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So what's happening with the DS9 line of novels?

Damian said:
I actually wouldn't be surprised if we don't see anymore DS9 novels (or Voyager novels after To Lose the Earth comes out eventually).

I think with all the shows CBS will have on the air soon, Pocketbooks is going to focus on tie ins to those shows, and original series novels will always be released. And I think TNG novels will continue until the nu-TNG show comes out.

But assuming the nu-TNG comes out and wipes out most of the current litverse (which I expect it will do though they may cherry pick some elements to survive) I really doubt they'll commission any more DS9 or Voyager novels (or probably even Enterprise though that is less likely to be affected).

And part of that is marketing. They're in the business to sell money and while it saddens me to say this a Discovery, nu-TNG, or Section 31 show based novel is more likely to sell books than a book tied in to a show that ended years ago. It was different when there was no shows on the air and just 3 Abramsverse movies, but now it will all be centered around the current shows---and again original series novels (those will always exist).
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I think you're probably right. It's a very different environment now, both in publishing in general and Star Trek in particular. There are only 12 months in the year (and what we've seen of the 2019 schedule suggests S&S is publishing on a not-quite-monthly schedule), there are tie-ins for the new series to publish (and will be more in the future), and TOS and TNG are probably never, ever going away (though I wouldn't be surprised if TNG novels, at some point, move to during the television series). There's probably not room on the schedule for the original-to-novels series like New Frontier and Seekers (and maybe even Titan), and if there's a choice between a Deep Space Nine novel and a TOS novel, there's more money to be made on the TOS novel. It wouldn't surprise me if S&S's current contract, like IDW's comics contract, doesn't even cover all of the branches of the franchise; why pay for the rights to stuff they're not going to use? This is all speculation -- less than a book a month, only some of the series -- but it strikes me as quite possible, even likely.
 
Allyn Gibson said:
I think you're probably right. It's a very different environment now, both in publishing in general and Star Trek in particular. There are only 12 months in the year (and what we've seen of the 2019 schedule suggests S&S is publishing on a not-quite-monthly schedule), there are tie-ins for the new series to publish (and will be more in the future), and TOS and TNG are probably never, ever going away (though I wouldn't be surprised if TNG novels, at some point, move to during the television series). There's probably not room on the schedule for the original-to-novels series like New Frontier and Seekers (and maybe even Titan), and if there's a choice between a Deep Space Nine novel and a TOS novel, there's more money to be made on the TOS novel. It wouldn't surprise me if S&S's current contract, like IDW's comics contract, doesn't even cover all of the branches of the franchise; why pay for the rights to stuff they're not going to use? This is all speculation -- less than a book a month, only some of the series -- but it strikes me as quite possible, even likely.
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Yeah, my thoughts as well. I think TNG will temporarily continue the relaunch line (and I think S&S wants to continue TNG novels as sort of a build-up to the nu-TNG show). Then I believe the relaunches will quietly end.

They won't cancel planned books IMO, but once the new show comes out and they find out what it will be about, they'll probably finish books in the pipeline then shift to books based around the new show. The only hope for continued stories in the relaunch is if the nu-TNG show decides to continue those storylines, something I sincerely doubt. One line about Picard being child less, or the Borg still being a threat, or a number of other things would significantly impact the ability of the relaunches to continue.
 
Allyn Gibson said:
TOS and TNG are probably never, ever going away (though I wouldn't be surprised if TNG novels, at some point, move to during the television series).
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Almost certainly going to happen after the Picard Show gets going. I can see tie-ins for the Picard Show basically supplanting the current TNG post-Nemesis line with TV-era TNG novels being the go-to for adventures with Picard as Captain, with maybe the occasional novel set aboard the Enterprise E pre-Nemesis in much the same sense we get the occasional movie-era novel with the TOS crew.

IIRC, there's currently eight Trek novels scheduled this year. Assuming that's it, and assuming next year also has eight, I can see that number being split evenly, two TOS novels, two TNG-TV era novels, two Disco, and two Picard Show.
 
20fridge said:
Maybe STV means it's a Final Frontier prequel. Like, the Sybok backstory everyone's been asking for :p
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S0JPc6r.jpg
 
Damian said:
Yeah, my thoughts as well. I think TNG will temporarily continue the relaunch line (and I think S&S wants to continue TNG novels as sort of a build-up to the nu-TNG show). Then I believe the relaunches will quietly end.

They won't cancel planned books IMO, but once the new show comes out and they find out what it will be about, they'll probably finish books in the pipeline then shift to books based around the new show. The only hope for continued stories in the relaunch is if the nu-TNG show decides to continue those storylines, something I sincerely doubt. One line about Picard being child less, or the Borg still being a threat, or a number of other things would significantly impact the ability of the relaunches to continue.
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The last casting announcement suggests Picard won’t be childless for long :)
 
The Wormhole said:
Almost certainly going to happen after the Picard Show gets going. I can see tie-ins for the Picard Show basically supplanting the current TNG post-Nemesis line with TV-era TNG novels being the go-to for adventures with Picard as Captain, with maybe the occasional novel set aboard the Enterprise E pre-Nemesis in much the same sense we get the occasional movie-era novel with the TOS crew.

