• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Spoilers Discovery and the Novelverse - TV show discussion thread

Christopher said:
So the best response is to keep our minds open to every possibility. We shouldn't assume there weren't other 5-year missions, but neither should we assume that every starship mission in the 23rd century was a 5-year mission. Indeed, it makes no sense whatsoever for that to be the only mission profile in all of Starfleet. Logically, there must be other kinds of mission, and there's canonical evidence in support of that.
Click to expand...

This balanced view of approaching the 5 year mission concept seems like a good middle ground. An overemphasis on every ship under every captain going out on an endless rotation of 5YM over and over again feels stifling. It feels very constricting if I try to apply that rule to Robert April and Christopher Pike's era, and I'm not keen on it applied to the post-TMP/pre-WoK era. I like the idea of those eras being more flexible and open ended. At the same time, having the 5YM of TOS be The Sacred and Revered 5YM that no other ship ever comes back from is too much in the other direction (maybe for some stories, like The Wounded Sky, where legends are being made in another universe). Clever idea to suggest the idea that 5 years is a maximum range that a ship and crew can push to achieve.

Regarding squaring away the limits of visuals in earlier decades compared to modern TV, I do like the ideas of dramatization of "real" event, or "historical fiction". I've played with the idea that the TOS movie-era sets are closer to authentic because the earlier production team couldn't depict starship interiors because of military security reasons, or what have you. The Wrath of Khan uniforms are actually the dress uniforms, the classic primary color uniforms are standard duty uniforms. I've also liked seeing what some authors have done with some of the really crazy stuff, like the gods of Olympus, or Methuselah, reconciling TOS style with the TNG/DS9/VOY. All good fun.
 
Desert Kris said:
An overemphasis on every ship under every captain going out on an endless rotation of 5YM over and over again feels stifling.
Click to expand...

Also, we know that Sulu's first mission as Captain of the Excelsior was a three year mission. I don't have a problem with the fanon idea of 5YM being the default exploratory type mission for a Constitution class vessel, but I agree it's not a good idea to think that is the only type of exploratory mission Starfleet sends its ships on in the 23rd century.
 
I'm guessing that - from what David has said, that it's not a novelisation of the pilot, and it doesn't take place during the series per se, but that it's a 'side-story' - it might be a story set on the Shenzhou itself, perhaps ending with a segue into the events of the pilot (Admiral dispatching the ship to the desert planet they seem to be on, or something like that).
 
^I thought it had already been announced it was a prequel.
@David Mack, do you have any idea when we'll get more details about the book? I'm assuming they're waiting until more info on the show's plot has been released.
 
Last edited:
David Mack said:
There will be prequel comics, and there are likely going to be more novels after the first one (by other authors than myself). I have to be circumspect with what I divulge, however, because I don't recall what details have been released yet. We can't even share the back-cover copy of my novel yet.
Click to expand...
Ah, so it's got a back cover !

Interesting...
 
Normally, I would just think of it as a safe assumption that the tie-ins around Discovery's premiere would track with those we've seen when other Star Trek series have started--but with the different delivery platform(s) and the many evolutions in social media since the premiere of Enterprise, who knows how things might be approached?
 
The only time you really run into a problem is when one of a plot's main points is that something cannot be done with the current technological level/scientific knowledge. You have to make sure that you have a valid reason why it was done before (Discovery era) but can't be anymore (Kirk's 5YM). (Someone else's tech, too dangerous, actually done in a dream rather than reality, or an alternate present/future.)
 
I'm definitely interested in the backstories of the new Characters in the Discovery series. After watching the previews last week it looks really intriguing. I definitely want to get David Mack's novel. I hope someday Mr. Mack will write another Star Trek novel in the future.:bolian::beer:
 
SolarisOne said:
I don't see why they wouldn't contract him again. His latest released Trek novel is a hit, after all.
Click to expand...

I guess Reanok's comment is because @David Mack has stated that he isn't contracted for another novel at the moment (beside the two he has already finished (Titan, Discovery)).

But he has already stated that he would be open to more Trek after the work on his Dark Arts trilogy of original novels is done, so unless he prices himself out of the ST line's budget by landing a major hit with film contract etc. (actually I kind of hope for him that this happens to be honest), he should be back by 2019 or so.



For reference:

David Mack said:
I have no plans for a continuation of this story arc at this time, nor do I know of one in development. I am also no longer under contract with Star Trek, having delivered a couple of weeks ago the last item (my Star Trek: Discovery manuscript) required by my contract. While I look forward to future Star Trek book projects, I have none planned at this time.
Click to expand...

David Mack said:
Exactly. I've fulfilled the requirements of my current contract, and now I need to focus on delivering the next two manuscripts on my Tor contract. But it's my hope to return to Star Trek (and other licensed universes) at some point in the future, simply because I enjoy doing so.
Click to expand...

David Mack said:
Close.

After unexpected delays to my Dark Arts series (for which The Midnight Front is book one), I had a large gap in my schedule without work or income. I asked Margaret if she had work available. She gave me a two-book deal for Section 31: Control and Titan: Fortune of War.

Not long after that, I was approached about writing the first Star Trek: Discovery novel, Desperate Hours. I accepted that gig, which was covered by a separate contract.

Delays on Discovery resulted in changes to my writing schedule. The DSC manuscript was moved later in my schedule, and the Titan novel, which had an approved outline, moved earlier, so that I would at least be working on something with a paycheck while waiting for Discovery to solidify its plans.

My previous two-book contract was fulfilled when I delivered the manuscript for my Titan novel. I fulfilled the Discovery contract when I turned in the manuscript for Desperate Hours.

Now I need to draft outlines and then write manuscripts for books two and three of Dark Arts (books that I plan to title The Iron Codex and Shadow Commission) for Tor Books. I suspect that before I finish them, I might ink a new deal with Star Trek (or another publisher, who knows) to pen some more tie-in novels.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks Defcon for posting the information about David Mack and his plans for his new books. His new alternate history fantasy novels sound really interesting.. When was interviewed by Literary treks he talked a lot about these fantasy books. The Titan book is one I'll definitely get later this year.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top