What is happening with Star Trek literature?

[Anson Mount Seleya]

Star Wars didn't erase decades of stories from existence. They just stopped publishing new stories in the Legends continuity.

Thing is, in the two years between learning Picard would overwrite the Lit Con and the Coda trilogy being published, everyone was posting here "I hope they wrap the Lit Con up and don't leave it hanging like Star Wars did the Legends continuity." And you know what, they all got their wish. Granted, they likely weren't expecting everything to be destroyed and have its existence negated, but you knew the Lit Con wouldn't be revisited again anyway, meaning you all went into Coda (something many of the fans were demanding) knowing it was the last time you'd be visiting that particular continuity anyway.

Now I've voiced my disagreements with the creative decisions made in the Coda trilogy, and I don't particularly see how it's supposed to be more comforting than what Star Wars did, but to claim the Coda "alienated" fans really inappropriate given the sole reason it exists is because the fans wanted some sense of closure for the Lit Con. If Paramount or S&S or whoever really wanted to alienate the fans, they wouldn't have bothered with Coda and have just left the Lit Con with Collateral Damage or To Lose the Earth as the last publication in that continuity with no closure whatsoever.

I wouldn't leap to that conclusion. Irregular scheduling, lack of must-read "event" stories (either within the novels themselves or tied to current events in the franchise), and the shift to a more expensive and less ubiquitous format (yes, I know MMPB's are falling off across the board) are all things the TrekLit audience wouldn't necessarily enjoy, completely aside from the regular, ongoing meta-story sputtering to a stop over a year or two before ending in a way that was, shall we say, challenging, controversial, and not really the kind of thing that got you fired up anticipating the next novel.

Yes, the scheduling of Trek novels in recent years has been unfortunate, though I understand that has more to do with internal issues at S&S and not really anything that can be fixed while they hold the Trek novel license. However, the switch to trade paperbacks should be a non-issue, Star Wars has also made the switch to TPB and abandoned MMPBs and they don't seem to have their sales impacted. Hell, they've even begun reprinting Legends novels as TPBs.

 

[KRAD]

eBooks have pretty much taken over the sales niche that used to be occupied by mass-market paperbacks. Someone upthread said that browsing online isn't the same as going into a bookstore to find something, and while that's true in the abstract, searching for stuff online is how people are shopping more commonly now (the trend toward that accelerated by the apocalypse of 2020 where online shopping suddenly became the safer option for getting stuff).

And from all accounts, eBooks are where most of Trek's sales are. If you think that's not a growth market, then you haven't been paying attention to book sales at all over the last 15 years.

 

[Anson Mount Seleya]

Even before 2020 online shopping was becoming more commonplace for book shopping. I remember seeing something in 2019 saying that modern book covers were designed for the purpose of being eye-catching even as a thumbnail image on Amazon or another online store as that is how most people learn of new books now.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Star Wars didn't erase decades of stories from existence. They just stopped publishing new stories in the Legends continuity.

Check your shelves, your books are still there.

This is 2009 all over again.

 

[Tiran O'Saurus]

Like, Firewall was a great story, but if Star Wars was doing it, it would've come out three or four years ago, and they would've promoted it as a must-read; I'd see excerpts from it randomly showing up in videos from content-farm Facebook nerd explainer accounts titled "How did Seven become a Ranger?!." Again, that's not something you can directly blame the publishers for, Star Wars also wouldn't have brought back a popular character, vetoed a midquel novel on the grounds that they might want to do a flashback, and then radically reinvented the show they were doing, twice, while also never getting around to doing the flashback. It's not the books' fault that these longer and longer production cycles aren't actually turning into pre-planning and two-way coordination.

To be fair, Star Wars acts like their books are all canon (post 2014 books, I mean). Trek has never viewed the novels as anything more than official fanfiction.

 

[Corran Horn]

Thing is, in the two years between learning Picard would overwrite the Lit Con and the Coda trilogy being published, everyone was posting here "I hope they wrap the Lit Con up and don't leave it hanging like Star Wars did the Legends continuity." .

