new canon vs novelverse: worst case scenario

[E-DUB]

Ah, another canon debate. Canon, to me, is what the late Phillip K. Dick once said about reality. It's something that doesn't go away just because you stop believing in it. Having ones work superceded by events is something novelists and other writers simply have to deal with and not just in the Treklit field. In my personal opinion (and that of others I've seen commenting here) one of the best Trek novels ever was "Federation", which was totally contradicted by the film "First Contact", one of the best films ever. Am I supposed to not enjoy one or the other because of those contradictions? Not at all.

As Whitman said: " Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes." As for the larger question here, I'm sure that some will attempt to reconcile contradictions, others will ignore them. But the final question will be, as it is always: "Have we got a good story here or not?" If the answer is yes, then that's enough.

[Relayer1]

E-DUB wrote:

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Ah, another canon debate. Canon, to me, is what the late Phillip K. Dick once said about reality. It's something that doesn't go away just because you stop believing in it. Having ones work superceded by events is something novelists and other writers simply have to deal with and not just in the Treklit field. In my personal opinion (and that of others I've seen commenting here) one of the best Trek novels ever was "Federation", which was totally contradicted by the film "First Contact", one of the best films ever. Am I supposed to not enjoy one or the other because of those contradictions? Not at all.

I remember enjoying Federation very much, and when it was superceeded by First Contact I did wonder if the authors might rewrite/rerelease it to fit around the movie. I think there's a fair few contradictions though...

[BillJ]

Relayer1 wrote:

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I remember enjoying Federation very much, and when it was superceeded by First Contact I did wonder if the authors might rewrite/rerelease it to fit around the movie. I think there's a fair few contradictions though...

Federation blew it out of the water and I would've been disappointed if they had tried to rework it to fit First Contact.

[Christopher]

E-DUB wrote:

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Having ones work superceded by events is something novelists and other writers simply have to deal with and not just in the Treklit field. In my personal opinion (and that of others I've seen commenting here) one of the best Trek novels ever was "Federation", which was totally contradicted by the film "First Contact", one of the best films ever. Am I supposed to not enjoy one or the other because of those contradictions? Not at all.

Quite right. Quality and continuity are two completely separate considerations. Since all Star Trek is fictional anyway, being out of continuity doesn't make a story less "true" -- none of it is true. It's just a bunch of elaborate lies for our entertainment. Some of those fictions are consistent with each other, some are not, but it's all just pretend, so what's the harm if some of the pretending goes in a different direction from the rest?