IIRC, there's currently eight Trek novels scheduled this year. Assuming that's it, and assuming next year also has eight, I can see that number being split evenly, two TOS novels, two TNG-TV era novels, two Disco, and two Picard Show.
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I'd say there's also a pretty good chance we could get some novels filling in the gaps between Nemesis and the Picard show too. Unless they want to stay out of that era to avoid any potential contradictions, like we already got with Discovery and it's first novel.
 
Thrawn said:
No, that's definitely true. It might or might not be "Untitled STV" but To Lose The Earth is contracted and Kirsten's planning to fulfill the obligation.
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But the Kelvinverse novels were all contracted (and, I believe, finished and delivered), but none of them never came out.
 
I Have to admit i have been struggling to get thro the last few DS9 novels after The missing but there are a part of the relaunch and i would hate for the last 20year of novels i like the titan novels and the big crossover event and you can't have those if there is no book building up to them and where they are.
i want the new Picard show to keep the elements of the book but i don't think so and i not a huge fan of Discovery i like the tie in book Drastic measures but that because i liked Lorca before he became cheesy black and white villain from an old movie.
I just don't want them to make new show that not good and destroy the novel series I love.
 
I'm good without too many more DS9 books, but would like a wrapup to the wormhole story they had going, could be used to finish up that series. That crew really scattered, DS9 itself is gone, really doesn't feel like there's much there to grab onto anymore. Sisko, Kira, Bashir, Odo, O'Brien, both Daxes, Worf; pretty much everyone has left but Quark. Still get cameos, but it's not the same show anymore...
 
veritech said:
I felt like Star Wars fiction really took a hit post-Disney buy out. All post Return of the Jedi novels were put on hold pending episodes 7-9 and everything published during those years is mostly filler and side-stories with little impact on the main saga. I hope the same doesn't happen to ST fiction. It's been nice following a progressive line-wide narrative for the past 15 years.
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After the EU turned to Legends, SW lost me as a reader for good. I do hope they continue with the Deep Space 9 books. They sell, and they're not going to affect sales of Discovery books negatively, so why not keep making them. I still think the hold is due to Picard
 
I think that, long term, we will only see novels based on TOS, Discovery and the Picard show.

I’m not involved in publishing but I would think that novels based on current shows will sell better than novels based on long gone shows.

And S&S are a business that has to maximise profits for its shareholders.
 
XCV330 said:
I do hope they continue with the Deep Space 9 books. They sell, and they're not going to affect sales of Discovery books negatively, so why not keep making them.
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As more TV shows go into development, the annual novel line-up is going to be eaten up by tie-ins for those shows. By 2021 we could have three live action Trek shows on the air. Disco, Picard, and Section 31. Assuming those get two tie-in novels each, and assuming the line-up is staying at eight books a year, that leaves only two slots, one which almost certainly go to a TOS novel. The other, IMO is likely to be something like a TV series era TNG novel, though we shouldn't be surprised if it too is another TOS novel or another tie in for the in-production shows.
 
The Wormhole said:
As more TV shows go into development, the annual novel line-up is going to be eaten up by tie-ins for those shows. By 2021 we could have three live action Trek shows on the air. Disco, Picard, and Section 31. Assuming those get two tie-in novels each, and assuming the line-up is staying at eight books a year, that leaves only two slots, one which almost certainly go to a TOS novel. The other, IMO is likely to be something like a TV series era TNG novel, though we shouldn't be surprised if it too is another TOS novel or another tie in for the in-production shows.
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A lot of assumptions there. For one thing, I gather that one or two of those shows in development are meant to be limited series, not something that will run for years on end. For another, with modern serialized shows, it's hard to find places to fit in books, so sticking with the old series might be a way to keep the tie-ins coming and the Star Trek name prominent without having to worry about the limited story opportunities in the new series.

And who knows? If there's going to be a new multimedia push to grow the brand, maybe that'll mean an expansion of the novel line again -- perhaps a new e-book line alongside the trade paperbacks. That's just speculation, of course, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were a desire to get back into e-books.
 
Christopher said:
I gather that one or two of those shows in development are meant to be limited series, not something that will run for years on end.
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The producers are hoping Picard will go for a few years, while I haven't seen anything indicating Section 31 is only meant to be a limited series. Though I concede, Michelle Yeoh's work on the Avatar sequels is going to be a factor in how much time she'll have for that show.
Christopher said:
For another, with modern serialized shows, it's hard to find places to fit in books,
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Disco already does two novels a year, so that's a pace they should be able to keep up. I wouldn't be surprised if all TNG related stories set post-Nemesis would start going under the Picard Show's banner so they can have tie-ins for that which don't interfere with the show itself. And since 2021 will likely be Section 31's first season, I'm sure they can easily insert two prequels in there, such as they do with Disco. It only makes sense tie-ins for current in production shows are going to take priority over the older shows. TOS will likely continue to get new novels, since they are the best selling Trek novels, and TNG is the most popular one after TOS, making TV series era TNG novels another likely possibility.
 
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