Questions for Bring Back Janeway Panel

[Kirsten Beyer]

Okay folks...here's the deal.

As best I can tell right now, the panel will be happening Saturday, July 9 at 5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time. I do not have final confirmation from the event planners yet of all panels, but this is the last I heard so we're going with it.

Despite our best efforts, it appears it will not be possible to do a live version of the panel so that people can participate from afar in real time. That does not mean, however, that participation is limited to those who are live in the room. The event will be recorded and posted by the nice folks at the G and T show after the event. Anyone who wishes may post questions here in this thread and I will bring them with me to the panel and address them along with questions from the room.

I've been holding out hope for as long as possible to do a live version for all of you, but I hope that despite the fact we cannot, you will still post questions here so that I can answer them for you.

Please note that only questions posted here in this thread or sent to the email address below will be used during the panel. If you want to ask something, this is the best place. If for any reason you or anyone else you may know who is interested cannot post a question here, please send your questions directly to sundaygandt@yahoo.com. These will be brought by the gentleman who is recording the panel to the event.

I look forward to the discussion.

So...your questions are?

Kirsten Beyer

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Kirsten, who will be on this panel? What is the name of the session? Just trying to clarify what context my question(s) should be framed in.

 

[Shatnertage]

I don't have any questions, but I want to applaud you for taking the effort to have a conversation with fans of your work, of Voyager, and of Captain Janeway.

 

[Kirsten Beyer]

Kirsten, who will be on this panel? What is the name of the session? Just trying to clarify what context my question(s) should be framed in.

The only panelists participating will be me and Marco Palmieri, the editor who hired me to write Full Circle and Unworthy. (And that is assuming his schedule permits.) Otherwise, it will just be me.

The panel is called "Bring Back Janeway".

It is meant for those who have questions about the creation of the novels, Janeway's presence in them, or lack thereof, to ask anything they'd like on the topic. It is in no way limited only to those who would like to see Janeway return in the novels. Those who would prefer not to see Janeway return are also welcome to post questions.

The only thing I would ask that people avoid are questions that contain explicit story ideas. That's the only thing that will be off-limits.

Hope this helps.

Best,
Kirsten Beyer

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Trying to keep it brief, though not as brief as "when's she coming back", LOL!

This is what I would say if in the audience and given the microphone.

"Kirsten, a few questions.. Janeway was arguably the strongest female character in Star Trek. I know I am not alone in introducing my daughters to Voyager with an eye to presenting them with a positive female role model in what is a male dominated genre. Years later they have seen all the Star Trek series and they still revere and love Captain Janeway and credit her as a positive female role model. I would like to see this continue on in Star Trek fiction. I know there are other female characters in Treklit but because of her 7 years on television as the captain Janeway is the female role model celebre of Star Trek. I feel that her absence from Treklit is a loss on Treklit's part as far as female role models go and I'm wondering how you feel about this?"

Kirsten graciously answers the question but teacake refuses to let go of the microphone..

"Many fans seem very excited by the multiple possibilities her eventual return could bring to Treklit and the characters. Do you see her return as opening doors as far as the characters stories go?"

 

[JanewayRulz!]

Wrestling the microphone away from the lady down-under... (Gee, that sounds kinkier than I planned )

Along those same lines, Ms Beyer, do you find it strange that the way "Before Dishonor" ended, we even have to have this panel?

Admiral Janeway dies "before dishonor", but is "rescued" by the omnipotent force that's monitored her since the beginning. A force that is in some ways beholding to her for Janeway's positive interactions with Q junior during his rebellious "teen" years. That final scene between Miss Q and Admiral Janeway suggested some day, somewhere, Karthryn would be returned to us; and yet here we are, four years later still debating whether she will return.

 

[BillJ]

These are about the Voyager relaunch and Janeway...

1. Do you have a definite story-arc in mind for Afsarah Eden and will the character be "moved on" like Admiral Batiste at the end of the arc? I haven't finished Children of the Storm yet.

