Ask the Authors (Fandemonium)

[Elizabeth Christensen]

Sheppard!!! SQUEE!! He is by far my absolute favorite.

I would soo love to see a follow up story on Sheppy and the events that occur in the episode Common Ground. From the spoilers and such, that's just screaming for a post storyline somewhere!! *hint hint* Seriously, I'm sure it violates some guideline somewhere, but hey, I had to throw it out there!!

Can't promise anything relating to Common Ground in particular (though my work-in-progress is set in that general time frame), but it's a safe bet that anything from me will have its fair share of Shep focus. I try not to be biased toward any one character, but an Air Force girl has to stay loyal.

Not really a novel related question but...I'm working on a wiki just for the EU Stargate (the novels basically) and I was wondering if you folks would be willing to write like triva for the pages just for the novels? Things that where going to happen but didn't, things that came out differently, inspiration and etc.

<shrug> Sure, if I can think of anything interesting to include. If you have specific info you'd like to know, go ahead and shoot those questions out to get us thinking.

(ETA: Yes, I can spell. Must be bedtime. Sheesh.)

[JMSwallow]

Not really a novel related question but...I'm working on a wiki just for the EU Stargate (the novels basically) and I was wondering if you folks would be willing to write like triva for the pages just for the novels? Things that where going to happen but didn't, things that came out differently, inspiration and etc.

Sure, time permitting... I usually write an "author's comments" page on each of the books I write for my own website anyhow.

[sonny1]

Not really a novel related question but...I'm working on a wiki just for the EU Stargate (the novels basically) and I was wondering if you folks would be willing to write like triva for the pages just for the novels? Things that where going to happen but didn't, things that came out differently, inspiration and etc.

Sure. I generally stuff a lot of info on my website, mostly because I research prior to writing and find web pages are good storage boxes for links and references. There's a surprising number of people out there who are curious about such details. Must be the Carter in them


Sonny

[Elite Anubis Guard]

Well I'm gonna be nabbing your bio's off of your websites anyhoo to save time. Luckily for me there's not alot of novels lol.

Say..Sally's one of the bosses for Fandemonium right?

[Suzotchka]

Hi! I have a question for you: I noticed that in the SG-1/Atlantis Official Magazine, there are short stories (or as they call it "exclusive fiction"). Is it harder to write these (as opposed to the books) because you are restricted to a certain number of pages? Or is it easier?

Sorry if this question has been asked before. And I want you all to know that I am really loving all the SG-1/Atlantis books!

[KarenMiller]

Hi! I have a question for you: I noticed that in the SG-1/Atlantis Official Magazine, there are short stories (or as they call it "exclusive fiction"). Is it harder to write these (as opposed to the books) because you are restricted to a certain number of pages? Or is it easier?

Sorry if this question has been asked before. And I want you all to know that I am really loving all the SG-1/Atlantis books!

First of all, thank you! So glad you're enjoying the books. I've really enjoyed them too, especially (and most recently) Survival of the Fittest. What a rocket ride!

Now, to answer your question: short fiction is torture, at least for me. My regular fantasy novels run to 180,000 words, or thereabouts. My first SG1 novel Alliances runs to around 110,000 words, short for me but still a lot more than 3,000. 3,000 is --- oh, a blink! Having said that, the short piece I did for the Official Magazine (Medical Considerations) was a little easiser to write, but it's really more a vignette than a proper short story. I am in absolute awe of the folks who do short stories full time. It's an incredibly demanding discipline.

[JMSwallow]

Hi! I have a question for you: I noticed that in the SG-1/Atlantis Official Magazine, there are short stories (or as they call it "exclusive fiction"). Is it harder to write these (as opposed to the books) because you are restricted to a certain number of pages? Or is it easier?

I agree with a lot of what Karen said; the longer I'm a writer, the more verbose I find I'm getting.

But, this is why I've been trying to write more short fiction lately (as well as 'Choices' for the SG Magazine I've also done/am doing shorts for a bunch of anthologies this year). It's good discipline and it reinforces economy of writing in your work - plus, short fiction is a nice way to change gears between working on novel projects.

With short stories you can tell different kinds of stories - experimental, odd approaches to prose that might get tiring in a novel, or 'mood pieces' that are more about character.

[Alanna]

This isn't a question for the authors, but when I saw the thread I couldn't resist posting how much I'm enjoying the Fandemonium novels. I'd heard about them for a while, but when I finally got fed up waiting for them to be available in Canada, I took to Amazon. My first purchase was 'Siren Song' (being the die-hard Daniel whump fan I am), ordered from Amazon UK, and since that first delivery a few months ago, I've been hooked, and have ordered and pre-ordered every SG-1 novel I could find. Every one of the novels is superbly written with gripping action sequences and dead-on characterizations. I finished Survival of the Fittest the day it arrived (just this past Monday) and upon opening the packaging, salivated over the thickness of it; I can't get enough!

