Barking up the Muse Tree

Feb

2017

Portrait of a Character – Spock

Spock Origins

Spock (Zachary Quinto version)

Spock. The character is, of course, canon.

Portrayal

As in canon, the character is played by Zachary Quinto when younger and by Leonard Nimoy when more mature.

Spock (Leonard Nimoy version)

Personality

Aloof and seemingly afflicted with a superiority complex, it is easy to see why he vexed McCoy so much, in both timelines.

I write both versions in the Eriecho series and try to reconcile the two. The elder version tells Uhura that she was an important person to him but not a lover. The younger version is a bit baffled by the prime version and even more baffled by Sybok.

Relationships

Nyota Uhura

This relationship, in the JJ Abrams universe, is canon. I kind of like the idea of this happening, that two highly intelligent people might have something in common. Nyota is a particularly gentling and calming influence as Amanda Grayson, in this timeline, is dead.

T’Pring

There is not much to tell, although this is a canon relationship from the Original Series.

Mirror Universe

The Mirror Universe version is canon. Ruthlessly efficient and as intelligence as he is here, I write the MU version before the canon episode. As Kirk’s chief henchman, he just wants to stay out of the way while the dirty work is done.

Mirror Universe Spock (Leonard Nimoy)

Quote

“I spoke with Spock Prime, and he asked whether Sybok lived. It brought a memory to the surface. Sybok visited us once, when I was about three years of age. I have the slightest of memories of him. Father says that Sybok only visited that one time. And Father also says that he believes Sybok remains among the living. Nyota, he may be a living Vulcan who has not yet been accounted for.”

Upshot

I like this character but I suspect I don’t do him justice. Then again, that is hard for anyone to do.
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Feb

2017

Review – Mirror Masquerade

Mirror Masquerade?

Mirror Masquerade Background

The idea was to cross over, and I am pretty sure that was the original prompt. And so I decided to cross over between the Original Series and Enterprise. However, the twist would be to add the Mirror Universe in for some spice.

Plot

Mirror Masquerade

So much like in Concord and Crackerjack, and The Continuing Adventures of Porthos – The Future Cat, a temporal situation is encountered. And a lot more like Theorizing and Day of the Dead, two people switch places. Although in this instance, it is Travis Mayweather and Hikaru Sulu. So for the purposes of this story, it was the TOS Hikaru Sulu, although it could just as easily have been the Hikaru Sulu from the Kelvin timeline.

For both men, so long as the switcheroo holds up, their lives improve, although Sulu ends up doing better. In the Mirror Universe, any advantage is a good one. Sulu finds someone who interests him – Preston Jennings. This establishes, in my fanfiction universe, that Hikaru Sulu is bisexual is not gay, which was a deliberate call out to Takei’s well-known homosexuality. Travis sees an immediate improvement in his life as he gets away from Empress Hoshi. It feels like it is going to be a win-win all around. But we just can’t have that. There has to be some reason it all happened.

And then, of course, it’s time to undo it all and pull the rug out from under them. Sorry, fellas.

Story Postings

Mirror Masquerade on Ad Astra
In addition, Mirror Masquerade on Fanfiction.net
Also, Mirror Masquerade on Wattpad
Mirror Masquerade in Hall of Mirrors context
Also, Mirror Masquerade on Wattpad

Rating

The story is Rated K+.

Upshot

The idea of shifting bodies in time is always a fun one, although I confess it isn’t always so easy to figure out a plausible explanation for the trade. I am running out of ideas here!

Uh, help?

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Feb

2017

Portrait of a Character – Kaitaama

Kaitaama Origins

Kaitaama (Padma Lakshmi)

Kaitaama. The character is, of course, canon.

It is a fairly classic trope, the Precious Cargo episode. Beautiful alien woman, crash landing, all alone on a planet? Not the best ever Enterprise episode. Not by a long shot.

Portrayal

As in canon, the character is played by actress Padma Lakshmi. While Lakshmi is certainly stunning, the portrayal was, let’s just say, less than stellar.

Personality

Imperious, spoiled, and kind of bratty, this character is more than a little bit difficult. In fact, I disliked her so much, I had Otra see an alternate universe vision of this character being beheaded as a kind of space Marie Antoinette. Maybe that’s what being the First Monarch of Krios Prime does to a gal. Who knows?

