Janeway in future Star Trek books

[KateJaneway]

SHE IS NOT DEAD!

I REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT!!!

Just you wait! She'll be just like Spock!

[Lynx]

Well this is the same BS crap which I've read when debating with some people on a message board:

In Before Dishonor something happened we could call a sacrilege: a protagonist had to die, at least in the physical way. That is something we've never seen before in a Star Trek novel. How does the loss of Kathryn Janeway effect the continuation of the Voyager story? Isn't it a burden if such a protagonist is suddenly missing?

The loss of Kathryn Janeway was definitely shocking. As you said, we've never seen the permanent death of a major figure like her and I know that a lot of Voyager fans took it pretty personally either because she was their favorite character, or the first female captain of her own series, or because they just don't ever want to contemplate the death of a beloved character.

However, one of the good things about the ongoing fiction, for the readers and writers, is that because the shows and films are no longer in production with these characters, we are no longer bound to adhere to the status quo when we conceive of a story. It used to be that when we were done playing we had to make sure all of the toys were back on the shelf where we found them. That limits the kinds of stories you can tell. Those restrictions no longer exist.

Don't get me wrong. No one is considering the wholesale destruction of the universe that has been so painstakingly developed for over forty years now. No one is going for mere shock value and the decision to kill any character, be they large or small, is never undertaken lightly. These people exist in our imagination and it is painful to let them go.

But the time has finally come when it is no longer safe to assume that when you start a Trek novel, everything is still going to be in the same place when you've finished it. We can go deeper with characters and their evolution than ever before. We can challenge them in new ways. And we can explore stories that would be impossible given the budgetary realities of filmed Trek.

The decision to kill Kathryn Janeway was not made simply to force readers out of their complacency. It was made because it presented us with uncharted ground that we were interested in exploring. Yes, it's hard. But there's no point in doing this if it's easy. And yes, the death of Kathryn Janeway is treated in great depth in Full Circle and has major repercussions for all of the Voyager characters.

Personally I don't see it as a burden to continue the series without her, so much as a challenge. It remains to be seen if readers will be able to embrace the changes that are coming. For me, Janeway was always the center of Voyager, and definitely one of my favorite characters to write. Now, we have to find a way to shift that center and still remain true to what has always been best about Voyager.

Since there are some authors among the participants on that board, I get the impression that the decision is made and accepted by those who are in charge of everything considering the Star Trek books and that Janeway's death will be permanent in their Star Trek universe.

To speak freely: I think that it's an insult to the fans. They kill off the main character of Voyager just like that and then they show up the same snotty, arrogant, superior attitude as Berman and his gang did when they destroyed Kes, sort of: "We are in charge of this and we have decided to kill off Janeway because of "creative reasons" blah, blah, blah and we don't give a d**n what the fans might think because it's our project and we won't let our "creative decisions" be stopped by fans whose only option is to nod, obey, say "yes", accept what we are doing and buy our excellent books".

And believe me, I'm really p***ed off by that attitude after having to debate for a week with those authors and certain worshippers who seem to be more fans of the authors than the different Trek series and their characters.

I also find it a joke and false marketing to call the parody of a book series a "Voyager relaunch" when almost all of the characters from the series are gone and replaced by totally uninteresting second-hand characters invented by the writers.

They should call it the "Death Row Relaunch" instead.

[Janeway Forever]

You know. I've been processing this for only a few days. I don't really care what these authors say. I don't care what they do to Voyager and Janeway. Currently literature is not cannon. Should literature ever become cannon, I'll worry far more.

So let them show their asses. Let them have no respect for fans. Let them kill off Kathryn Janeway (the best captain in Starfleet, in my opinion). In a freaking TNG book no less, so Voyager fans don't become aware of it immediately. I can't form a brigade and go bang down the doors of Pocket Books. I can't call thousands of Janeway fans into action. I can't have Margaret Clark fired for her complete disrespect.

But that doesn't mean I don't have a voice. As far as I am concerned, Margaret Clark's utterly needless dismissal of Janeway was nothing more than a slap in the face of Voyager fans. She wasn't a huge fan of the character, and somehow, magically Janeway is the one to die.

