Star Trek and SF....

[fireproof78]

I'll take a stab at the science fiction (hereafter SF) and character writing (here after, character writing).

Character writing ignores genre, because characters should really be apart of most fictional work, to one degree or another.

SF can be distinct in that it focuses on a change due to some sort of scientific change, or cultural change, or something that shift the way the world works. Often, it is through technology, sometimes a sociological change, or even a what-if? type scenario.

Characters are often important to SF because there is often a need to have a human element in order for the audience to connect with this new world.

A quick for instance is Luke Skywalker in Star Wars. Mark Hamil told a story that he felt like his character was not that interesting, and kind of just an average joe. Reportedly, Sir Alec Guiness told him t hat his character was the point, in order to introduce the audience to this other world.

SF can take many different aspects in terms of focus, such as technology or alien cultures. The characters can sometimes take a back seat to the technology, depending on the style an the author.

Hope that helps.

 

[BillJ]

Star Trek was my gateway drug.

 

[martok2112]

Yeah, Star Trek is what got me into sci-fi/space fantasy. Star Wars sealed the deal.

 

[Mytran]

Growing up in the 1980s in Britain, there was plenty of sci-fi on TV but only a small part of it was Star Trek. Doctor Who was probably my main series on the box, but I also read lots of sci-fi from the 1950s and 60s (when I wasn't reading historic fantasy). It wasn't until TNG arrived on BBC2 that I actually became a Star Trek regular, and several more years after that until TOS finally returned to our screens on Saturday mornings. It has remained my favourite series ever since.

 

[LadyT'Anna]

I'll take a stab at the science fiction (hereafter SF) and character writing (here after, character writing).

Character writing ignores genre, because characters should really be apart of most fictional work, to one degree or another.

SF can be distinct in that it focuses on a change due to some sort of scientific change, or cultural change, or something that shift the way the world works. Often, it is through technology, sometimes a sociological change, or even a what-if? type scenario.

Characters are often important to SF because there is often a need to have a human element in order for the audience to connect with this new world.

A quick for instance is Luke Skywalker in Star Wars. Mark Hamil told a story that he felt like his character was not that interesting, and kind of just an average joe. Reportedly, Sir Alec Guiness told him t hat his character was the point, in order to introduce the audience to this other world.

SF can take many different aspects in terms of focus, such as technology or alien cultures. The characters can sometimes take a back seat to the technology, depending on the style an the author.

Hope that helps.

It does indeed, fireproof78. Thank you very kindly.

 

[The Laughing Vulcan]

I went the other way around. When I was six or seven, my dad gave me Jules Verne's Journey to the Centre of the Earth. It was the first book I ever stayed up to read, because I was so into the story, wanting to know what happened next. Before that it was Peanuts comic books and Asterix and Tintin. Pretended to go to sleep, and then sneakily turned the light back on to read it to the end. Took me till 4 or 5 am. After that I was hooked on SF. The kid in the adult section of the library grabbing any science fiction book I could find, gravitating towards space opera as I'd already been sold by the Star Wars movies. I was reading Clarke, Heinlein and Asimov while most of my peers were still into The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew (those that read).

Then one day, I picked up a Star Trek novel, back when the Book Club were selling hardcover special editions for libraries. Till that point I though Star Trek was just a colourful TV series, nothing special, and one really fun movie (Wrath of Khan), which I never equated with the TV series. They were two seperate entities for me. I read books like Greg Bear's Corona, Uhura's Song, Killing Time (the unexpurgated version), Web of the Romulans, The Klingon Gambit, Mindshadow, The Final Reflection, seeing all the characters and special effects as the movie versions in my mind's eye, and not long after I found the Blish novelisations which I read the same way, my first real appreciation of the television series.

It's off the back of that I started actually watching the show. Took me a while to get past the culture shock of 1960s TV effects as opposed to 1980s cinema effects as I was expecting!

 

[LadyT'Anna]

I went the other way around. When I was six or seven, my dad gave me Jules Verne's Journey to the Centre of the Earth. It was the first book I ever stayed up to read, because I was so into the story, wanting to know what happened next. Before that it was Peanuts comic books and Asterix and Tintin. Pretended to go to sleep, and then sneakily turned the light back on to read it to the end. Took me till 4 or 5 am. After that I was hooked on SF. The kid in the adult section of the library grabbing any science fiction book I could find, gravitating towards space opera as I'd already been sold by the Star Wars movies. I was reading Clarke, Heinlein and Asimov while most of my peers were still into The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew (those that read).

Then one day, I picked up a Star Trek novel, back when the Book Club were selling hardcover special editions for libraries. Till that point I though Star Trek was just a colourful TV series, nothing special, and one really fun movie (Wrath of Khan), which I never equated with the TV series. They were two seperate entities for me. I read books like Greg Bear's Corona, Uhura's Song, Killing Time (the unexpurgated version), Web of the Romulans, The Klingon Gambit, Mindshadow, The Final Reflection, seeing all the characters and special effects as the movie versions in my mind's eye, and not long after I found the Blish novelisations which I read the same way, my first real appreciation of the television series.