Yeah, I’m not a fan.

Relationships

Tripp Tucker

In canon, she and Tripp hook up briefly.

James T. Kirk

As I write her, Kaitaama and Jim might or might not hook up.

Mirror Universe

There are no impediments to Kaitaama existing in the Mirror Universe.

Mirror Kaitaama (Padma Lakshmi)

As with most Mirror Universe women, she would be on the make. As a very good-looking one, she could potentially have status.

She might even be kind, although I see her instead as being a lot more ruthless. She would need to be. Can’t blame her for that.

Quote

“Why should that matter? Your job is to cut ropes, not be flattered and cosseted.”

Upshot

This bratty and difficult character is, I suppose, easy to put into nasty situations. Maybe I will resurrect her if I need to write something harsh. An annoying character might be needed for, I don’t know, something or other.

I am so mean.

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Feb

2017

Portrait of a Character – James T. Kirk

James T. Kirk Origins

Kirk (Chris Pine version)

James T. Kirk. The character is, of course, canon.

Portrayal

As in canon, the character is played by Chris Pine when younger and William Shatner when more mature.

Kirk (William Shatner version)

Personality

Daring, impulsive, and intelligent, the TOS version is easier to take as a leader. The JJ Abrams version often seems bratty and out of control. While the TOS version is sometimes overly sure of himself, he never really seems to be cocky.

One thing to remember is that TOS was written for Kirk. Every episode revolves around him and it is always his POV, even when a storyline centers around Spock, McCoy, or even Scotty or Nurse Chapel.

Relationships

TOS Kirk has numerous relationships, too many to list here.

Carol Marcus

In canon, they fall in love and she has his child (prime timeline only).

Kaitaama

This is the only ‘relationship’ (it’s more like a hookup) I have written for him.

Mirror Universe

Mirror Universe Kirk (William Shatner)

Mirror Universe James T. Kirk is canon.

We do not really see the MU Jim. As I write him, much like other men with the Y Chromosome Skew, he’s always looking for sexual conquests.

About all we really see is him arguing, but we see all of the denizens of the Mirror Universe complaining and threatening. He does not seem like anyone special, a fact that is played up for Jonathan Archer in the Enterprise MU episodes.

Quote

“Starfleet is looking to us, to go exploring. Everybody wants peace, and I’m all for that, but you gotta understand something. That means actually doing something with our time. We are supposed to be getting all of the things done that we couldn’t, while we were dealing with the likes of Nero and Khan. We’re all glad that they’re gone, and I can understand the interest, but Starfleet can send one of their slower ships for that, right?”

Upshot

I was so sick of him at the end of TOS that I didn’t really want to write about him or watch him much. The truth is, I tend to watch TOS with an eye toward McCoy, Scotty, Uhura, or Chapel more than Kirk. The JJ Abrams version is often kind of whiny. At some point, I hope I can come to peace with this character, as he is, as Spock would say, fascinating.

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Feb

2017

Review – It’s a Small Universe After All

Small Universe Background

Small Universe Syndrome. It seems to be everyone in Star Trek, and more particularly in Star Trek fanfiction. This story was written in response to a challenge to put together two characters who really should not go together, or would not normally be seen together. Both of these are canon characters; it’s based on who one of the characters reminded me of when I first saw her.

Plot

It’s A Small Universe After All

The first time I saw Krios Prime’s Kaitaama in Star Trek: Enterprise, I couldn’t help but to realize she was actually a tired retread of Elaan of Troilus from the Original Series.

The whole episode is one big, fat trope. It was yet another beautiful, haughty princess who looked human enough that looking at her sexually would not make the audience feel too weird about things. A red-blooded spacefaring guy would not be able to help being attracted to her.

Of course, assuming she was still youthful, Kirk would hit on her. But how to get them together?

I decided to lift the plot of Two Days, Two Nights. Risa would still have a crime problem. But instead of Malcolm and Tripp being tied up in a basement, it would be Captain James T. Kirk and Kaitaama.

Story Postings

Rating

The story is Rated K.

Upshot

I am not so sure I would ever write a story like this again. I have enough problems keeping my own creations from suffering from coincidences and small universe syndrome. It would be far worse if I did that deliberately with more canon characters!

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Jan

2017

Progress Report – January 2017

January 2017 ended up as yet another quiet month for Star Trek fanfiction writing.