With the recent bad news about SG-1, I'm finding hope for the series, in that it will continue in these fantastic novels. Kudos to all of you for sharing your talent and your own visions of SG-1; I can't wait to read more.

-- Alanna

[KarenMiller]

With the recent bad news about SG-1, I'm finding hope for the series, in that it will continue in these fantastic novels. Kudos to all of you for sharing your talent and your own visions of SG-1; I can't wait to read more.

-- Alanna

Wow!!! Thank you so much, Alanna. As author of the next SG-1 novel coming out (next month), my fingers are crossed that you aren't given reason to regret your generous praise. We really are lucky to be playing in the Stargate sandbox.

[Elite Anubis Guard]

Speaking of the cancellation...Star Trek does novel continuations of it's series..DS9 and Ent...if given the chance, would you guys like to write continuations for what would be S11?

If so, what stories would you like to tell?

[ljevans]

Hi to all the authors and thanks for taking the time to answer our questions! I was intrigued by Sabine Bauer's answer to the question posted earlier asking what episode of Stargate any of the authors might like to novelize

Huh… I guess Beneath the Surface. And then I’d turn it into a two-parter Actually, this probably qualifies for the episode tag/additional scene question as well. Thing is, with this ep a heck of a lot was literally left beneath the surface. For starters, I’d be interested how the topside society functions—I suspect slight Wellsian elements here, along the lines of Morlocks and Eloi, if only in terms of what the taxpayers (provided they pay taxes) are being told. How was SG-1 captured/subdued? Must have been a hell of a party at the governor’s mansion I’d also like to take Major Griff for a bit of a test drive, and most of all I’d like the to explore the dynamics of the subterranean worker society more.

Would any of the rest of you be interested in doing a novel/additional scene book about Beneath the Surface? It was a wonderful episode, but left so much out. A lot of people who write fanfic have tried their hand at this episode and I would love to see one of the professionals give it a try!

[sonny1]

Hi to all the authors and thanks for taking the time to answer our questions! I was intrigued by Sabine Bauer's answer to the question posted earlier asking what episode of Stargate any of the authors might like to novelize

Would any of the rest of you be interested in doing a novel/additional scene book about Beneath the Surface? It was a wonderful episode, but left so much out. A lot of people who write fanfic have tried their hand at this episode and I would love to see one of the professionals give it a try!

As Sabine said, there is so much in this episode, it's a veritable homage to the dystopian, from classic writers such as Wells, Orwell and Toffler, movies like Soylent Green, Bladerunner and most recently, V for Vendetta.

I strongly suspect that many fans would really like to see the Carter/O'Neill dynamic expored, especially since one of the early drafts for the screenplay suggested they were lovers. That was amended to a kiss, then deleted because that dynamic was already becoming touchy. However, it's the world building from an anthropoligical POV that's so intriguingly murky.

I know I'd loved to have explored further the complexity of the dystopian cycle in the society that we created in The Chosen, but from a storytelling perspective it would have taken the focus from the main characters. I'm not sure I'd be willing to try something similar in BtS for the same reasons.

Having said that, I'd love to see what anyone else does with it.

Sonny

[Elizabeth Christensen]

Huh -- I go out of town for a week and everybody stops talking in here ... I feel the need to comment just to stir things back up a little.

Speaking of the cancellation...Star Trek does novel continuations of it's series..DS9 and Ent...if given the chance, would you guys like to write continuations for what would be S11?

If so, what stories would you like to tell?

It's going to depend heavily on what happens with SG-1 from here on out. Nothing appears to be set in stone yet; I've heard murmurs about TV movies, other networks, etc. At the Chicago convention last weekend, Michael Shanks said right up front that he expects SG-1 to continue in some form, at least for a while.

So we'll pretty much have to wait and see how things shake out. Michael also said that the Ori storyline is unlikely to be fully resolved by the end of S10 (that's not considered a spoiler, is it?), so there's still some question as to whether anyone wants to deal with the Ori in future novels or look elsewhere for bad guys.

There are pros and cons to having no more series continuity to worry about. We may be able to explore some things further than before, but there's an associated risk that readers won't like the decisions we make. But that's life -- it'd be no fun if everybody viewed everything exactly the same.

Had fun at the con in Chicago, by the way, so thanks to everyone who came out and said hi. And I've been in three other states since then (well, four, counting my home state), so now it's time to chill for a while ...

[Elite Anubis Guard]

You'll still have Atlantis' continuity to keep in mind.

[Suzotchka]

Can anyone give us a "preview" of some ideas that might be coming down the line for the novels? Please?