I find no issue in taking seriously what is your work, regardless of what it is or where it is. So what if it is on a forum and play by post roleplay? Does that work as a valid excuse? Does it somehow magically invalidate your endeavors because you aren't a recognized or popular writer? That when or if you do become one you then "earn" the right for things to be "yours"? You might as well say anything that isn't going to be authored and published officially is otherwise a waste of time or effort; at such a point you are better off ceasing to be creative, let alone do anything that isn't your actual canonized, printed and accepted "work". On another note, I will not even touch the notion that we are only "allowed" to consider our works "ours" as some sort of privilege; the notion otherwise is ridiculous on its own.

I digress, but at the same time I will go out on a limb and say that we have all likely, to some extent, read the writings of a "real" author and then reflected that we have seen some "amateur authors" or even roleplayers do it better.

The point for me has nothing to do with the fact I take it "so seriously" and everything to do with the fact I take pride and joy in my writing; that it is [i]mine[/i]. The theft of it is disrespectful to me. If you really wanted to duplicate something I did, why not just ask if you can use it as well? Why not respect the very thing you wanted and at least the person involved to ask, "Hey, I like this. Can I use it too?" Then have enough integrity after to accept their answer, whatever it might be.

It matters nothing if you know that it, the theft, happens or not. I am not going to flatter myself and think anything I have is legitimate enough to be worthy in the eyes of anyone but me, but the idea still stands. Do not take what is not yours or go beyond the bounds you are given. Feel free to emulate it, channel it, be inspired by it or counteract it - whatever you wish - but adopt it as your own without consent and then claim, by putting it out there under a different name and person, as if "yours"? Too far.