5 Minutes With David R. George III

StarTrek.com reported earlier this week that Simon & Schuster/Pockets Books had, on May 27, released Star Trek: The Lost Era: One Constant Star. The adventure marks the return of prolific Trek author David R. George III to The Lost Era, the period between Star Trek: The Original Seriesand Star Trek: The Next Generation, which he first ventured into way back in 2003 with Serpents Amongs the Ruins. Serpents was book two in the long-running The Lost Era series, following The Sundered (by Michael A. Martin and Andy Mangels). StarTrek.com recently grabbed a few minutes of George's time for an interview in which he shed some additional light on One Constant Star.

How did you enjoy revisiting The Lost Era series?

GEORGE: It was great to return to the time between the original Star Trek and The Next Generation, and specifically to the Enterprise-B. When I wrote my first Lost Era novel, Serpents Among the Ruins, I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the characters of both Captain John Harriman and First Officer Demora Sulu. I got to know both of them well, and I'd often considered revisiting them at some point.

Fortunately, your editors at Pocket Books gave you that opportunity...

GEORGE:One Constant Star more or less takes place eight years after Serpents, and so all the characters have moved on in their lives. I had a fine time catching up with them in their new roles and spending some time with them.

For you, what's the heart/emotional core of this story?

GEORGE: I think, more than anything else, One Constant Star involves the notion of responsibility—to a person's sworn duty, to their loved ones, and to themselves. Both Demora Sulu and John Harriman, as well as the people around them, find themselves in difficult situations, without obvious or easy solutions. I explore how they react and the motivations behind the choices they make. For all of that, though, it's a tale with quite a bit of action.

What else, Trek-wise, do you have in the works?

GEORGE: At the moment, I am working on a 24th-century Trek novel, though I'm not sure of the publication date. I'm also talking with the folks at Pocket about a follow-up novel to that one.

Star Trek: The Lost Era: One Constant Star spans 400 pages and is available as a mass-market paperback and eBook. Visit Amazon.com to order.