Germany exclusive Star Trek trilogy "Prometheus" coming in 2016

[Jarvisimo]

That's what I was told at least. I guess their publishing schedule is so tight (they publish one novel per month after all) that they just don't have any free slots available for "Prometheus". Or perhaps they don't like German authors playing in their sand box. I honestly don't know. (But of course I would be delighted if they changed their mind.)

Oh that's sad. Surely they can release multiple books a month!

 

[Hugh Cambridge]

Well for me any editor will do if they make a print edition.

 

[JD]

I thought Pocket were the only publisher for English Trek novels? Will these be an exception since they're translations rather than completely new novels?

 

[The Wormhole]

I thought Pocket were the only publisher for English Trek novels?

Pocket didn't publish The Autobiography of James T Kirk, so there is precedent for English Trek novels from other publishers.

 

[Christopher]

Pocket didn't publish The Autobiography of James T Kirk, so there is precedent for English Trek novels from other publishers.

But I think that's not a novel, per se. It's more of a faux-nonfiction book. Although there have been novels written in the form of first-person memoirs, so the line's kind of blurry.

 

[ronny]

I'm sorry to hear this. I was looking forward to this series in any format.

 

[Hugh Cambridge]

The first novels were published by bantam, but that was a long time ago.

 

[Christopher]

The first novels were published by bantam, but that was a long time ago.

Yes, they held the license for original Trek prose fiction in the '60s and '70, although Ballantine/Del Rey had the license to do TAS novelizations (including the original story content Alan Dean Foster added to those). Pocket acquired the Trek novel license in 1979 when TMP came out, but Bantam still had several unpublished novels in the works, so Pocket had to wait until Bantam released all the novels left in their contract before Pocket could begin publishing original novels of their own. That's why the first original Pocket novel, The Entropy Effect, didn't come out until 2 years after TMP. Bantam's last novel was Death's Angel, released in April 1981, and Entropy came out in June '81.

 

[Bernd Perplies]

I thought Pocket were the only publisher for English Trek novels? Will these be an exception since they're translations rather than completely new novels?

I don't know the intricacies of licensing. My guess is: Cross Cult had to ask Pocket first, but since they passed on the opportunity now everyone is allowed to make a deal with CC. (So if there are editors reading this: Feel free to contact CC. As far as I know the post book fair talks are in full swing at the moment.)

 

[Bernd Perplies]

I'm sorry to hear this. I was looking forward to this series in any format.

There will be English e-books at any rate! Cross Cult owns the rights to do this and is preparing the scripts at this very moment. We are just talking about the additional possibility of printed books (which may delay the publishing date for the e-books a little bit). If I know more, I will let you know.

 

[Hugh Cambridge]

There will be English e-books at any rate! Cross Cult owns the rights to do this and is preparing the scripts at this very moment. We are just talking about the additional possibility of printed books (which may delay the publishing date for the e-books a little bit). If I know more, I will let you know.

I don't understand why a printed edition would delay the e-book one. It could very well be published afterwards.
What am I missing here ?

 

[Bernd Perplies]

If there are only e-books, Cross Cult will publish them by themselves. But if they make a deal with an US publisher, they will most likely sell the e-book and printed books rights (because most publishers want to buy all rights) and then it's up to that publisher to set a release date. Then again I am just guessing here, based on my experience as a German author and the German book market. Perhaps US publishers have no problem publishing a book that has been released as e-book a few month before.

 

[tomswift2002]

Still its odd that Pocket didn't pick up the rights on the books, especially since the stories, from what I've read anyway, take place in and reference events of the Pocket relaunch continuity. But I guess that we've had other stories (like Peter David's two New Frontier comics) that are part of the continuity, but were written by another license holder.

 

[James Swallow]

If Cross Cult aren't already talking to Titan Books about these novels, they should be...

 

[FreddyE]

I think Trek books premiering in other countries is a really interesting idea, I just hope we get English translations eventually.
I'm still bitter about the audiobooks for Vanguard, Titan and Destiny only getting German releases, no fair if you guys are getting exclusive novels too

Well...seen from out side of the pond...YOU get much of the cooler stuff / editions / versions of pretty much EVERYTHING! So this is only fair!

 

[Idran]

Well...seen from out side of the pond...YOU get much of the cooler stuff / editions / versions of pretty much EVERYTHING! So this is only fair!

Honestly I have to remind myself of that every time I see a new Cross Cult cover.

 

[JD]

If there are only e-books, Cross Cult will publish them by themselves. But if they make a deal with an US publisher, they will most likely sell the e-book and printed books rights (because most publishers want to buy all rights) and then it's up to that publisher to set a release date. Then again I am just guessing here, based on my experience as a German author and the German book market. Perhaps US publishers have no problem publishing a book that has been released as e-book a few month before.

I know there have been several cases where a book was self published, and then after it was a hit it was picked up by one of the big publishers.

Still its odd that Pocket didn't pick up the rights on the books, especially since the stories, from what I've read anyway, take place in and reference events of the Pocket relaunch continuity. But I guess that we've had other stories (like Peter David's two New Frontier comics) that are part of the continuity, but were written by another license holder.

That was part of one of the novel series, by the writer of that series, so it is kind of a special case.

 

[Dayton Ward]

So far as I know, Pocket still holds the exclusive license to publish Star Trek novels in the US. Licenses for other types of books - reference works, both "real" and "inside the box," and so on - have opened up in recent years, but straight-up novels are (I believe) still Pocket's bailiwick.

 

[Bernd Perplies]

That may be true for original US Star Trek novels. But as I said: Cross Cult has the rights to publish "Star Trek Prometheus" worldwide. That includes the US market. They could print and distribute novels on their own. They just don't have the ressources for doing that, so if they don't find a partner somewhere they will stick to the ebook-only option.

 

[Dayton Ward]

Well, I'd certainly like to see them in print, as I only speak and read English and Profane English, with a smattering of Klingon.