People keep saying this but "Crucible" was sold as a 'capstone' for the EU at the time--one last run with the 'big 3'. I can't say there were many persistent EU storylines that were left unanswered at that point. They all lived happily ever after, presumably.

 

[Thrawn]

True, but they had also already commissioned the Sword of the Jedi trilogy to follow it, which was cancelled once the decision was clear. So that may have been the case, but it had an asterisk next to it that said "unless we decide to keep writing more, which we plan to!"

See: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Sword_of_the_Jedi_(trilogy)

 

[bdub76]

Exactly. Personally, I'm a shameless Luddite who still prefers old-fashioned, dead-tree books, but it makes perfect sense that Trek fans in general are going to be technophiles quick to adopt the latest "new" tech -- like ebooks. And I can testify that an ever-increasing share of my royalties come from ebook sales.

I honestly read almost everything as an ebook these days. It’s far better when moving. But I’ll make some exceptions.

The exception now is pretty books. We’ll buy Folio Society books. I like the comic Omnibuses. The Tolkien books that have come out recently are really pretty books. I’ll opt for dead tree over digital when the book looks great.

 

[Ktrek]

When ebooks came out I never thought I would completely transition to them but I have. I used to only buy ebook exclusive Star Trek titles but aging eyes have forced me to move toward ebooks. I found that I actually enjoy using my Kindle devices, and if I am out and about, and have a few minutes to spare I can use the Kindle app on my phone. Simon and Schuster have monthly sales that I take advantage of to collect some of the titles I had in paperback. I figure that .99 cents or $1.99 is a pretty fair price for the amount of joy I get reading Star Trek.

I admit that I had been out of the Trek book reading scene for a couple of years. I didn't like the move to Trade size from Mass Market. The price going from $7.99 to $16.99 was a little steep. When you're on a fixed income that's something to consider. However, after not having bought any Trek books for several years I am back but only in ebook form. I kinda wish I had transitioned over sooner than I did.

 

[Corran Horn]

I honestly read almost everything as an ebook these days. It’s far better when moving. But I’ll make some exceptions.

The exception now is pretty books. We’ll buy Folio Society books. I like the comic Omnibuses. The Tolkien books that have come out recently are really pretty books. I’ll opt for dead tree over digital when the book looks great.

I like to be able to highlight things and make notes. Of course the portability and lack of everlasting storage/shelves as well.
I display some (most of which I also have on kindle subsequently thanks to $1 sales) lines like Vanguard, A Time To..., Titan, Typhon Pact, The Fall..., because I like how they look but most standalones and such that I've gotten the kindles for I moved into a tote in 'bulk storage' down in the basement.

Star Wars has lured me back into buying physical with their sharp trade Essential Legends collection and I've swapped some of those older MMPBs and HCs for those editions because I like the look of the covers and spines.

 

[Cloud]

I have adjusted my book shopping much like I have done to my food shopping - research and deal shopping. If you don't search the flyers online and go where the deals are, you're leaving a lot of money on the table.

My current plan is buying books from Barnes and Noble. I have gotten a free premium membership from them for the past 2 years and it comes up with some decent perks. Some strong discounts on pre-order books a few times a year where I purchased the last 4 books of the year that will be shipped out for free with a 30 percent discount and multiple reward stamps for other future purchases. That 18.99 trade is much easier to purchase at 12 bucks, that's for sure. Unlike in the past, Amazon is not always the answer for the cheapest book anymore.

I collect dead tree books because I love how my collection looks and I LOVE searching the shelves for the next
Trek read aloud. My unread books are on one shelf and the finished are on another. I dream of the day that they will all be in the same spot. Just started TOS: Yesterday's Son....yesterday!

 

[A Killer's Dream]

I collect dead tree books because I love how my collection looks and I LOVE searching the shelves for the next
Trek read aloud. My unread books are on one shelf and the finished are on another. I dream of the day that they will all be in the same spot. Just started TOS: Yesterday's Son....yesterday!

My Trek book collection keeps on growing.... Just ordered a new bookshelf as I need more space for all the books.

 

[Cloud]

My Trek book collection keeps on growing.... Just ordered a new bookshelf as I need more space for all the books.

