ATTN JMS: Fan Fiction

[Mark Alexander Bertenshaw]

Dear Joe,

I have read elsewhere that you put a moritorium on fan fiction. With the
end of B5 and the apparent demise of Crusade, is this now officially ended?

I asked this in a letter to B5 Magazine, and the editor did not take up this
question; so I would appreciate a reply from the source, as it were.

Personally, I think that the B5 universe could have a future in print,
although I can understand that you personally might not want people in your
"playground" whom you did not sanction. I have to admit, though, that I get
frustrated by the lack of written fiction, especially when seeing the shear
amount of output from Pocket Books from the Start Trek "franchise".

Thanks,

Mark Bertenshaw

[Mark Alexander Bertenshaw]

[Tammy Smith]

I would like to see more B5 books, also, although I fear that if we get
too many of them, the recent high quality could go down (the Psi-Corps.
books have been excellent).

Tammy

[in_vale...@hotmail.com]

In article <7rp2t1$3d9$1...@nclient15-gui.server.virgin.net>,

An interesting question, and a feeling I share to some degree. I would
like to see more novels from Del Rey, if they continue to explore the
whole B5/Crusade history and their characters, past and future, and
maintain the quality.

I'll be surprised as hell if JMS says anything to openly give the "OK"
to fanfic. It's a legal can of worms. But I'd hope he and Del Rey
would look into doing an anthology collection akin to Trek's STRANGE
NEW WORLDS by first time (professionally) authors. The name would be a
natural: _Babylon 5: Dreams Given Form_ ! <g>

scott tilson.

Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.

[Jms at B5]

Fan fiction, however nice and fuzzy it may be as a community of folks, is still
a form of copyright infringement...it takes characters which are owned by a
studio and mass-produces them (well, even a few hundred copies is technically a
mass). So no, I can't authorize or sanction it because that would put me at
legal odds with WB, which owns the copyright.

jms

(jms...@aol.com)
B5 Official Fan Club at:
http://www.thestation.com

[Podkayne Fries]

On 16 Sep 1999 15:02:11 -0600, in_vale...@hotmail.com wrote:

>
>I'll be surprised as hell if JMS says anything to openly give the "OK"
>to fanfic. It's a legal can of worms.

None of the fanfic on Usenet or the Internet is sanctioned, as far as I
know. It may be tolerated by producers and TV suits who realize that
it can be a way to keep the fanbase active and involved.

Tell me if I'm understanding this correctly - JMS himself forbids B5
fanfic? I understand that he cannot *officially* condone it, and it
certainly can't be posted here, but has he - or The Suits - outright
forbidden it?

[Note to moderators - this is my new email address, not a morph or
anything.]

--
Regards, Podkayne Fries

"I do not dramatize my posts. I don't think. I just give them oomph" -
Dan Tropea, Message ID <0e54ac28...@usw-ex0102-012.remarq.com>

[John W. Kennedy]

Podkayne Fries wrote:
> Tell me if I'm understanding this correctly - JMS himself forbids B5
> fanfic? I understand that he cannot *officially* condone it, and it
> certainly can't be posted here, but has he - or The Suits - outright
> forbidden it?

Historically, he not only gave the (mandatory) legal kibosh, but added a
plea that if it be done, it be done out of his sight, for the
"story-ideas" reason.

--
-John W. Kennedy
-rri...@ibm.net
Compact is becoming contract
Man only earns and pays. -- Charles Williams