2. If alive, was there a way to naturally integrate Janeway into the Voyager relaunch at the start?

3. Do you think think the stories would have evolved the same way with Janeway at the center of the Voyager relaunch?

4. Do you think having Janeway at the center would've changed the work you've done to rehabilitate the background characters from the TV series?

5. If brought back, do you see a way to organically integrate Janeway into the current relaunch storyline?

Thanks again for breathing new life into a dead series. While I'm opposed to the concept, I would at least sample any book that brings back Janeway that has your name on the cover. Time to settle into my chair and read some more Children of the Storm.

 

[froot]

*shoots blow darts tipped with sedative into everyone; picks microphone up off floor*

My question would be:

Could there possibly be a way for Janeway to be brought back without undoing some of the angst and growth the other characters have gone through? A lot of people have brought that up as a sticking point, and, I have to admit, even as someone who would love to have her back in the relaunch novels, it's something that worries me as well.

Thanks!

 

[Tidus79001]

Kristen I have two questions that I would like for you to address during the “Bring Back Janeway” panel at the Shore Leave 33:


1) In an interview on startrek.com when discussing the release of your new book Star Trek Voyager: Children of the Storm the question “What sort of game changers/stumbling blocks for you were the whole Tuvok-to-Titan storyline and the death of Admiral Janeway in Before Dishonor?”. Your response was:

"Had I been onboard with this work prior to those decisions being made I probably would have requested that things went a little differently. But that was not the case so I did the best I could with what I was given".

I would like to know why would that in any way whatsoever prevent you from being able to recommend/suggest future changes now to rectify those changes made by the decision to kill off Kathryn Janeway in Peter David’s novel Before Dishonor in 2007.

2) I understand & respect that that the writers yourself included do not solely have the authority to change the decision to make the death of Kathryn Janeway permanent. That being said if possible can you tell us who specifically we can contact to appeal the decision to make her death permanent?

I know that you may not be at liberty to give out this information & if you aren't able do so I completely understand.

 

[JanewayRulz!]

After waking up from froot's sedative...

....I actually would like to build upon questions from my esteemed colleagues re: Janeway stories impacting / detracting from other former members of her crew. Is there a particular reason why we couldn't have ADMIRAL Janeway stories paralleling stories of her former ship and former shipmates?

One of the biggest gripes we've had on the board was that the "Admiral" promotion is seen as a "demotion". Ever since Kirk, we've been told that promotion beyond starfleet captain is the last step before death and or retirement.

If Janeway came back, I'd much prefer to see her as an active Admiral embroiled into the politics of Federation policy and cross species wars, rather than just one ship and one captain taking care of one problem.

I'd especially love to see an "Admiral Janeway" at the head of a small fleet, as we saw with Admiral Adama in "BSG".

Such a person in such a job could cross paths with former members of her crew or other series crews without straining the imagination.

 

[SPCTRE]

I don't have any questions, but I want to applaud you for taking the effort to have a conversation with fans of your work, of Voyager, and of Captain Janeway.

Same here. Looking forward to watching the recording!

 

[Lynx]

My questions are: Isn't a Voyager relaunch supposed to be about the Voyager characters. I mean, we have 4 main characters missing and a lot of characters involved who weren't on Voyager in the TV series instead. Wouldn't it be better if a Voyager relaunch were about the Voyager characters and the others could show up from time to time?

Wasn't it a mistake to kill off Janeway in the first place? After all, she's the main character of Voyager and a very good main character too.

When Janeway is back (note my never ending hope ), maybe it's possible to create a role for her which gives her a possibility to be the one in charge of the ship. As I see it, making her an Admiral was a big mistake from those in charge of the TV series. Janeway's destiny is to explore space, not behind a desk.

(Personally I will demote her back to Captain in an upcoming fan-fiction story but that's another deal!)

 

[Shane Houston]

Thank you for giving us this opportunity.

My questions are why was Janeway written to be killed off in the first place?