It's interesting how everyone talks about Janeway not really serving a purpose anymore. Wouldn't her death, in effect, be far less impactful then, than say, killing off Picard? Or Riker? If her character is ineffective, her death will be as well. The editor used her status to kill off a character whom she wasn't fond of. It's cheap. It's sleazy. It's tasteless.

I can't stand Chakotay. Despise him to my core. But, as an author, I'd never kill him. Why? Because I respect Voyager. Because I respect the work of his creators. Because I respect the idea of the man, even if the realization drives me crazy.

It is once again another slap in the face to Voyager fans. We get that we're the underdogs. We understand that a lot of Trek fans do NOT like Voyager. That many argue it was the least liked series of all (not counting Enterprise). However, we are still Trek fans. We are very devoted Trek fans. And I am sick and f**king tired of Voyager being drug through the mud. I am tired of Janeway being screwed over.

So, I might not be able to make a huge impact in the world. But I can make a huge impact in my own world. Pocket Books may not be concerned about the small amount of money I have spent in my life on their books. It wouldn't even register as a blip on their radar. However, it is significant to me. I will not support a company who does not respect a show I love. Who does not respect characters I love. Who does not respect Janeway.

So as for me and my money, we will buy books elsewhere. Until this horrible act is undone, Pocket Books will receive none of my money. It may be a small stand, but it's a stand nonetheless. And somewhat poetically, I believe it's a stand that Kathryn Janeway herself would be proud of.

[Lynx]

^^
Excellent and well-written post. I totally agree with every word in it.

[Lynx]

I would also like to add that I found out about this about a week ago when got into the debate on another forum. The debate turned out to be rather heated and the thread was closed.

Two days ago I started a thread about it on the startrek.com site. Of course, some pocket book worshippers had to interfere, the debate was became rather heated and today the thread was deleted.

Criticizing the decision to kill off our favorite captain is obviously not permitted.

[Janeway Forever]

Well that's because Voyager fans are a different breed. We're rebels. Ha ha. We refuse to drink the kool-aid like good little fans and accept every stupid decision handed to us. We are the Maquis living in a Starfleet world. LOL

[KateJaneway]

Jan 28, 2009 12:41:46 GMT -5 Lynx said:

Criticizing the decision to kill off our favorite captain is obviously not permitted.

THAT is bullshit!!!!

WTF?!

That's it! I'm going to Vegas Con in August, buying my own booth and having a petition for boycotting POCKET!

[Rowan]

"All I can say at this point, both as a fan of Voyager and someone who absolutely loved writing the character of Kathryn Janeway is that I understand and I feel your pain. There are always going to be creative choices that make us think - "wow, I sure would have done that differently" - but that doesn't mean the choices themselves are good or bad. They are simply a choice that an author believes will best serve the story. Authors aren't perfect. They are human. Sometimes they make unwise choices. The fact remains, however, that what you may see as objectionable, another reader may think was absolutely wonderful, and there is no author who can ever please all of his/her readers.

Having said all that, I would like you and others who have been so enthusiastically waiting for Full Circle to know that because I share many of your frustrations, I have done what I can in Full Circle to open up Janeway's story in a way that those who are most sad to see her go will hopefully find satisfying.

And despite what you may think right now, shoving Janeway behind a desk and having her pop up every now and again to say "hi" would not have made you happy. I know you think it would but trust me, you would have found it every bit as objectionable as her death. Seriously, you would rather imagine this amazing woman who sacrificed so much of herself to bring her crew home from the Delta quadrant pushing padds around in a cubicle for the rest of her life? At least as it is we know that she continued to live her life after Voyager's return as she did when she was in the Delta quadrant - putting her crew first and risking her own life time and again to protect the Federation. Ultimately that course cost her her life, but I would submit to you that it is more true to her character and worthy of her character than sending her off to administrative hell.

Of course, you only propose one possible fate for Janeway had she lived and every single fan out there has their own version of what should have been done with her. I would only hope that once you've read Full Circle, you are at least pleased with what has been done with the given circumstances."

I can't remember how to do the quote thingy, possibly because I am so annoyed! This is a quote off the board at startrek.com for fans of Beyer. Mindless bloody automatons. No character is safe is such a pile of BS! The reason we buy the books is because we love the characters. ALL THE CHARACTERS!
She seems to be suggesting that any character can be killed off in which case why not just start a new series within the trek universe and leave existing characters alone.
Bloody idiots!!! I work with SEN children and they have a better grasp of story writing than those in charge of this supposed re launch!