Posted Works

First of all, on the G & T Show forums, I posted nothing. Because at that site, the forums were removed due to the influx of spammers. And at this moment in time, the replacement blogs have not yet been created or started. Hence, nada!

However, at this time, I have no replacement. Therefore, I posted very few stories and, as a result, the read counts did not advance too much.

And on Fanfiction.net, I continued to post The Point is Probably Moot.

Finally, on Wattpad, I posted the end of Ohio. And then I started to post You Mixed-Up Siciliano. And on the @WattNaNo side of things, I added How to NaNoWriMo.

Milestones

See the Stats page for individual read and review counts.

WIP Corner

Because I finished and won NaNoWriMo in 2016, I continued to edit The Real Hub of the Universe. Furthermore, this wholly original science fiction work takes place in Victorian Boston. As a result, I have been working on outlining a sequel and I will also look to line up a group of beta readers.

Prep Work

Because You Mixed-Up Siciliano already existed in draft form on Wattpad, I next created a draft for the following fanfiction piece from The Times of the HG Wells. And that turned out to be Spring Thaw.

This Month’s Productivity Killers

As always, sometimes the muse just takes a vacation. And that can be extremely frustrating! I ended up working for three separate companies and that, of course, made me rather busy indeed. Furthermore, I wanted to take something of a break. The Real Hub needs editing and beta reading, and that means I need to take any changes into consideration before I can really get started on the sequel.

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Jan

2017

Review – Siberians

Siberians? What?

Background

Yes, I went there. A lot of people feel this is the worst ever episode of any of the Star Trek series. Or at least it comes awfully close to that. Why? Is it because of the squicky sex between the captain and the pilot? Or because of the wacky way Warp 10 somehow messes with Paris’s DNA? Could it be because the writing feels utterly bankrupt of imagination, so much so that the writers could not figure out what comes after humans? And, instead, they cop out and decide to regress and have us go back to, of all things, salamanders?

There are a lot of things wrong with Threshold. It would be a mistake to deny that. And my list barely scratches the surface.

Plot

Siberians

It was a kind of irresistible premise: what the hell would Tom Paris and Kathryn Janeway do after Threshold?

Because of course it would have to be awkward. Of course.

I decided I wanted a piece of their time on the planet to be related to something rather biologically primal. It wouldn’t just be the sex drive. Instead, a part of the issue would be something which happens to non-human animals on Earth: they would go into season.

So in order to be able to deal with this, I didn’t have them recreate what had happened. Then they decide to commemorate the occasion and remember their children.

Story Postings

Rating

The story has a K+ rating.

Upshot

While Threshold is roundly (and justifiably, in my opinion) criticized as one of the worst episodes the entire franchise has to offer, it does raise this very question. How do you work together after that?

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Jan

2017

Portrait of a Character – Nyota Uhura

Nyota Uhura is a character that changes with the times.

Origins

Nyota Uhura (Zoe Saldana version)

The character is, of course, canon.

I have always loved this character’s quiet competence. She was also perhaps the first actress I ever saw who worked under the hood of a display, with a screwdriver, as wires sparked. It meant, to me, that she was not just another pretty face and she had more going on. She was an important and valuable member of the crew and not just some eye candy.

Portrayal

As in canon, the character is played by Zoe Saldana when young and by Nichelle Nichols when more mature.

I was particularly thrilled when, in the Kelvin timeline films, she showed her competence by making it clear she could speak Romulan. This was a great check back to Hoshi and also to what communications people really should be doing in space.

Uhura (Nichelle Nichols version)

In the Original Series, she was always the calming presence on the ship. Also, if you heard her voice, you knew that, no matter what, everything was going to be all right.

For young girls growing up in the 1960s and 1970s, she proved that you can be young and beautiful and feminine, but also powerful, intelligent, and adventurous. I hope Ms. Nichols knows just how many people she inspired.

Personality

Friendly and kind, Nyota is almost the mother hen of the ship in either timeline. She is its heartbeat.

Relationships

Spock

Like a lot of fans, this relationship seems a bit odd but maybe it can work. So in the Eriecho series, I give their relationship some play.

Mirror Universe

Mirror Universe Nyota is also canon.