And why in a Next Generation novel and not Voyager?

 

[Kuvah'magh]

Hi Kirsten,
Thanks for giving us this forum. Was so looking forward to getting to ShoreLeave this year but last minute changes in life will not allow me to attend.
Here are my questions

1) If you are given the go ahead to bring Janeway back would you envision a scenario where she comes back but a changed person?
One of the things of course that was shown on screen was when Q offered Picard the chance to change who he was. He took the chance to see who he was had he made other choices. And there is of course the side of affects of being assimilated and such.

2) Any thoughts on that aspect of things as it relates to elimination of the borg?

3) I like my fellow treklit fans am also concerned about the characters that have developed so much as a result of this tragedy would be rendered moot. Have you given though to this how to make her sacrifice still meaningful?

4) If I were writing star trek I would love to see a epic length Janeway solo book of self discovery and Adventure to bring her back to the land the living. Any thoughts on something like that?

Thanks Again for allowing this forum. I look forward to watching the panel

 

[Frontier]

My Question:

"One of the Greatest Strength's of Star Trek: Voyager, in my humble opinion, was the Sense of Family woven between the Crew. It's something that, through meeting most of the cast at conventions, I've seen was a bit of art imitating life. Yet in the post-finale Star Trek novels, that wonderful family was broken up. Now they are finally beginning to come back together, but are still split up amongst this Voyager Fleet. Will we ever again see our family brought back together in whole? Or closer to what we once knew? And will they ever be made truly whole with the return of Kathryn Janeway?"

 

[Gates]

Any word on if/when a recording from the panel will be available?

 

[F. King Daniel]

I have a question: Do you think Voyager and the rest of Treklit are moving too far from the series and films they're based on? Voyager is missing it's main character. In her place is someone new. While interesting for the most die-hard Treklit fans, do you really expect casual fans to buy novels bearing less and less resemblence to the shows they enjoyed?

 

[BillJ]

I have a question: Do you think Voyager and the rest of Treklit are moving too far from the series and films they're based on? Voyager is missing it's main character. In her place is someone new. While interesting for the most die-hard Treklit fans, do you really expect casual fans to buy novels bearing less and less resemblence to the shows they enjoyed?

Might be a little late... but I find this to be an excellent question.

 

[Guy Gardener]

I don't care if it's too late.

I have an excellent question?

How "old" is Janeway's Body going to be?

It could be a new body completely pulled out of gods ass, since her original body is rotting wormfood or been fired into a sun or demolecularized by a transporter, hells the only way to truly honour this woman is to put her into a torpedo and and fire it at the Delta Quadrant, lo it take two thousand years years to get there through real space.

Unless everyone assumed that she was coming back that they put her real body into stasis, no matter what they publicly did for ceremony with a corpse clone.

Maybe her actual body is reanimated without being rejuvenated or revivisized so that she's a half dead rotting Zombie copse that has to be medically maintained because bits keep trying to fall off?

How sad.

Or Kathy might come back "healthy" and exactly the same age she left, which would make her a few years younger comparatively since time didn't stand still for all her contemporaries who kept living during her death. 2 years? 3 years? Chakotay is suddenly older than she is. Which should surely make him less unacceptable as a lover?

People suggest that you live in heaven as a manifestation of what you deem to be your perfect ideal self, so in her mind how does Janeway see herself that she returns as the woman she lived as during her death that she is suddenly 35 or 25? Making her now perhaps physically the same age as Tom or B'Elanna.

Then of course Janeway could come back as a baby who maturates at a ridiculous speed which hopefully levels off before she's a crone and then dust, but Kathryn could stop at 16 years making her now a contemporary of Naomi and Icheb. Although what if the baby aged normally but still had her mind and personality of a 40 year old queen bitch, and baby Janeway insists that she won't let this handicap of being "newborn" stand in her way of Captaining a starship.

Resurrection can be quite tricky.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

The money I would pay to hear Kirsten read out Guy's question at the panel.

Ah well.