Frustrations with Trek lit...

[Idran]

Well, some of the recent 24th Century books have made it on the bestseller lists, so they must be doing pretty well.
That's the to keep in mind here, they publish what sells, if the current series weren't selling then we would probably would be getting standalones, and at the same time if the 24th century standalones sold well we'd be getting them.

It's easy to do this, you can either just look at a specific genre, which would be the equivalent to wandering through that genre's shelves at the book store, or if you didn't want something in a specific genre you can just look through the recommended books, or bestsellers, or one of the themed sections they tend to have on the first page or two. I do this stuff all the time.

None of those examples you give for what to look through fit what I was saying, though, and I specifically pointed out that I'm not talking about books selected by personal preference like recommended books. All your other examples still preferentially lean towards more recent or more popular books because they're more likely to sell in an audience-wide sense, I'm talking about literally having a random listing in a given area.

Yep. Not speaking for Pocket Books or anything, but, ultimately, sales figures are probably a more reliable indicator of whether you're giving readers what they want than, say, internet chatter or petitions or whatever.

.A more reliable indicator that you're giving the majority of the audience what they want, maybe; if you've got more esoteric tastes not matched by the majority of the audience, it's perfectly reasonable to feel slighted by books being pointed towards other segments just because there happen to be more people in those segments. Even if it makes complete economic sense that books would be pointed towards the areas most likely to make publishers money, that's cold comfort if you sometimes would like to have books written for your tastes. Even if it's selfish and even if it would be bad business for a company to do so. I will entirely admit that sometimes I don't want a book that gives readers what they want, I want a book that gives this particular reader what they want.

 

[F. King Daniel]

"We should avoid the Neutral Zone."
"Neutral Zone? Wasn't that disbanded after Romulus was-"
"LA-LA-LA! Not listening!"

*History class in the year 3000*
Teacher: So we've finished 2386, on to 2388!
Student: But what about 2387?
Teacher: We don't talk about 2387.

 

[Jinn]

*History class in the year 3000*
Teacher: So we've finished 2386, on to 2388!
Student: But what about 2387?
Teacher: We don't talk about 2387.

2387 is full of glitches.

 

[Greg Cox]

.A more reliable indicator that you're giving the majority of the audience what they want, maybe; if you've got more esoteric tastes not matched by the majority of the audience, it's perfectly reasonable to feel slighted by books being pointed towards other segments just because there happen to be more people in those segments. Even if it makes complete economic sense that books would be pointed towards the areas most likely to make publishers money, that's cold comfort if you sometimes would like to have books written for your tastes. Even if it's selfish and even if it would be bad business for a company to do so. I will entirely admit that sometimes I don't want a book that gives readers what they want, I want a book that gives this particular reader what they want.

Fair enough. I was just making the (obvious?) point that you have to take internet chatter with a grain of salt when it comes to gauging what the actual majority of the audience are thinking.

If the internet truly represented the views of readers as a whole, then "Captain Sulu" novels would be the best selling Trek books ever . . . and FIREFLY would be the top-rated show in television history.

 

[Nyotarules]

I will entirely admit that sometimes I don't want a book that gives readers what they want, I want a book that gives this particular reader what they want.

Try writing one, then self publish.

 

[Idran]

Try writing one, then self publish.

You're assuming that I have a level of writing talent/ability enough to create something to my tastes that I would enjoy reading.

Besides, writing is a completely different experience from reading, as is reading something that you yourself have written as compared to reading something that someone else has written.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Even if it makes complete economic sense that books would be pointed towards the areas most likely to make publishers money, that's cold comfort if you sometimes would like to have books written for your tastes. Even if it's selfish and even if it would be bad business for a company to do so. I will entirely admit that sometimes I don't want a book that gives readers what they want, I want a book that gives this particular reader what they want.

Just announced for the 2017 schedule...

Face it, completists... you're buying it anyway!

