[B5JMS] ATTN JMS: Short Stories

Wed May 17 04:45:21 EDT 2006

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From: "captaindebacle" <captaindebacle at yahoo.com>
Date: Thu, 11 May 2006 13:56:05 +0000 (UTC)
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Forgive me if this question has been asked before (I've been away from 
Usenet for awhile), but has there been any thought about releasing a 
collection of the short stories that you wrote for the B5 magazine, Amazing 
Stories, etc...?

Thanks,

Dan

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From: "Joseph DeMartino" <jdemarti at bellsouth.net>
Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 17:17:46 +0000 (UTC)
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The existing stories don't add up to enough to fill a book.  Adding
more stories means that in addition to paying for permission to
anthologize the existing stories, a publisher would have to pay writers
to create new material exclusively for the book.  Dell Books considered
the idea, but while the trilogies initially sold well, sales apparently
fell off to the point where they lost interest in further "B5"
projects.  There have been rumors about a game company having taken
over the fiction rights to "B5" and proposing more original novels, but
I haven't heard of anything concrete coming of the deal.  Publishing
through Cafe Press isn't an option because there is no separation of
rights when it comes to prose fiction - Warner Bros. own the stories,
not the individual writers.

So the short answer is, I don't think this is going to happen.

Pity.

Joe

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From: Jan <janmschroeder at aol.com>
Date: Fri, 12 May 2006 17:50:19 +0000 (UTC)
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In article <1147454251.651403.18660 at i40g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>, Joseph
DeMartino says...
>
>There have been rumors about a game company having taken
>over the fiction rights to "B5" and proposing more original novels, but
>I haven't heard of anything concrete coming of the deal.  

It still seems to be coming up.  Here's part of a post from Mongoose Publishing
about them:

----------------------------------------
<<The first month of releases (I am waiting to hear back for exact confirmation
of date, but assume June/July for now) look like this;

Ranger Dawning by Richard Ford 
Actions of Many by MJ Dougherty 
Visions of Peace by Matthew Sprange (ahem) 
No Rest for the Wicked by Claudia Christian 

Second month (July/August); 

Ashes of the Past by Bruce Graw 
Birth of Heroes by Bryan Steele 

And more are in the works, from a variety of authors. I am looking at tackling a
Crusade trilogy that wil wrap up that timeline but the work, is, frankly,
daunting with my schedule.

One bit of good news is that distribution rights have been increased to be
worldwide. . .

. . . except the US. 

We aren't picking on you Americans, it is just the way things are for now 
_________________
Matthew Sprange 

Mongoose Publishing 
http://www.mongoosepublishing.com >>
-------------------------

>Publishing
>through Cafe Press isn't an option because there is no separation of
>rights when it comes to prose fiction - Warner Bros. own the stories,
>not the individual writers.
>
>So the short answer is, I don't think this is going to happen.
>
>Pity.
>

Agreed.  Some of the magazines with the short stories have gone for major bucks
on Ebay recently.

Jan

-- 
We are the voice of the universe, the soul of creation, 
The fire that will light the way to a better future. 
We are One. 
                       IA Declaration of Principles
                        (J. Michael Straczynski)                                

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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com
Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 21:44:29 +0000 (UTC)
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Jan wrote:
> Here's part of a post from Mongoose Publishing
> about them:
>
> ----------------------------------------
> <<The first month of releases (I am waiting to hear back for exact confirmation
> of date, but assume June/July for now) look like this;
>
> Ranger Dawning by Richard Ford
> Actions of Many by MJ Dougherty
> Visions of Peace by Matthew Sprange (ahem)
> No Rest for the Wicked by Claudia Christian
>
> Second month (July/August);
>
> Ashes of the Past by Bruce Graw
> Birth of Heroes by Bryan Steele
>
> And more are in the works, from a variety of authors. I am looking at tackling a
> Crusade trilogy that wil wrap up that timeline but the work, is, frankly,
> daunting with my schedule.
>

Just to confirm, however: these books have nothing to do with B5
continuity or history from a canonical point of view.  They are
operating totally outside the loop of what has been authorized before
from a creative perspective, and any claim that these "wrap up" any
sort of timeline within B5 is rather grandiose at best.  That timeline
can't be "wrapped up" by anyone who doesn't know what was coming, and
the only person who knows what was coming is me.

As far as I'm concerned, these books have nothing to do with the show.

jms

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From: "Laura Appelbaum" <l-appelbaum at mindspring.com>
Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 21:55:09 +0000 (UTC)
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<jmsatb5 at aol.com> wrote in message 
news:1147815860.414171.121390 at j55g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
> >
> Just to confirm, however: these books have nothing to do with B5
> continuity or history from a canonical point of view.  They are
> operating totally outside the loop of what has been authorized before
> from a creative perspective, and any claim that these "wrap up" any
> sort of timeline within B5 is rather grandiose at best.  That timeline
> can't be "wrapped up" by anyone who doesn't know what was coming, and
> the only person who knows what was coming is me.
>
So basically, they're WB authorized fan fiction?

LMA 

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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com
Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 23:21:48 +0000 (UTC)
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Laura Appelbaum wrote:
> So basically, they're WB authorized fan fiction?

At best, yeah, which is why I in all good conscience cannot endorse
them.

jms

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From: "Lance Corporal \"Hammer\" Schultz" <starfist at gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 06:06:18 +0000 (UTC)
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On Tue, 16 May 2006 23:21:48 +0000 (UTC), jmsatb5 at aol.com wrote:

> Laura Appelbaum wrote:
>> So basically, they're WB authorized fan fiction?
> 
> At best, yeah, which is why I in all good conscience cannot endorse
> them.

I think what is "needed" (as much as anyone needs good fictional
books) is a "Babylon 5 Universal Encyclopedia," something like the
Dune Encyclopedia, which isn't a story at all but a "future history."

I've read that you had the "history" of the B5 universe outlined for a
million years after the events of B5.  An encyclopedic "reference" of
the entire universe and major events would be something I would buy in
an instant.

-- 
Lance Corporal "Hammer" Schultz
Promote someone else.

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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com
Date: Wed, 17 May 2006 07:20:39 +0000 (UTC)
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Lance Corporal "Hammer" Schultz wrote:
> On Tue, 16 May 2006 23:21:48 +0000 (UTC), jmsatb5 at aol.com wrote:
>
> > Laura Appelbaum wrote:
> >> So basically, they're WB authorized fan fiction?
> >
> > At best, yeah, which is why I in all good conscience cannot endorse
> > them.
>
> I think what is "needed" (as much as anyone needs good fictional
> books) is a "Babylon 5 Universal Encyclopedia," something like the
> Dune Encyclopedia, which isn't a story at all but a "future history."
>
> I've read that you had the "history" of the B5 universe outlined for a
> million years after the events of B5.  An encyclopedic "reference" of
> the entire universe and major events would be something I would buy in
> an instant.
> 

Unfortunately it would require an infinite number of pages....

jms