I'm doing the same this summer I think. I'm at the point where I need to stack finished books 2 deep and that's just not acceptable.

 

[Anson Mount Seleya]

I don't even bother with bookshelves anymore. I just pile my books on the floor as I'm done with them. And the damnedest thing is, it's quite the efficient system for finding an old book. I just remember when when I got it, or look up its release date online if I can't remember, and go to the appropriate pile for that time period, and there we are.

 

[A Killer's Dream]

I'm doing the same this summer I think. I'm at the point where I need to stack finished books 2 deep and that's just not acceptable.

I'd like to see the spines of the books, but this is simply not possible anymore.

Once my shelf has arrived, piles are no option anymore. But I need a bigger apartment some day.

 

[Smellincoffee]

I used to have an entire bookcase of Star Trek paperbacks, but almost all of my Trek reading is ebook now -- in part because of sales, in part because I just can't live surrounded by stuff anymore. Had to minimize.

 

[tomswift2002]

S&S are doing no such thing. It's the book stores choosing not to order them.

I was going to ask how Trek Lit has "alienated" its fans, but I suspect this is a reference to ending the Lit Continuity. In which case, I point out Star Wars did something similar and their novel sales remain as strong as ever.

Yes S&S is sabotaging their own sales by only targeting an extremely niche market. CBS/Paramount has some blame as well by making shows that are unairable on traditional TV stations and networks, unless they provide tapes that are bleeped out (even here in Canada I have been surprised that CTV SCI-FI has aired the shows unedited, but they also aired them in the evening). But with the post-2016 Trek, the shows are unmarketable for syndication in like morning or afternoon time slots on traditional broadcast sources, unlike the TOS to Enterprise shows.

And by having no books or physical presence in stores, S&S and CBS/Paramount are killing their market. Back in the 90’s and 2000’s, the books were my introduction to Voyager and Enterprise before I had seen 1 episode. And they were readily available in bookstores, department stores and libraries. By only having them available in certain regions, and online only, the they are killing their profit margins and destroying their book lines. And killing off their 27 year storyline didn’t help them.

 

[Anson Mount Seleya]

Yes S&S is sabotaging their own sales by only targeting an extremely niche market.

What "niche market?" Modern Trek books are as readily available everywhere, same as any other book. If you can't find any at a local book store, it's because that store chose not to order them, not because S&S didn't make them available to that store.

But with the post-2016 Trek, the shows are unmarketable for syndication in like morning or afternoon time slots on traditional broadcast sources, unlike the TOS to Enterprise shows.

The old syndication market is becoming a thing of the past, that has no relevance in the Trek Lit forum.

And killing off their 27 year storyline didn’t help them.

The old Lit Con was always going to end, nothing is permanent or forever. Ending because there's new content on television which has superseded it was the best case scenario. The fact there was even a special publication to bring closure to it is bonus.

 

[Greg Cox]

The old Lit Con was always going to end, nothing is permanent or forever. Ending because there's new content on television which has superseded it was the best case scenario. The fact there was even a special publication to bring closure to it is bonus.

With all due respect to the Litverse, we should remember that Star Trek novels were published for decades before it and continue to be published after it. The "LitVerse" and "Star Trek literature" are not the same thing.

I harp on this because I keep running into folks who seem surprised to discover that Trek books are still being published. "But I thought I heard that they'd cancelled the books because of the new shows?" or "I thought they were only publishing books based on the new shows these days?"

Obviously confusing the end of the "LitVerse" with the end of the books in general . . . .

 

[kirk55555]

I'm pretty far removed from the Star Trek book scene these days, do they still publish Star trek books that aren't just tie ins to the current shows? I thought that they had specifically killed off the non-tie in Trek book line with that Coda nonsense, and were mostly focusing on those IDW comics for spin off material of the older shows. I have a Discovery novel that came out around Season 1 of that show, but thats the last Star Trek book I ever bought, even though my shelves are still over flowing with the Pocket Book era stuff (I miss that era, it was really the peak of Trek Lit in my opinion, no disrespect intended to the later Novelverse stuff).