MU Nyota Uhura (image is for educational purposes only)

Quote

“It is, and maybe I’m not helping things by calling you sir. Still, uh, I want you to know that, in this timeline, there’s something between us. And I was wondering, in your timeline, was there ever anything?”

Upshot

I do not write enough of her, and I mainly write her in the context of the JJ Abrams timeline. I should revisit her.

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Jan

2017

Review – Eight

Eight was a labor of love.

Background

So this is a mixed bag of stories intended to fill in a few small gaps and inconsistencies or untold stories. And the truth is, I was most likely the only person who ever noticed or gave a damn about these little untold moments or inconsistent bits. No problem. Because it is always important to keep writing. Hence I was able to do so with this small set of exercises. Furthermore, it may serve as an introduction to my work for some people.

Eight

As a gift for the Chanukah holiday (to myself), I decided to write eight little family-centric stories taking place within my various universes. The various characters would interact, or not, but the main idea was for each story to be related to family somehow.

Plot

So even in the future, and regardless of species, it is all about family. Home and hearth abide, even in space.

Hence the stories cover In Between Days, the E² timeline, the Daranaean Emergence series, the Eriecho series, The Times of the HG Wells, Hold Your Dominion, and there is also a second HG Wells story which focuses on Levi Cavendish and Otra D’Angelo. Hence this story brought together a number of somewhat disparate timelines and casts in order to give a reader some perspective on what I write.

Story Postings

Eight on Ad Astra
in addition, Eight on Fanfiction.net (full series)
also, Eight on Wattpad (as part of Later Days)
Eight on Wattpad (full series)

Rating

The story is Rated K.

Upshot

Unfortunately, I am not so sure if anyone can relate to this series of stories as well as I can. Hence maybe they’re more like inside jokes? I don’t know.

These stories. And these worlds. Plus these timelines. And the same number of universes. And in all of them, home and hearth abide.

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Jan

2017

Spotlight on Chi Band Radiation

Chi Band Radiation Background

Chi Band Radiation can do anything.

Image of background radiation

I needed a garden variety phenomenon. Chi Band Radiation would have to be able to stand in for a lot of almost magical properties. It had to be a kind of technobabble thing. Hence I needed for it to sound just mysterious enough.

The idea would cover all sorts of issues. This would include crossing people over from one universe to another. Or it would be the kinds of temporal switches and shenanigans shown in Concord and Crackerjack. However, for both of those stories there were other explanations for their issues.

Chi Band Radiation particularly comes to fore in the Barnstorming series. I used it to show how and why the Mirror Universe was attempting to cross over and potentially invade our own. The Emperor would have been deposed and fallen on hard times. The radiation would be, to him, a godsend, a means of regaining his past glories. Therefore, he would be itching to use it.

Instead of living the high life, he’s living in a shack. He depends upon the kind charity of the native Calafan people. This would be quite the harsh reality for a proud man.

The radiation would also be a means of almost communicating. It would be a way of knocking on the door of another universe, as it were. This would attract the attention of weird ADHD-addled temporal engineer Levi Cavendish. Giving Levi a means of investigating all possible universes was a fun idea. The way to fulfill his mission to find the ultimate pumpkin pie (spoiler alert: it’s in the universe with a 49 centimeter radiation band on the hydrogen line) proved irresistible.

Upshot

This Swiss Army knife has stood me in good stead. I am sure I will be using it again in the future.

Chi Band Radiation

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Portrait of a Character – Spock

Spock Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Nyota Uhura

T’Pring

Mirror Universe

Quote

Upshot

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Review – Mirror Masquerade

Mirror Masquerade Background

Plot

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Portrait of a Character – Kaitaama

Kaitaama Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Tripp Tucker

James T. Kirk

Mirror Universe

Quote

Upshot

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Portrait of a Character – James T. Kirk

James T. Kirk Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Carol Marcus

Kaitaama

Mirror Universe

Quote

Upshot

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Review – It’s a Small Universe After All

Small Universe Background

Plot

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Progress Report – January 2017

Posted Works

Milestones

WIP Corner

Prep Work

This Month’s Productivity Killers

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Review – Siberians

Background

Plot

Story Postings

Rating

Upshot

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Portrait of a Character – Nyota Uhura

Origins

Portrayal

Personality

Relationships

Spock

Mirror Universe

Quote

Upshot

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Review – Eight