Dayton Ward and David R. George III: How to Write Star Trek Novels.
Running Time: 1 hour52 minutes 32 seconds
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For almost the entire history of Star Trek, novels have played a part in many people's experience of the fandom. They are a way to go beyond what we see on the screen, and Star Trek fiction novels now account for scores more adventures than the television shows and films. But how does a Star Trek novel come to be, and what goes into the writing of a Star Trek adventure in book form?
In this episode of Literary Treks, hosts Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson are joined by veteran Star Trek authors Dayton Ward and David R. George III to discuss how to write Star Trek novels. We talk about how they got their start in writing, the process of how a Trek novel is published, how writing tie-in fiction differs from writing original fiction, how they approach writing the established characters, working with CBS licensing, and what is required for someone to become a Star Trek author. We wrap up by talking about what projects they currently have on the go, and where they can be found online.
In the news segment, we report on a new Discovery novel coming in December, a schedule change for The Autobiography of Mr. Spock, and a new Voyager Mirror Universe comic coming from IDW. We also review the sixth and final issue of The Q Conflict, as well as respond to listener feedback from The Babel Conference for Literary Treks 274: An Old Man in the Park Feeding Pigeons.
News
DSC: Dead Endless Announced (00:02:37)
Autobiography of Mr. Spock in 2020 (00:05:57)
Voyager Mirror Universe Comic Announced (00:08:29)
The Q Conflict #6 Comic Review (00:11:30)
Listener Feedback (00:26:17)
Feature: Dayton Ward and David R. George III
Getting Started (00:30:48)
Star Trek Books Process (00:39:37)
Keeping Up with Continuity (00:45:20)
Painting a Star Trek Picture (00:54:32)
Writing Characters (01:01:25)
Pushing the Envelope (01:06:31)
Working with CBS Licensing (01:12:09)
How to Get Published (01:18:37)
What's in the Works (01:38:14)
Final Thoughts (01:43:47)
Hosts
Dan Gunther and Bruce Gibson
Guests
Dayton Ward
David R. George III
Production
Bruce Gibson (Editor and Producer) Dan Gunther (Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Ken Tripp (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Richard Marquez (Production Manager) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Patreon Manager) Ken Tripp (Associate Producer) Brandon-Shea Mutala (Associate Producer) Justin Oser (Associate Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer) Greg Rozier (Associate Producer) Jeffery Harlan (Associate Producer)
David Mack: Ring of Fire. With David Mack we dive into the book's ensemble of characters, high-action set pieces, Spock delivering a memorable beatdown, and Pike's continued growth as a captain.
Gateways: What Lay Beyond. We discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly, and talk about their vision for the series were it to be written today. Also covered is The Lore War comics, the concluding crossover between the Star Trek and Star Trek: Defiant comics from IDW.
Interview with Star Trek: Khan writers Kirsten Beyer and David Mack. We speak with Star Trek: Khan writers Kirsten Beyer and David Mack. They talk about the writing process, casting and recording, making it sound like Star Trek, allegory, the mind of a villain, and much more!
Gateways: Cold Wars. We discuss the New Frontier series and characters, the overall plot, growing up too fast, a clean ending, and more!
Gateways: No Man's Land. Topics include characterizations, Janeway-Chakotay shipping, Seven instigating a slave uprising, not one but two murder mysteries, and, oh yeah, the gateways. Plus, we ask a very important question: What happens to Fluffy?
Gateways: Demons of Air and Darkness. We discuss title questions, the opening, the treat of the book, Kira’s leadership, the “threat”, Shar and Nog, Quark, Ro, the reveal, the same scene, our ratings and final thoughts.
James Swallow: Toward the Night. We discuss the genesis of the book, the focus, introductions, dynamics, La’An, the Klingons, the planet, in the future, coming soon and our final thoughts.
Gateways: Doors Into Chaos. We discuss this feeling like a beginning, getting lucky, crew movement, used well, Riker, connections, Picard, the conference, building excitement, our ratings and final thoughts.