 

[DimesDan]

Just announced for the 2017 schedule...

Face it, completists... you're buying it anyway!

Does it include paragraph after paragraph of the main character ex(mans)plaining what someone actually meant?

 

[The Wormhole]

Face it, completists... you're buying it anyway!

I've already pre-ordered it!

 

[Jinn]

I've already pre-ordered it!

I already pre-ordered my tardis to get the book right now!

 

[Idran]

Just announced for the 2017 schedule...

Face it, completists... you're buying it anyway!

I'm not sure it was the best idea to print a 3,500-page tome in single-volume paperback format, but I'm not going to quibble!

 

[Jarrod]

So a book with Garak and Dr Pulaski now qualifies as a DS9 novel. Would one with Icheb and Wesley Crusher count as a Voyager Novel??

 

[Idran]

So a book with Garak and Dr Pulaski now qualifies as a DS9 novel. Would one with Icheb and Wesley Crusher count as a Voyager Novel??

But the book you're talking about was set at DS9. If the book with Wesley Crusher was set on Voyager, then yeah it would. Why would having a character from another branch of the franchise showing up make it not count? Were the Lwaxana Troi DS9 episodes not really DS9, or the Barclay and Troi Voyager episodes not really Voyager?

 

[DGCatAniSiri]

The Missing featured Doctor Pulaski and Doctor Crusher, but they were on DS9, and Ro and Odo also had major roles. The novels being more interconnected does allow for these kinds of cast crossovers.

It's like when Hercules or Xena (or any of the other characters introduced on one or the other) would appear on the other's show. The show didn't stop being their show because of shared appearances. Pulaski is a TNG-originating character, but she's going to the DS9 setting and interacting with the characters there, so it gets the DS9 label.

 

[Jarrod]

But the book you're talking about was set at DS9. If the book with Wesley Crusher was set on Voyager, then yeah it would. Why would having a character from another branch of the franchise showing up make it not count? Were the Lwaxana Troi DS9 episodes not really DS9, or the Barclay and Troi Voyager episodes not really Voyager?

Actually the book I am talking about is being released next summer.. and is set on Cardassia.

 

[Jarrod]

This is just an example of something that further illustrates one of my frustrations with Lit Trek.
A Reader picks up a Deep Space Nine novel to read a story featuring... Crusher, Pulaski, and Ro. With a Special Guest Appearance by Odo.

 

[Jarrod]

And just to clarify... I love Star Trek books. I have read every Star Trek book that Pocket Books has ever put out.. including "Hall of Heroes", book three of the Prey trilogy, that I am working on now.

Right now, I am praying that the Strange New Worlds contest continues.. because that is my only hope at getting 24th Century books that are set in the time frame of the series that it is set in.

 

[Jinn]

But the book you're talking about was set at DS9. If the book with Wesley Crusher was set on Voyager, then yeah it would. Why would having a character from another branch of the franchise showing up make it not count? Were the Lwaxana Troi DS9 episodes not really DS9, or the Barclay and Troi Voyager episodes not really Voyager?

Every DS9 episode featuring O'Brien is actually a secret TNG episode.

Actually the book I am talking about is being released next summer.. and is set on Cardassia.

Yeah, but the author is Una McCormack therefore it will be awesome.

Right now, I am praying that the Strange New Worlds contest continues.

I'd like to see more SNW books too.

 

[Reanok]

I liked to see more SNW come out in Paperback again if the e-book sales well .

 

[Christopher]

This is just an example of something that further illustrates one of my frustrations with Lit Trek.
A Reader picks up a Deep Space Nine novel to read a story featuring... Crusher, Pulaski, and Ro. With a Special Guest Appearance by Odo.

The thing is, the literary Trek universe has increasingly come to be treated by the writers as one big thing where characters can mix and match freely... but it's still treated by the marketing department as a bunch of separate series. And so some "hybrid" stories that don't really fit under any one series's banner still get released under one series title or another.