It's off the back of that I started actually watching the show. Took me a while to get past the culture shock of 1960s TV effects as opposed to 1980s cinema effects as I was expecting!

Oh, my goodness. Your CV when it comes to Trek reading is a mile longer than mine. I highly recommend The Pandora Principle by Carolyn Clowes. Its portrayal of the early Spock-Saavik relationship is finely drawn and true to life; moreover, the novel does some very intriguing things with melding. I started reading Vulcan's Heart but was interrupted when my novella (see signature) decided to reach out and grab me.

I've actually read more Trek nonfiction than fiction, which is unusual for me, as my non-Trek tastes run to mysteries and news articles most of the time. I did read most of Leonard Nimoy's I Am Not Spock, plus the Trek portions of Beyond Uhura, which were excellent. Nichelle Nichols is a wonderful raconteur. William Shatner is also, as evidenced by portions of Star Trek Memories that gave me belly laughs. If you haven't happened across his stuntman story yet, I entreat you, go find it and read it--you won't be disappointed!

 

[MANT!]

If you want to get technical, I watched the original Outer Limits with my mom first run..(heck I was 3 years old) I can say I was exposed to Science Fiction first through that cool series, but consciously I have to say Star Trek came first as I was 5 when it was in it's first run..when I got into first grade, I started my SF literary addiction with the "Space Cat" series of books..

In second grade I actually started to read Heinlein's juvenile books..Started with Rocket Ship Galileo having my parents explain some of the words, followed with the Lucky Starr series..growing my vocabulary as I read..and learned about the other authors I later followed.. Asimov, Clarke, Bova and grew from there..

So I guess a combo of Outer Limits/ Star Trek then literary SF...

if SF children's books are considered literary SF...

 

[fireproof78]

I read many a young fiction Star Trek and other science fiction well in to my teens.

In my vote, it counts

 

[CorporalCaptain]

If you want to get technical, I watched the original Outer Limits with my mom first run..(heck I was 3 years old) I can say I was exposed to Science Fiction first through that cool series, but consciously I have to say Star Trek came first as I was 5 when it was in it's first run..when I got into first grade, I started my SF literary addiction with the "Space Cat" series of books..

In second grade I actually started to read Heinlein's juvenile books..Started with Rocket Ship Galileo having my parents explain some of the words, followed with the Lucky Starr series..growing my vocabulary as I read..and learned about the other authors I later followed.. Asimov, Clarke, Bova and grew from there..

So I guess a combo of Outer Limits/ Star Trek then literary SF...

if SF children's books are considered literary SF...

Looking at these awesome book covers has given me a major flashback to the "Leonard and his time machine" books by Gene Darby, which I was totally enthralled with pre-K. What memories!

 

[Kemaiku]

Around about 1989-1991 I started watching TNG, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Land of the Giants, Buck Rodgers, The Invaders, Outer Limits, Twilight Zone all around the same time.

I started getting TOS on tape or catching some reruns around then, the TOS movies and a lot of scifi movies, mostly the 60's through 80's. Things like Close Encounters, Back to the Future, Star Wars.

I had lots of basic space shooters for the Amstrad and eventually the mega drive.

Star Trek didn't get me into science fiction in general but it was the stand out amongst seeing a lot of the genre in a short space of time.

 

[Greg Cox]

If you want to get technical, I watched the original Outer Limits with my mom first run..(heck I was 3 years old) I can say I was exposed to Science Fiction first through that cool series, but consciously I have to say Star Trek came first as I was 5 when it was in it's first run..when I got into first grade, I started my SF literary addiction with the "Space Cat" series of books..

In second grade I actually started to read Heinlein's juvenile books..Started with Rocket Ship Galileo having my parents explain some of the words, followed with the Lucky Starr series..growing my vocabulary as I read..and learned about the other authors I later followed.. Asimov, Clarke, Bova and grew from there..

So I guess a combo of Outer Limits/ Star Trek then literary SF...

if SF children's books are considered literary SF...

Oh, god, I read some of those SPACE CAT books, too. Although somehow I missed SPACE CAT ON MUSHROOMS. (What was it with sixties kid's SF books and mushrooms? Or is that self-evident?)

Anybody else remember the DANNY DUNN, BOY INVENTOR series?

 

[Ssosmcin]

I was 4 when I first saw Trek, so I can honestly say that it did indeed introduce me to science fiction. Mostly, my SF passion was limited to TV and movies, but I loved almost everything I saw. I never felt elitist when it came to other SF-TV series. I had room to love Lost in Space, Space:1999, Battlestar Galactica, Buch Rogers, Logan's Run and so on.

 

[C57D]

I grew up on Stingray, Thunderbirds etc in the 60's, and then fell in love with ST when the BBC ran it in the 70's.

From then on, I read SF, watched SF and loved SF. I got into RPG's in the late 70's and played a lot of SF games, including ST!

I am 54, married with a family and love SF still and probably will as long as I breathe!

But TOS, in particular, always has a special place in my heart.