Gateways: Chainmail. We discuss the Challenger, it being out there, character work, worldview differences, drawbacks, Riutta and her people, use of the gateway, timey-whimy, thematic link, by the end, a page from Kirk, our ratings and final thoughts.
Star Trek: Gateways: One Small Step. We discuss the new series, the virus, impersonating Kalandans, the Klingons, the gateways, restructuring, something that works well, our ratings and final thoughts.
The Pandora Principle. We discuss, development hell, get him out of the way, the first chapter, Saavik, a positive or negative, mystery boxes, what?, disjointed, our ratings and final thoughts.
Una McCormack: Asylum. We discuss starting the book, timelines, the Academy storyline, lectures, and interesting friendship, the mystery, themes, writing the SNW crew, references, using talents, heartbreak, a fun note, where to find Una and our final thoughts.
The Nanotech War. We discuss the book not being numbered, first impression, first contact, B’Elanna and Seven’s arcs, putting everything back in the box, wrapping up with our ratings and final thoughts.
Catalyst of Shadows. We discuss an Uhura story, Crusher vs Pulaski, the rest of the cast, other characters, the mystery, trauma, flashbacks and timelines, plus our ratings and final thoughts.
Deny Thy Father. We discuss the story, the connective tissue, as snapshot, a change, political thrillers, big action, how it all turns out, cameos, Star Trek stories, ratings and final thoughts.
Greg Cox: Lost to Eternity. hey discuss, being back with a new book, the genesis of the book, Saavik, a new species, the antagonist, bringing it together, writing 2024, no Past Tense, approvals, what’s coming up and final thoughts.
Well of Souls. They discuss their expectations, kind of being in it, other characters, the structure, doing too much, ending with their ratings and final thoughts.
Dayton Ward: Pliable Truths. We discuss the genesis of the book, Picard’s struggle, similar themes and true evil, an inconvenient truth, the O’Briens, cameos, the Oceanside, capital Qs, the end, where to find and what’s next plus our final thoughts.
Comics Catch Up. They discuss being new to Star Trek comics, Picard’s Academy, The Scorpius Run, Sons of Star Trek, Star Trek, Star Trek: Defiant, wrapping up and their final thoughts.
The Art and Making of Star Trek: Picard. We discuss a new show, kicking off the story, had it been done before, seasons 1-3, is anything missing, our ratings and final thoughts.
David Mack: Firewall. We discus the background of the story, writing in the Picard timeline, Seven’s emotions, an anchor, getting in the way, new characters, the spy element, staying true, the framing device, production, making the map, what’s next for David and our final thoughts.
The Art of the Impossible. We discuss the Cardassian and Klingon conflict, the juxtaposition, Curzon, many characters, other things, our ratings and final thoughts.
The Sundered. We discuss characters on the cover, the Neyel, the Tholians, responsibility, communication, connections, our ratings and final thoughts.
Derek Tyler Attico: The Autobiography of Benjamin Sisko. We discuss the framing device, the family, Academy years, early career, Curzon, filling in more details, in the Celestial Temple,, ending with Benny, one last question, where to find Derek and our final thoughts.
John and Maria Jose Tenuto: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: The Making of the Classic Film. We discuss their Star Trek history, passion, Gene Roddenberry, a new captain, many scripts, an unsung hero, surprises, what to put in the book, never surpassed, favorite part, where to find them online and our final thoughts.
Making it So. We discuss his early life, theater life, leading to Picard, left out, Star Trek work, other movies, Star Trek Picard, further stories our ratings and final thoughts.
Cast No Shadow. We discuss unpacking Valeris, Spock's small role, unpacking the conspiracy, fueling hate, Elias Vaughn's first mission, one last question, our ratings and final thoughts.
The Buried Age. We discuss Picard's buried age, failure, the Manroloth, the science, setting up TNG, our ratings and final thoughts.
Rebels: The Liberated. We discuss the natives, the Liberated, the past, how bad was it, our ratings and final thoughts.
Dayton Ward: Somewhere to Belong. We discuss the setting, the Xaheans, storylines, mental health, writing with shows in production, the spore drive, writing advanced tech, movie night, the legacy, what's next and our final thoughts.
