Spoilers VOY: The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway Review Thread

[Jarvisimo]

I’d give my eye teeth for these!

Me too I do love the very whimsical voice with which you commence some of your books, including TNES - I often wondered what voice would be speaking those lines!

With the move to audio books, is there any discussion about adapting older books? And do you have any say on a book being made into an audiobook? Sometimes it feels like the trek line is really behind the curve on audio, but equally it's a massive catalogue that I imagine wouldn't all bloom on Audible necessarily.

 

[Una McCormack]

That voice is mine, reeling you in... I read out some excerpts of Enigma Tales once when we were launching a Centre for SFF, back when I was a Uni lecturer. The administrators present weren’t so sure.

I don’t have any say in audiobooks. I’d love Andy Robinson to do ASIT. And I think Robert Petkoff is fantastic.

 

[Oddish]

I liked it as well. Things that jumped out at me...

Spoiler

* No issues with Kathryn's early years. Because Earth is paradise, it makes sense that most human children should have happy upbringings.
* I liked Janeway's feelings about Tuvix. While I don't agree with her action, I do understand it. It makes sense that it would affect her for a long time.
* I think that the writer's decision regarding Phoebe's sexuality was a nice nod to Kate Mulgrew's open advocacy for an LGBT+ crew member on Voyager.
* I like that there was no attempt made to explain why Harry never got promoted. There was no rational explanation, after all. Instead, it was simply mentioned that Janeway's last act as captain was to bump him up.
* I also liked how she got closure with Mark, met his family, and got one of Mollie's pups.
* Although canon has overruled a couple of the crew's fates, I think Ms. McCormack got a lot of them right, especially Chakotay's. I also liked the hint of potential J/C at the end.
* And lastly, Amelia Janeway should totally be canon!

 

[DrMike]

I picked up the audiobook after finishing A Stitch In Time because I really enjoyed hearing a book narrated by the actor who played its central character, and wanted to explore the other examples where they managed to do that.

I'm about halfway through and have a question, because the author seems to be spoken highly of in the Trek Lit section here.

Does she struggle with voicing different characters authentically, or is it a problem specific to this book?

One thing that just jumps out as glaringly obvious to me is that at least four different characters have seemed to say "damn" in the exact same way as an adjective so far, Janeway included. "The damn dog," "It's your damn problem," etc etc.

It's just such a notable idiosyncrasy for someone to use the word in that way. I could totally accept one character doing that repeatedly.

But everyone seems to do it. It's like she's afraid to make anyone swear, so "damn" is the only word anyone uses, and they all use it in the exact same way. It's never used as an exclamation, nobody ever says "damned," it's just the one specific way of using the word over and over across multiple characters.

It really makes it sound like one person pretending to be multiple characters instead of making it sound like multiple different characters each speaking naturally. It feels very forced.

Overall, it's a damn enjoyable book, but that damn word keeps sticking out like a damn sore thumb. I can't concentrate on any other damn thing whenever it pops up.

 

[Christopher]

One thing that just jumps out as glaringly obvious to me is that at least four different characters have seemed to say "damn" in the exact same way as an adjective so far, Janeway included. "The damn dog," "It's your damn problem," etc etc.

It's just such a notable idiosyncrasy for someone to use the word in that way. I could totally accept one character doing that repeatedly.

But everyone seems to do it. It's like she's afraid to make anyone swear, so "damn" is the pnky word anyone uses, and they all use it in the exact same way. It's never used as an exclamation, nobody ever says "damned," it's just the one specific way of using the word over and over across multiple characters.

What? That's not idiosyncratic, it's a perfectly standard usage. Watch the TOS movies sometime -- they used it all the time. "No, Admiral, I don't think you are, not one damn bit." "Who's been holding up the damn elevator?" "There aren't going to be any damn permits! How can you get a permit to do a damn illegal thing?" "Where's the damn antimatter inducer?" "One damn minute, Admiral." And so on. In my lifelong experience, it's far more common for people to use "damn" as an adjective than "damned," which sounds more antiquated. (Although there are some uses of that in the TOS movies, such as "It's like working in a damned computer center!" and "This is damned peculiar. Yellow alert!")

 

[Tosk]

It really makes it sound like one person pretending to be multiple characters instead of making it sound like multiple different characters each speaking naturally.

Isn't that exactly what the book is though? ...There is only one character voice in play here, Kathryn Janeway. Even when she's recalling what someone else said, it's still Janeway telling the story. We all remember imperfectly, and we almost never quote verbatim when telling old stories, even when we try to. It's perfectly normal for Janeway's own speaking style to influence every anecdote.

 

[DrMike]

What? That's not idiosyncratic, it's a perfectly standard usage. Watch the TOS movies sometime -- they used it all the time. "No, Admiral, I don't think you are, not one damn bit." "Who's been holding up the damn elevator?" "There aren't going to be any damn permits! How can you get a permit to do a damn illegal thing?" "Where's the damn antimatter inducer?" "One damn minute, Admiral." And so on. In my lifelong experience, it's far more common for people to use "damn" as an adjective than "damned," which sounds more antiquated. (Although there are some uses of that in the TOS movies, such as "It's like working in a damned computer center!" and "This is damned peculiar. Yellow alert!")

I hear what you're saying. I suppose it's more the fact that every character uses it in exactly the same way that sticks out to me. No "damn it" (verb) or "don't give a damn" (noun). It's just unusual among the books I've read to have every character using the same exclamation the exact same way. "Damn" isn't as grammatically versatile a word as "fuck," but there is still more than one way to use it, and no character ever seems to deviate from just the one way.

In my writing days, that would be called out by my editor as redundant, and she'd rightly suggest I find a way to change it up given that it's meant to represent quotes from multiple characters.

Isn't that exactly what the book is though? ...There is only one character voice in play here, Kathryn Janeway. Even when she's recalling what someone else said, it's still Janeway telling the story. We all remember imperfectly, and we almost never quote verbatim when telling old stories, even when we try to. It's perfectly normal for Janeway's own speaking style to influence every anecdote.

This is something I considered, but it still sounds like badly written dialogue to me whenever it crops up. I've read a lot of autobiographies, and when the author quotes other people, they typically try to include some of their characteristic speech patterns to help it come across as authentic.

A Stitch In Time is another fictional autobiography, but still quotes other characters' dialogue without making everyone sound like Garak. Making everyone sound like Janeway feels out of place in comparison.

I guess I was just wondering if this is something Una McCormack was doing intentionally, in this book only, or if she struggles with differentiating characters' voices in general. I can't help but read (or listen, in this case) with a bit of a critical eye (or ear) because this type of thing jumps out at me.

It's fine if you like its usage in this book. I'm new to Trek Lit and suppose I am just trying to decide whether to give another one of Una's books a shot next, or to try another author.

I think it's entertaining so far, and decently written overall, but this one aspect feels like a notable exception to me.

 

[Tosk]

It's fine if you like its usage in this book.

I wouldn't say I like it, I'm just saying why it didn't personally bother me.

I'm new to Trek Lit and suppose I am just trying to decide whether to give another one of Una's books a shot next, or to try another author.

Personally, I'd recommend The Never-Ending Sacrifice* (if you're into Cardassians) or, a (I think) lesser-recommended Una book The Way to the Stars**. It's a Sylvia Tilly novel, and even as someone with no real passion for the character or the show, I quite enjoyed it.

Certainly no problem with trying another author though. There are so many talented ones, and so many good books.

*Which does not use the "damn" speaking style beyond a single instance, FYI.
**Uses damn, but generally by a specific character in a different idiosyncratic way.