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Table of Contents
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This presentation is a departure from my usual script format. Instead of a four- or five-act TV story, Friends and Enemies is in a standard narrative form. I actually prefer writing in the script style as it's much easier and forces me to keep within a 60-page limit, unless I do a two-part story. With a script, more words go to dialog and fewer on descriptions.
However, this time I had to meet the rules of a writing contest. I actually had two ideas, but one was a bit too long and would not qualify. So Friends and Enemies became my official entry in the rebooted Strange New Worlds short-story book series. These are all written exclusively by amateurs and are generally quite good. I actually preferred them to the regular Star Trek novels as those tended to be written by the same people over and over. The format of a short story also makes it easy to pick up and read a 'quick adventure' during lunch or just before bed time.
Of course, it goes without saying, my story was rejected. It's my destiny never to be published or produced (other than our newsletters and podcasts) but that's okay, as I write for the fun of it.
The idea for Friends and Enemies came from reading the Star Trek (original series) FAQ book. There I discovered the identity of the only female red shirt (affectionately called red skirt) casualty. I hadn't thought about the episode, "By Any Other Name," or the character, Yeoman Leslie Thompson very much, but the mention in the book made me think. She was only on screen for a few minutes and I wondered, who was she? How could that episode play out if it were two hours instead of just one? What happened afterwards? How does the crew of the Enterprise and Starfleet deal with the loss of a crewperson? Because of these and other questions, I actually came up with two stories. The first one is presented here. This story touches on how the Kelvin and Federation first work together and the aftermath of losing Yeoman Thompson. Sometime later we'll present the other story which goes deeper into the protocol and tradition of dealing with crew loss.
-- Brad McDonald
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© 2024 Brad McDonald / U.S.S. Kitty Hawk
Star Trek and all related marks, logos, and characters are solely owned by CBS Studios, Inc. This fan organization
is not endorsed by, sponsored by, nor affiliated with CBS, Paramount Pictures, or any other Star Trek franchise.
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