So how far chronologically speaking(as in decades/centuries) will they take the novel-verse. Will it shut down in a few years or will they keep it going into the 25th century and beyond?
How far?
- Thread starter Voth commando1
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Why would it shut down regardless of how far into the future it goes? There's plenty to write about during other eras.
It depends on how long Simon and Schuster keep the novel license (there was a period where it looked like it might not be renewed a few years ago— the "Cold Equations" trilogy was originally planned to be a grand finale to the novelverse, though IIRC only the first book is really similar to that early conception of the storyline), whether any renewel or renegotiation of the license adds in the new movies so they can include elements from their storylines (by which I mean, the destruction of Romulus), and what happens with subsequent TV shows and movies. If there's a new series or film that takes place in the post-Nemesis timeframe, the Novelverse is probably going to wrap up pretty quickly.
At least, it'll wrap up quickly in a perfect world. It's entirely possible it'll just stop, potentially on some sort of really irritating cliffhanger.
On the other hand, if S&S keep the license, and it does grow to include the Kelvin Timeline (or some subset of elements from them), and Discovery and Series Seven, or Eight, or Nine either remain in pre-Nemesis timeframes, or the Kelvinverse, or in new permutations of the Star Trek concept that aren't in continuity with existing versions and, most of all, if the novelverse books continue to sell in sufficient numbers to justify their own existence, I don't see any reason why the storylines won't continue up into the twenty-fifth century.
I think it's less likely that we'll see a timejump and have a book-only series set in, I don't know, the 27th or 31st or 10,000th century, unless someone at CBS was willing to provide a notarized certificate affirming that the Prime Universe was totally dead as far new onscreen content was concerned. It'd be so divorced from Star Trek as we know it, and the backstory would make it even more likely to be pushed aside by new onscreen content.
Not to say it wouldn't be interesting. A couple of my favorite Strange New Worlds stories take place in the distant future ("Our Million-Year Mission" and That One With the Horta, You Know the One), and "The Collectors" gave us an interesting glimse into a future Federation..
At least, it'll wrap up quickly in a perfect world. It's entirely possible it'll just stop, potentially on some sort of really irritating cliffhanger.
On the other hand, if S&S keep the license, and it does grow to include the Kelvin Timeline (or some subset of elements from them), and Discovery and Series Seven, or Eight, or Nine either remain in pre-Nemesis timeframes, or the Kelvinverse, or in new permutations of the Star Trek concept that aren't in continuity with existing versions and, most of all, if the novelverse books continue to sell in sufficient numbers to justify their own existence, I don't see any reason why the storylines won't continue up into the twenty-fifth century.
I think it's less likely that we'll see a timejump and have a book-only series set in, I don't know, the 27th or 31st or 10,000th century, unless someone at CBS was willing to provide a notarized certificate affirming that the Prime Universe was totally dead as far new onscreen content was concerned. It'd be so divorced from Star Trek as we know it, and the backstory would make it even more likely to be pushed aside by new onscreen content.
Not to say it wouldn't be interesting. A couple of my favorite Strange New Worlds stories take place in the distant future ("Our Million-Year Mission" and That One With the Horta, You Know the One), and "The Collectors" gave us an interesting glimse into a future Federation..
Yeah the far future would be interesting but unlikely, it would be a total shame if it were t wrap up unresolved though. When does Simon and Schuster's license contract end? If it did go say into the 10,000 century what issues could it explore? Intergalactic colonization? Meeting the kelvans(TOS), time wars, I dunno something crazy like colonizing the sub atomic world, or
negotiating with the q as equals. It would be cool dontcha think?
Why should it? Pocket's had the Trek license since 1979 and has been publishing original novels continuously since 1981. (After publishing the TMP novelization in '79, they had to wait until Bantam finished releasing the remaining books in their contract before they could start releasing original tie-ins.) The contract has been renewed multiple times before.
^^I think he means when is it up for renewal again.
The preceding sentence was "it would be a total shame if it were t[o] wrap up unresolved though." I'm saying I don't think that's a likely prospect. At least, if the current novel continuity does ever end, it's more likely to be due to a new TV series overriding it than due to Pocket losing the license.
So this got me to thinking that if Pocket Books were to lose their license one day, does that mean that the past 35+ years of Star Trek novels could no longer be available as ebooks or reprints?
Bantam retained the right to reprint their old Trek fiction after they lost the right to publish new Trek fiction. They released several new editions of their novels or new collections of the Blish adaptations well after Pocket got the license. Ditto with Ballantine and the Star Trek Logs.
On the other hand, there have been cases where the new publisher got the reprint rights after the license changed hands -- for instance, when Del Rey got the Babylon 5 novel license away from Dell, they reprinted at least two of the Dell novels (the ones that were still counted as more or less canonical). Similarly, Dark Horse has done reprints of Marvel's '70s-'80s Star Wars comics, and IDW has reprinted Trek comics from multiple other publishers.
It would depend on the terms of their license.
Maybe everybody should run out right now and buy one of everything, just to be safe.
WHAT?
Maybe everybody should run out right now and buy one of everything, just to be safe.
WHAT?
It would depend on the terms of their license.
Maybe everybody should run out right now and buy one of everything, just to be safe.
WHAT?
Better make it two copies, just to be safe.
Both a hard copy (if available) and soft copy. And don't forget to throw audiobooks into your cart.
Maybe two copies of the audiobooks. One for each ear.
(Four, in the case of those like Therin. Don't want to leave out those antennae, you know.)
(Four, in the case of those like Therin. Don't want to leave out those antennae, you know.)
The Star Wars novels changed from Bantam Spectra to Del Rey in 1999 and the Bantam books continued to be reprinted. I'm a little confunsed about who did the reprinting though, the Wookiepedia article makes it sound like Del Rey did it, and just left the Bantam logo on them, but I checked my copy of the first Thrawn book, which I'm pretty sure I got after 1999, and it only lists Bantam on the copyright page.
So if they ever did far future(25th century onwards) Trek what do you all think would be interesting for the novels to explore?
And don't forget the eBook version! Just in case the two hardcover, two softcover and two audiobook copies get lost in a fire or something.
I think this might reach into story suggestion territory.
But do they have the rights to re-release those as ebooks? Because I'm still waiting for those.
Unfortunately, we can't answer that because that would be making a story suggestion which is against the rules here. If an author from Pocket were to see that (and two have already posted in this thread) they wouldn't be able to use the idea. Which would suck if they were already independently thinking up a story involving that idea, then they'd have to abandon it and we would have missed out on a potentially awesome book.
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