There's an interesting discussion going on over at Jeff VanderMeer’s site. Editor and author Mark Charan Newton has been guest blogging and he's started a discussion about writing in a shared universe - does tie-in fiction get the respect it deserves? If you're looking forward to meeting up with Newton and author Dan Abnett at the SFX Weekender , we recommend you take a read of this online conversation. Newton, also a fiction editor, is guest blogging at Jeff VanderMeer’s site and this week he's posted a conversation between himself and Abnett here .
"In a previous life, I worked as an editor of tie-in fiction for properties of 2000AD and New Line Cinema," explains Newton. "I’m now a writer of original fantasy fiction and I’ve been hugely lucky in the reception to my work - this difference in attitude between original and tie-in fiction has interested me, and even shocked me."
Dan Abnett meanwhile has sold over 1.2 million books and one of his Warhammer 40,000 novels was the 8th bestselling SF title in 2008. His reasoning begins: "If you write as a hired gun, you must be in it for the dosh. You don’t really care what you’re writing. In other words, tie-in fiction MUST by the very nature of its manufacture be poor, disposable and second-rate. It’s possible that an awful lot of people think this."
Take a look at the blog and then let us know what you think. Today we announced the news about Michael Moorcock writing a Doctor Who novel - what do you think about that in the light of this discussion? All thoughts welcome.
