Come up with something new, stat!

When my husband first started writing he would explain some of his plot points and characters that he was envisioning and I would say:

"Oh, you mean like...(fill in a movie or book)"

and he would say, "Yeah, but..."
and we would play that game over and over.

Eventually he said something that rocked my world. 

He said: "It doesn't all have to be new."

Then I remembered all of...
the Chris Farley movies I've seen
 the Cinderella books I've read.

I still love Jack Black! (Sorry Jim.)
I have read a million rout mystery novels.

My couch is couch shaped

We could eat pizza in our house every night

Don't even get me started on Scooby Doo

HE WAS RIGHT!

I still liked these things, even if they weren't entirely new ideas.

So, now I cut myself some slack when a character or plot point doesn't seem entirely original. 

I'm the one breathing life into them.
They'll never be a carbon copies of someone else's creation. 

Of course you need to be careful but...

If the wheel ain't broke, why reinvent it?

This kid's got the idea

(That was for of you, Kim K)