Publisher's Weekly reports that a rough draft of Midnight Sun was illegally leaked onto the Internet. Its author, Stephanie Meyer, has postponed the project "indefinitely". Meyers is, of course, the author of the popular Twlight
franchise.
This is big, as in big violation of the author's rights. I suspect legal action might be taken, if not by Meyer then certainly by the publisher. Assuming anything can be proven, of course. Meyer does state:
I have a good idea of how the leak happened as there were very few copies of Midnight Sun that left my possession and each was unique. Due to little changes I made to the manuscript at different times, I can tell when each left my possession and to whom it was given. The manuscript that was illegally distributed on the Internet was given to trusted individuals for a good purpose. I have no comment beyond that as I believe that there was no malicious intent with the initial distribution.
This really drives home the need to be careful if not outright secretive about a work-in-progress. I've reviewed a handful of ARC's on this site, but those were books on the verge of being released. Meyer's work was very much a work-in-progress still, and not ready for public consumption.
I shudder to think if my current rough draft of The Five Elements were to get leaked. It's different for Meyer, of course, since she's an established author, but were someone to look at my rough draft in the state it's in… let's just say it ain't pretty right now.
Meyer addresses this point:
I'd rather my fans not read this version of Midnight Sun. It was only an incomplete draft; the writing is messy and flawed and full of mistakes.
Ultimately, she decided to put the rough draft out on her site. The unfinished copy is out there, anyway; people will find it. I think she made the right move by making it available from her own site, flaws and all.