is also a good incentive for photo-journalistic story-telling. The image leads to interesting aspects of visual creativity, especially in learning the black and white grey zone scale and the appealing effects of composition, angles of viewing, and colours.
My interest in fiction started by reading, dealing with fascinating literature such as works of Leo Tolstoy, William Faulkner, and the French surrealists around Raymond Queneau, and appreciating films of Spaniards such as Carlos Saura and Luis Bunuel. I was also intrigued by German romantics like Ludwig Boerne, ETA Hoffmann, and Novalis. Boerne was the father of critical journalism and letter writing in German literature. In French literature, I started out by reading the novels of Gustave Flaubert, Victor Hugo, and Emile Zola. Theatre comes in as a crafting of worthwhile dialogue. In poetry I did my first real writing attempts while in school but today I see poetry as a simple lining up of words by most authors, and such qualities as tone, hidden meaning, verse, and pleasing rhymes have gone out the window.
Can you talk through your creative process? How long does it take? Does everything you produce make money?
The creative process is rather involved. It means re-writing stories and fiction pieces again and again, even if it`s only a word, a certain term, or part of a sentence that doesn`t stick. In poetry it means polishing and refining rhyme and verse. In photography I try searching for a new, different, graphic angle, and enhance, soften or distort my colours while I work contrast or the grey zone to best effect. At times it`s detail that grips, at times it means turning off the focus or underlining a hazy, indeterminate aspect. I don`t really make money from my creativity anymore.
What do you think is the biggest misconception about your line of work?
That it is NO WORK and does not involve a concerted effort. Creativity works best when it is refined and redefined and re-worked many times, and when it works out to a demanding and time-consuming endeavour. This counts most for writing books. Maybe you can say genius in creativity relies on first drafts but in general creativity means a concerted effort and takes a while before it can shine.
When did you first become aware of copyright, and why?
As a photo-journalist, when editors dropped my byline: pic/story by Ralf G Will, and I could hardly reference my work for future assignments. In writing books when my novel in German, MF, was ripped badly by so-called mainstream publishers like Rowohlt etc.
They all released novels either with the letters M or F or an abbreviation of my name in the title. I had checked carefully that before release of MF there had been no works of fiction in German, based on these two letters.
If the publishers would have used the letters A or B or C in their copycat titles, it would have been more difficult for me to charge them with copyright abuse.
After I had sent sharply worded letters of complaint to the respective publishers and laid charges against them, I have never been published again in the German speaking world. This includes media organs like newspapers, magazines, and TV stations.
Have you experienced copyright infringement, and, if so, how has it affected you personally and financially?
In the English speaking world, I experienced heavy copyright abuse after I had self-published my novel ON THE OOTHER SIDE, dealing with the fictitious origins of F1 motor-racing in Africa.
The Colorado, US-based Formula One association ripped my title, especially the use of the double OO, for their 2022 season, starting in Australia, by spelling the word Melbourne with the double OO – MELBOOURNE and the name of Australian driver Ricciardo, which was spelled as RICCIARDOO. This rip-off was displayed all over the season opening Grand Prix and also found entry into Heineken beer advertising, displayed at ALL F1 races ever since. It was furthermore used at big football events like Europa- and Champions-League games! This rip-off made me poor and frustrated and even though I tried to take F1 association to court, I got nowhere. Copyright infringement left me poor and desolate.
What do you do when you encounter someone stealing something you`ve invested your intellect, time and money into?
At the beginning I sent out letters of cease and desist and attached compensation claims to them, but I got nowhere, and now I am very careful what and where I publish.
What is the best piece of advice that you would give other creators in your field about copyright and how to protect themselves?
It would help to register titles of creative works and their contents with your country’s copyright office.
What is your biggest copyright-related challenge?
Getting compensation from the infringers.
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