Many Star Trek stars have written memoirs, some – like William Shatner and Kate Mulgrew – have even written multiple autobiographical books. Sir Patrick Stewart has dedicated some of his pandemic downtime to finally writing one.
One name not on that list is Brent Spiner. And even after being approached to author one, the Star Trek: The Next Generation actor had another idea. Announcing a new book today, Spiner tells Syfy, “I thought, maybe I can write something else, because I have a story I’d like to tell. Maybe I can combine the two and do a sort of hybrid.” And thus was born Fan Fiction: A Mem-Noir: Inspired by True Events, which the author describes as, “a little bit of this and a little bit of that, but it’s primarily fiction.”
Here is Spiner’s synopsis for the new book due out in October:
There are slices of my own life in it, and then there are also people I have known…it’s a mashup: It’s a thriller, it’s a comedy, it’s a dark comedy. And it’s partially a memoir, but none of it’s real, really, even though a lot of things actually happened.
The cover was also revealed today, designed by Rob Grom to evoke the many genres the book encompasses.
Cover designed by Rob Grom (St. Martins Press)
Spiner is collaborating with Jonathan Ames (Bored to Death) on the book which will include scenes with other real-life Star Trek stars like Patrick Stewart and LeVar Burton, but Spiner tells Syfy “They’re not serious versions of themselves. They’re a more heightened version of themselves, just like it’s a heightened version of me.”
Fan Fiction: A Mem-Noir: Inspired by True Events will be released on hardcover, ebook and audiobook on October 4, 2021. You can pre-order it now at Amazon.
This sounds a bit like his short films on YouTube a few years back (Fresh Hell). I found them quite amusing, but I don’t believe they ever took off in a big way.
Yes. I thought they were terrible.
Brent Spiner made me walk like a cat and make cat sounds in front of 300 people at a con once to audition for his youtube show (fresh hell). I like the fact he nor I took the con seriously especially when I asked him non trek related stuff, pissing off the rest of the fans who wanted him to talk about some episode he’s already talked about 1000 times over.
He’s got a bit of the shatner about him, proud of Trek but at facepalm stage now through most cons and smiles through gritted teeth. I like him, he’s honest but not to all fans tastes
I met him a few years ago at Ottawa Comicon. He ran hot and cold with how he came across. I was sort of left feeling very ambivalent about him as a person. I know that cons can be a tedious affair, but if you’re taking my money, at least put your acting skills to use and pretend you can stand what’s going on around you.
Contrast that to meeting Ethan Peck and Doug Jones. My god, those two are genuine in how much they appreciate seeing the fans. I was left so impressed by Doug that I went full-out on creating a Saru cosplay (with a full silicone mask and hoof boots) which I got to show to him at STLV in 2019. Heck, I even got to demonstrate the Saru walk on stage with the DSC cast watching.
I agree, at that same con he was really rude to some fans who asked to sign some fan art. He ONLY wanted his photos signed. Told security he has had enough and walked off.
Normal though, another actor who wants to be not known for star trek but seems to be only known as guy who played data, it can be frustrating year on year. He’s still one of few trek actors who has had some really brilliant roles outside of Trek which kinda get forgotten about.
Such as?
I’ve met Spiner twice (outside of a convention, so he was perfectly gracious) but I have to thank him for untangling me from a disastrous meeting with Patrick Stewart one time. Long story but I’m pretty sure I’d still be standing by the seventh gate of Hell, locked in Stewart’s molten death glare, without Spiner stepping in to break the mood. Haha! Good times.
Spiner has been with the franchise for over 30 years though.. maybe hes just tired of telling the same story?
He’s not tired of taking the same convention fees though. My point was just that if you’re willing to do the convention and get paid for it, keep in mind that the folks coming to see you footed that amount and deserve at least to not be obviously disregarded.
And that same story he may have told endlessly will probably still be new to a few people. That 30-year-old story is part of what got him to where he is now.
Sounds like a vanity project to me. Embellish a few sound bytes, toss it against the wall, and see what sells.
It’s a free country, you’re entitled. Good luck.
Exactly.
It’s kind of sad to see both this, plus Michael Dorn going the same begging route of promoting something like Takei tried with “Captain Sulu.”
Those Hollywood monthly mortgage payments are expensive though.
I’d doubt Spiner is even close to financial breakdown.. maybe its just something to keep busy during lockdown?
Can anyone say, CASH GRAB!
Lol
That is generally the point of mass-publishing a book.
And what is wrong with that? If you are offended, don’t buy the book. This is still America (at least for now)
I can. I can also say “worthless comment.”
I think its easy to forget that when TNG was cast and first shown, most people gave the show a snowball’s chance of even getting past season 1, to say nothing of eventually being a beloved member of the franchise. Stewart has said as much more than once. There had only been the original series and a couple of movies that were way different than the new series was. Most of them thought it was going to be a paycheck for a year or so and then done. Also, they didn’t really know what the fandom or conventions were like – which were really just starting to get going and not nearly as big as they are now. Finally, there was no Internet to hang on every word of everyone and let fans and cons and actors interact the way they do now. Bottom line, Spiner and the others didn’t really have an idea what they were getting into. Certainly not expecting what has occurred. Not everyone reacts to being in a giant fan-made goldfish bowl the same way, especially when they don’t expect it. And while most fans are polite and friendly and respect the actors, there are boorish fans as well. I expect that would get old after a while. I don’t buy into the ‘they made their fame doing this show so they owe the fans something’ argument, because for actors, its a job first. And their job is to entertain on screen, and they give the fans that.
Is this an excuse to be boorish? Of course not. But keeping this in mind might help people understand the reactions by some actors. Now having said all that, if they are taking money to be at a convention then they DO owe the con organizers that pay them – and the fans that pay for their autographs – some sort of polite interaction, as long as the fans themselves are polite (at worst the fans I’ve seen at the cons I’ve been to were so excited to meet their heros they get a little carried away, but that’s a good problem for them to have).
Sounds like your average celebrity memoir to me—embellishments, fiction, making other people’s stories your own … except he’s being up-front and honest about it ;-)
Brent’s got a good sardonic wit. Should be amusing!
Oh…God…wouldn’t it be great if the audiobook included the cast playing their own alternate selves?
Isn’t Spiner kind of famous for doing a Patrick Stewart impersonation at conventions? I don’t know if he also “does” his other co-stars.
Any time Brent Spiner has something like this in the works, I find myself wondering if that one “Spiner Femme” lady from the first Trekkies is still around. I hope she is and that she’s just as Brent-thusiastic as she ever was.
I Love The Title!