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Star Trek meme: Day 17 - Favourite Trek Novel
Recency bias is a factor here, because the book I'm about to name is the one I've read most recently -- but, in my defence, I was reading it because it was my favourite when I was young, and I was delighted to learn that it holds up: The Devil's Heart by Carmen Carter.
If you listened to the Antimatter Pod episode about formative tie-ins, you'll have already heard me rave about it, so please hold while I try to come up with something fresh to say...
*drinks coffee*
RIGHT! Okay, so I'm writing an essay/blog post (it has footnotes, but also gifs) about the gender gap in Trek tie-ins, and at one point I got torambling semi-coherently musing about the differences between tie-in fiction and fan fiction.
Have a sneak peek:
Fan fiction and tie-in fiction are not, to my mind, interchangeable -- setting aside issues of quality and editorial gatekeeping, I believe they serve similar and often overlapping, but ultimately different needs.
To me, the best tie-in fiction is basically plotty gen -- or, at least, has no more overt romance than the series it's based on, although that gives you a pretty flexible range depending on the series. And the character growth it has to be consistent with the series as well, and where the series is likely to go in the future (which is, I suspect, why the Discovery novels so far have all been prequels). But, at the same time, there has to be as much affection for and interest in the characters as you'd get from fan fiction, or else it's just ... flat.
Fic writing has a lot more freedom to get into the iddy stuff, to change everything, to ignore or alter details of canon that the author doesn't like, to focus entirely on one character (or one relationship) to the exclusion of all else. That's why it's so wonderful!
But sometimes, I want a straightforward adventure with a lot of plot, and fic can't always provide that. And it's what The Devil's Heart does so well. Carter's love for the characters (except Worf, she doesn't seem too fond of him) is evident, her crush on Patrick Stewart and Picard/Crusher shipping are both extremely obvious, but this is also a romp through the history of the alpha quadrant, with a sideline in fanwank (Iconians! The T'Kon Empire! Surak!) and some really strong, diverse original characters, a significant proportion of which are women.
(It's difficult to choose a favourite, but it's a toss-up between the moody Starfleet officer whose career has hit a dead end in the form of commanding a dodgy old starbase, or the Mysterious Bartender who becomes her best frenemy.)
My only complaint, reading it a few months ago, is that the Kindle edition is poorly formatted, and has a handful of errors which look like the product a scan-to-text that wasn't properly proofread. Maybe it's time to hit eBay and find a paperback copy...
Day 18 - Favorite Non-Aligned Race
Day 19 - Favorite Enterprise Episode
Day 20 - Character You're Most Like
Day 21 - Least Favorite Character
Day 22 - Favorite Trek Film
Day 23 - Best Trek Tech
Day 24 - Best Overall Space Vessel
Day 25 - Favorite Discovery Episode
Day 26 - Planet You Would Most Like To Visit
Day 27 - Character You Would Date
Day 28 - Name Your Own Starship
Day 29 - Favorite Trek Quote
Day 30 - Favorite Trek Series
If you listened to the Antimatter Pod episode about formative tie-ins, you'll have already heard me rave about it, so please hold while I try to come up with something fresh to say...
*drinks coffee*
RIGHT! Okay, so I'm writing an essay/blog post (it has footnotes, but also gifs) about the gender gap in Trek tie-ins, and at one point I got to
Have a sneak peek:
Fan fiction and tie-in fiction are not, to my mind, interchangeable -- setting aside issues of quality and editorial gatekeeping, I believe they serve similar and often overlapping, but ultimately different needs.
To me, the best tie-in fiction is basically plotty gen -- or, at least, has no more overt romance than the series it's based on, although that gives you a pretty flexible range depending on the series. And the character growth it has to be consistent with the series as well, and where the series is likely to go in the future (which is, I suspect, why the Discovery novels so far have all been prequels). But, at the same time, there has to be as much affection for and interest in the characters as you'd get from fan fiction, or else it's just ... flat.
Fic writing has a lot more freedom to get into the iddy stuff, to change everything, to ignore or alter details of canon that the author doesn't like, to focus entirely on one character (or one relationship) to the exclusion of all else. That's why it's so wonderful!
But sometimes, I want a straightforward adventure with a lot of plot, and fic can't always provide that. And it's what The Devil's Heart does so well. Carter's love for the characters (except Worf, she doesn't seem too fond of him) is evident, her crush on Patrick Stewart and Picard/Crusher shipping are both extremely obvious, but this is also a romp through the history of the alpha quadrant, with a sideline in fanwank (Iconians! The T'Kon Empire! Surak!) and some really strong, diverse original characters, a significant proportion of which are women.
(It's difficult to choose a favourite, but it's a toss-up between the moody Starfleet officer whose career has hit a dead end in the form of commanding a dodgy old starbase, or the Mysterious Bartender who becomes her best frenemy.)
My only complaint, reading it a few months ago, is that the Kindle edition is poorly formatted, and has a handful of errors which look like the product a scan-to-text that wasn't properly proofread. Maybe it's time to hit eBay and find a paperback copy...
Day 18 - Favorite Non-Aligned Race
Day 19 - Favorite Enterprise Episode
Day 20 - Character You're Most Like
Day 21 - Least Favorite Character
Day 22 - Favorite Trek Film
Day 23 - Best Trek Tech
Day 24 - Best Overall Space Vessel
Day 25 - Favorite Discovery Episode
Day 26 - Planet You Would Most Like To Visit
Day 27 - Character You Would Date
Day 28 - Name Your Own Starship
Day 29 - Favorite Trek Quote
Day 30 - Favorite Trek Series
no subject
Fan fiction and tie-in fiction are not, to my mind, interchangeable -- setting aside issues of quality and editorial gatekeeping, I believe they serve similar and often overlapping, but ultimately different needs.
To me, the best tie-in fiction is basically plotty gen -- or, at least, has no more overt romance than the series it's based on, although that gives you a pretty flexible range depending on the series. And the character growth it has to be consistent with the series as well, and where the series is likely to go in the future (which is, I suspect, why the Discovery novels so far have all been prequels). But, at the same time, there has to be as much affection for and interest in the characters as you'd get from fan fiction, or else it's just ... flat.
I have nothing to add, but intense agreement, both on fic and tie-ins having similar but not idential purposes, and also what makes for the best tie in fiction.
Fic writing has a lot more freedom to get into the iddy stuff, to change everything, to ignore or alter details of canon that the author doesn't like, to focus entirely on one character (or one relationship) to the exclusion of all else. That's why it's so wonderful!
But sometimes, I a straightforward adventure with a lot of plot, and fic can't always provide that.
I was just thinking about this very thing as I was scouring another fandom for fic that's similar to a tie-in novel with a long and complex plot, and coming up nearly empty. Trek has kind of spoiled me with the quality and quantity of the tie-in novels. Most fandoms don't have that.
no subject
I also wound up having to teach myself really basic epub formatting, BUT HEY.