So mad!

Just when I get out from under a pile of work I get hit with this tripe! I think I will crawl back and try a different exit. Maybe the PTB will have regained their common sense by then.

Bloody pile of tripe!

[KateJaneway]

Get on Board the pissy train.... We're all on it.

[Janeway Forever]

Mother f**king, load of crap, bullshit....that's what that f**king trumped up Janeway as a pencil pusher excuse is.

What she really should have said is, "Janeway's character is far too complex for us to handle. So, instead of rising to the occasion, we f**king killed her off. Because she, as a fictional character, is more f**king human than we'll ever be."

But I'm not mad about it or anything.....

[KateJaneway]

Noooo.... not at all! LOL

We need a smiley that is slowly pulling her hair out... that would sooo be in need right now.

[Janeway Forever]

I mean, at the f**king least they could use the stupid "For the greater good" excuse. Atleast make it seem like her death served some purpose.

I mean do they REALLY think Voyager fans are THAT stupid. I find that highly insulting. Paramount, Pocket Books, Margaret Clark, and Kristen Beyer, can all KISS MY f**kING ASS!!!!!!!

[Rowan]

Apparently they do think we're stupid.
Mainly because of the bloody idiotic comments on that blog "sad about Janeway, big fan, but still gonna buy the book about Voyager without her in it".

Bloody imbeciles!

Anyone have enough money to get the Virtual Voyager series published?

[KateJaneway]

“Of course Janeway's death has a huge impact on the future of the Voyager characters. That part of the story was left for me to explore and while I'm sure everyone will have their own thoughts about how it is handled, I've done the best I can to stay true to all of the characters as they face and move beyond her death.

Beyond that, I will tell you what I told the fans at Shoreleave when the "how do you feel about Janeway's death?" question was raised.

My first choice would not have been to promote Janeway to Admiral the moment the ship got home. I know we have Nemesis to deal with, but there was still time between Endgame and Nemesis to play with. Once that was done, however, every other writer was then given the unenviable task of figuring out what the hell to do with her as an Admiral.

I know, I know, I know...everyone has lots of fabulous ideas about the great things Admiral Janeway might have accomplished, but from a pure storytelling point of view, there are really only a couple of choices. Once she's off the ship we either have to give her a compelling story line apart from the adventures of the rest of the crew, or we have to allow her to fade into the background, which I always found difficult since for me she was the heart and soul of the series.

I'm not ashamed to say, despite the Janeway bashing which often goes on around here, and the inconsistencies in her character which were allowed to run rampant on the show, that Kathryn Janeway was one of my favorite characters to write.

But...

I also believe that we get a lot more mileage, character wise, by dealing with her death than we ever could by trying to force her unrealistically into every Voyager story we created after she was promoted.

As a fan, of course I was sad to see her die. As a writer, I was totally on board. I know I can't stop you all from continuing to speculate but I would suggest that you wait and see what's coming and decide at that point whether or not you agree with the choices that have been made.

Best,
Kirsten"

[KateJaneway]

and and AND!!!! This is the guidelines for 'Trek' fiction.... THEY BROKE THEIR OWN RULES!!!!


DO'S AND DON'TS
There are a certain types of stories and story elements we would specifically like to avoid:
1.) No stories primarily about a guest star or non-Star Trek regular. This means no stories about other crews, ships, or guest characters that become the focus of the story. The novels should always "star" Kirk, Picard, Sisko et al.
2.) No death of an established crewmember or character, or any other permanent change in the Star Trek characters, settings, or universe, such as introducing offspring or close relations of the characters other than those already established.
3.) No explicit sexual descriptions.
4.) No mixing of casts, which means no plots that mix the characters from one series with those of another.
5.) No time travel or alternate universe stories.
6.) Stories should be set during a timeframe that has been thoroughly explored in the TV series or movies. That means no stories set before Star Trek: Enterprise; no stories set between Enterprise and The Original Series, and no stories set beyond Star Trek: Nemesis.
7.) No stories that turn out to have been a dream, a hoax, or a virtual reality sequence.
8.) Do not introduce any levels of technology within familiar civilizations (Federation, Romulan, Klingon etc.) beyond what has been established on screen.




Slipped up a bit on rules 2 and 4 i think!!!!