Schumiac

I think the fact the publishers did not have anyone else write the books for years and continued with her shows their own acknowledgment that it was "her" book. They may own the rights to it, but she was the one who fleshed out the characters and gave them life on paper and wrote the stories that made The Vampire Diaries what they are. People may not have liked her writing style or the direction her stories took but it doesn't change the fact she made Vampire Diaries what it is (the books that attracted Julie Plec's attention and ended up being turned into a very successful hit series, for one). She put a lot of work and effort into this, put her heart into this. So it is sad to see it taken from her. Especially as based on creative differences. Which is something I don't think publishers should be able to interfere on. So even if I was not a fan of her work or anything, I would oppose her treatment based on principle. I think a writer and her work deserves to be handled with more respect and fairness than the way she was. It should NOT be OK to just tear her off from her own books and discard her away.

No one other than LJ Smith can know what her "endgame" was and given in her e-mails she keeps mentioning how the biggest problems between her and her publishers were the Damon/Elena parts, and how they wanted the pairing to not have as much debth and meaning as she gave them, that seems to be the main reason why she ended up fired. Given LJ Smith thought DE was a pairing worth fighting for I seriously doubt she was just "toying" with DE fans. And as it was HER creation and HER story I don't see how anyone can dictate to her what her endgame was supposed to be. Those in "power" can fire her for it, if it is not to their liking, as they seem to have done so, but doesn't mean they changed HER story's ending or HER endgame or her vision. Her "story", as in the original story of The Vampire Diaries, is NEVER going to be seen due to her firing. THAT is why some don't feel the need to check the books anymore as it is going to be little more than "fanfiction" now. Just in a more fancy wrapping, and one you pay for. I think for some, who do not necessarily look into this whole ordeal from a "shipping" or "story" point of view, but rather from a "writer's right" POV it is also a matter of having a stand against such a treatment of a writer.