New! Further Strangeness: Twelve New Knights, Seers, and Myths for Mythic Bastionland is an unofficial and unlicensed supplement for Chris McDowall's wonderful new game, and my entry for the Mythic Bastionland Game Jam. Available for free over on my itch.io webpage.
New! Circe's Grin is a system-agnostic old-school RPG adventure, and my entry for the Appx. N 2025 game jam. Available for free (for now) on my itch.io webpage.
New from Knight Owl Publishing: Isle of Joy is a harrowing old-school adventure on a mysterious island full of secrets and stories. Order a copy on Knight Owl's website.
Something Tookish! is a Brindlewood Bay RPG hack for those who want to solve mundane, cozy mysteries in a halfling village. With art by Justin Howe! Get your copy on itch.io!
Now available: FERMENTVM NIGRVM DEI SEPVLTI (Black Yeast of the Buried God) from LotFP! Text by me, illustrations by Gonzalo Æneas, layout by Jacob Hurst, editing by Joshua Blackketter, maps by Alex Mayo. OSR adventure set in a brewing abbey in historical Westphalia.
EU Webstore | US Webstore | PDF at DTRPG
My OSR Conversions Guide for the Koryo Hall of Adventures 5E setting book is now available over at DriveThru RPG.
My short story "Sojourn" appeared in A City of Han.
Available on Amazon.com, or, in Seoul, from the Fiction Writers in Seoul website.
See a complete list of my publications and forthcoming work.
Wow, I can’t believe you had never heard of the Vulcan mating ritual. If it wasn’t for the magic of “Star Trek: TOS,” I doubt I ever would have entered into the fascinating worlds of Heinlein, Asimov, and other great writers of science fiction.
Unlike most SF TV shows or movies, Trek had a long history of seeking advice from real SF writers.
Ted Sturgeon wrote two episodes “Amok Time” and “Shore Leave.” He also wrote another treatment “The Joy Machine” which was never filmed. James Gunn (of “The Listeners” wrote it as a novel about ten years ago.
Issac Asimov initially wrote a criticism of Trek in a magazine (I think it was TV Guide), and Roddenberry sought him out for advice. They became life long friends ever since, and Asimov was a technical consultant for the first TOS movie. Roddenberry was (if I recall correctly) also friends with Ray Bradbury.
I’m not sure if they ever met or were friends, but Roddenberry was said to have admired Arthur C. Clarke’s works greatly.
“Trouble with Tribbles” writer David Gerrold went on to become a Nebula Award winning SF writer. However, there were some concerns that the idea of Tribbles were copied from the space cats in “The Rolling Stones” (I think). Gerrold contacted Heinlein, and Heinlein gave his blessing to use the idea.
Norman Spinrad (one of my favorite writers, though he seems to be on the edge of being forgotten nowadays) wrote “The Doomsday Machine.”
And of course, you have Harlan Ellison. (“The City on the Edge of Forever”). Jerome Bixby, who wrote several SF stories, also wrote several episodes. Robert Bloch (who also wrote “Psycho”) wrote a couple of episodes.
The first pilot for Trek “The Cage” was premiered at a Worldcon.
Among Hugo and Nebula award winning writers who wrote Trek novels include Mack Reynolds, James Blish, Greg Bear (!), Joe Haldeman, Vonda McIntyre. I also did not know until recently, but Fredrik Pohl was the editor for early Trek books (though apparently he did not pay too much attention to them).
Trek does (rightly) get criticized for being SF lite and its science being fast and loose, but for a TV show or a movie, with the possible exception of “2001” and “2010,” it probably had the closest and best working relationship with the (written) SF community.
Addendum:
Philip K Dick apparently admired Spock and Leonard Nimoy somewhat (saying Nimoy could make anyone or anything sound credible). James Tiptree Jr. wrote a pastiche of Trek, which, after publication, she sent to Roddenberry. According to her biography, she kept Roddenberry’s reply in a plastic wrapper for safekeeping.
OK, that video was excellent. Kirk and Spock PR0N!
That video was hilarious!
Contrary to what many may think right now, I can admire bleakness when done really, really well. And I consider NIN’s “The Downward Spiral” as a prime example of that (a height, or depth, they never reached again).
I’m just getting around to this. I had a feeling when you mentioned the video in your email that you were talking about this one. Probably my favorite ST fan video of all time (although the Month Python mash-up gives it a run for its money).