Interviews

As a follow-up to my review of Unspoken Truth last Friday, I was able to interview author Margaret Wander Bonanno to talk about Star Trek and her latest novel!
Margaret’s official website can be found at: http://margaretwanderbonanno.com.

—

Can you tell us a bit about Unspoken Truth in your own words?

It’s a little slice of Saavik’s life that begins with the scene in The Voyage Home where we see her standing beside Amanda at the foot of Mount Seleya watching the Bounty carrying her crewmates depart for Earth.

She’s very young, more traumatized than she realizes following the events on Genesis, and uncertain what to do with her life. In trying to run from her demons, she rushes headlong into what she thinks will be a very ordinary scientific expedition. Instead, she ends up as part of a controversial first-contact mission, and embroiled in the hunt for a serial killer who’s simultaneously stalking her.

I’ve also filled in bits of her childhood and adolescence, as suggested in Carolyn Clowes’ The Pandora Principle. Lots of interplay between her and Spock, Sarek, and Amanda. And, lastly, a bit of a love story, and her final decision about where she wants to go with her life.

So, a mini-biography, in a sense. Not as sweeping as Pike’s story in Burning Dreams, but filling in the blanks between Saavik’s last appearance onscreen, and what other authors (notably Sherman and Shwartz in Vulcan’s Heart) have done with her in other novels.

How did the decision to tell a story revolving around Saavik come about?

It was the same process that initiated Burning Dreams…Marco Palmieri, then-senior editor for the Trek line at Pocket, called me and said “How’d you like to write a book about –?”

I knocked out an outline, Marco suggested some additions that would make the story stronger, and we were off and running.

How much freedom were you given with her character development?

Complete freedom once the outline was approved. Marco’s one of those savvy editors who knows when to let a writer run with the material. He will be greatly missed.

What do you enjoy most about writing Star Trek novels?

The fact that the universe already exists and I don’t need to create it from scratch. There’s no need to explain the technology, because it’s already understood. Also, the characters – their appearance, their voices and mannerisms – are so familiar that the dialogue sometimes almost writes itself. And because Star Trek has always been about moral dilemmas, the author can explore them without seeming to preach.

Do you have a favorite Star Trek episode or film?

Just one? If I had to choose, I’d say the triptych of The Wrath of Khan, The Search for Spock, and The Voyage Home. It’s a complete story of epic proportions with all of the sweeping operatic grandeur you could possibly desire, and a very satisfying ending.

Then there’s “City on the Edge of Forever” and “Balance of Terror” and “The Enterprise Incident” and…

What’s next for you? Any new stories on the horizon, Star Trek or other?

I’m tinkering with something non-Trek right now. Can’t quite seem to get it where I want it at the moment, primarily because one of the main characters is a female Marine, and I need to do more research than simply watching reruns of NCIS, LOL.

Not sure where the Trek franchise is going with the novels now, TPTB having “excessed” the two senior editors at Pocket, putting several novels based around the new Trek film on Hold, etc. So it’s quite possible that Unspoken Truth will be my last Trek novel.

But hurry-up-and-wait is what writers do best. And there are always possibilities…

Tell us a bit about yourself and your experience in writing.

Started out as a “mainstream” writer. Sold three novels during the brief gasp of feminist fiction in the late 70s/early 80s, before the Recession of ’82 and the Thor Power Tool decision changed the face of publishing forever. In lieu of giving up altogether, I sat down with my agent and he asked me what else I could do. I ticked off a bunch of things I couldn’t do (horror, mysteries, romance), and then said “Hey, I can write Star Trek!”

My agent winced – at the time Pocket only published six books a year, and the competition was beyond fierce – but indulged me and submitted some of my work. Two years and several false starts later, Pocket finally bought Dwellers in the Crucible.

Who are some of your favorite authors? What books do you love?

Read more

ABC was kind enough to invite me to their FlashForward press junket to promote its return on Thursday, March 18th. I was able to speak with John Cho (Star Trek), who plays Demetri Noh, and Sonya Walger (Lost), who plays Dr. Olivia Benford, on the phone to discuss what’s coming next for their characters.

Will the show be picking up where it left off last fall? Or is it starting up again in the present day?

Walger: It picks up exactly where we left off. It’s the next day… or no, it’s hours later. It’s the aftermath of Lloyd being abducted, and all of the implications of that.

Can you give us a glimpse of what’s coming up for your characters?

Walger: Olivia has a lot going on. She starts helping the FBI out with their investigation. And Mark starts working harder and harder and starts disappearing down the rabbit hole of the Mosaic Board and the investigation. And that puts a real strain on their marriage. So there’s all of that. And Lloyd being abducted means that Olivia has a moment where she realizes she may have feelings for this man. So there’s lots of juicy emotional stuff for Olivia.

Cho: Demetri is dealing with… In fact that we find out this season if he dies on March 15th or not. There’s the relationship between himself and Mark, because he’s the one that’s supposed to kill Demetri. And that obviously puts a crimp in their relationship. Working together isn’t as positive as it used to be. So that’s primarily it. Then there’s the home life with Zoey. She wants him to run away from the problem. And he is committed to staying and seeing it through. It’s a difference of opinion.

What’s the camaraderie like onset? Do you all get along well?

Walger: I think it’s a really nice set. I really like days like this, because I actually get to see people like John, Courtney [B. Vance], and Christine [Woods]. The storylines are so separate, and the strands are so discreet that you can go for weeks without setting eyes on half my cast. So, I can speak for my side of the cast. It’s really fun working with Joe [Fiennes] and Jack Davenport, who’s hilarious. And Zach [Knighton] who plays Bryce. I have lovely people to work with. I really do. It’s a really easy going, nice atmosphere on set. It’s fun. It’s also, I have to say, one of the best crews I have ever, ever worked with. I have never heard a raised voice, lost temper…

Cho: You haven’t worked with me.

Walger: That’s my point. There’s my point.

Cho: The camaraderie is really good. I can speak to my side of the storyline. The FBI office has really been better than I expected. I have heard monster stories about Courtney B. Vance [Walger laughs.] And Joe Fiennes… wasn’t a fan of, so was a pleasant surprise. [Paused for more laughter.]

How did you both come by your roles on FlashForward? What was the casting process like for you?

Walger: I had to sleep with all of the producers.

Cho: Wow.

Walger: I auditioned, and I think David [Goyer] knew my work from Lost and also this HBO show I did called Tell Me You Love Me. Apparently, so the story goes, they didn’t believe I was the same girl on both shows. And I think he and Jessika [Borsiczky] had a fight, because I played an American on the one and Penny is English. And the fight was only resolved by IMBD.com. So that’s the legend.

Cho: I met with David [Goyer], Jessika [Borsiczky], and Brannon [Braga]. And then I didn’t hear from them in a while. I think the role might have been offered to somebody else at some point. And then it came back to me. The script was really interesting, and the premise. Even though I didn’t really know, obviously, how long I would last; it was that meeting with the creators that hooked me in. And the quality of the work. And after I met them, I decided, well, I can give myself to this process and trust the storytellers to use me whatever way they want.

What did you think about your characters when you were first introduced to the roles? And has that perception now changed?

Read more