Star Trek: The Next Orientation In the 24th century, being gay is just another part of who you are ... fancy that by Bill Korsak

Partnerships start many different ways ... commitment ceremonies, marriages, or even business contacts. It can even start as simple as a shared cab ride, which is how it began for sci-fi writers Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin. Star Trek: The Next Generation, Section 31: Rogue is the partners’ first major book together; released in May, it contains a lead character who is openly gay. No pride parades or cross-dressing Nurse Betties here. It is dealt with simply, matter-of-factly, and just there for the world to see.

Why a gay character? Does it help tell the story?

Andy Mangels: We wanted to write a story in which the gay characters would not be an issue because they are gay. Star Trek often deals with "issues" and symbolism, and perhaps this is where it misses the boat with gay characters. They don’t need to do a story which calls attention to the gay presence–just tell a story which features a gay presence and treat it as normal.

Michael Martin: By the 24th century, nobody cares whether or not you’re gay any more than they’d shun you for having hazel eyes. Sexual orientation is merely a trait that a person has, like Troi’s predilection for chocolate, or Picard’s male pattern baldness. It doesn’t say anything about the quality of your character. Only the ethical choices you make count. Does Hawk’s gayness help with the mechanics of the plot? No. Does it help illustrate the prejudice-free future that Gene Roddenberry espoused when he created Star Trek? Absolutely.

Mangels: The fact that Hawk is gay does not mean anything positive or negative in the novel to any of the characters. His orientation is well known, and he and his partner are acknowledged as such very explicitly by the characters. However, the fact that Hawk is gay does mean something in today’s society, and will mean a lot to the thousands of fans all over the world who have been asking for gay characters on Star Trek for a long time.

How did Michael feel about writing the gay stuff?

Martin: I have no problem with it whatsoever. I didn’t really write any of the gay relationship material; Andy did. I confess that without Andy’s presence on the project and his advocacy for gay issues, it probably would not have occurred to me to have included gay characters. But I think that’s merely because I’m not gay and Andy is.

Mangels: I have made it a very personal crusade to try to include all types of diversity in my writing. When scripting comic books, I’ll often tell an artist to put some visible minority characters in the scenes. In creating new characters, I’ll generally ask myself "Why can’t this character be something other than a WASP?" I wish more writers would ask themselves that question, but most don’t. I have to say that Marco Palmieri [our book’s editor] has been very supportive of the gay elements of this book. In fact, once our first draft was completed, he pushed me to include more gay content in the second draft. There were areas where I was censoring myself, figuring something might not get through approvals. But each step of the way, both Martin and Marco have been wonderful to work with. They know that my gay relationship and activism is very important to my identity, just as their wives and children are an important part of their heterosexual identities.

How is this book different from what came before?

Martin: I hope that Rogue raises Star Trek’s believability factor in a subtle way. For me, the believability of Star Trek has never hinged on how cleverly the technology is accounted for, but lies instead in the truths of the human heart. It’s harder for me to believe that the Federation is a utopia than it is to assume that not everyone living there is an idealist. That’s where Section 31 comes in. The existence of this organization–and the Machiavellian shadow it casts across the lives of certain Star Trek characters–makes the Star Trek universe more a reflection of our own world than it ever was before.

Mangels: I think both of us want to see the type of utopia envisioned, but are aware enough of the realities of human foibles and politics that it seemed too far-reaching a dream. Certainly, with my being gay, I’m more aware of the shadowy agendas people often have and of the things they might be hiding in their own closets. We were able to explore the things hiding in Starfleet’s closets–intermixed with the political intrigue of our story–in a way that really hadn’t been done much before. Every point of view has at least two sides; we were able to show multiple sides to the same actions without immediately letting on which side was actually "in the right."

How do you think Star Trek fans will react?

Martin: To the presence of gay characters? I don’t anticipate any trouble from the readers because of that. I think our readership is above bigotry for the most part. Those few who might have a problem with it are the ones who need to do some soul-searching, I think, not us. I suppose that there will always be a few religious conservatives who simply can’t get past this, but you can’t bring everyone into the 24th century. After all, you won’t even get everyone to agree that the Earth is round, even in the 21st century, which is arguably the most enlightened period so far in human history.

Mangels: Star Trek has always been about exploring the worlds and cultures beyond our own. If fans can accept Klingon culture and Ferengi culture, why shouldn’t they be able to accept gays and lesbians?

Do you think this will attract an outside audience?

Mangels: My hope is that it will attract an audience that loves Star Trek that might not have picked up one of the novels before. I hope that the gay community supports it, to show that the interest is there. I personally know a lot of gay and lesbian Trekkies and Trekkers, so here’s a chance for them to get exactly what they’ve been asking for.

Do you think the gay aspect will be a curiosity factor?

Martin: I expect that some people will be drawn to "the gay thing" strictly because of the publicity. That’s not a bad thing, necessarily. Maybe some will view it as a stunt of some sort. It isn’t. And I don’t think of the presence of gay characters in a Star Trek novel as "spectacular" in any way. At least, it shouldn’t be. Not if the future is as enlightened and advanced as Gene Roddenberry believed it would be.

Mangels: It doesn’t matter to me if people are only reading it for the curiosity factor. What matters to me is that it finally exists. The presence of gay characters has now been firmly established in the novels and comic books–maybe we’ll finally see some gay or lesbian characters show up on future Star Trek television series or films.

Martin: In the original Star Trek series in 1966, Gene Roddenberry established that in the future, white people could get along with African Americans, Asians, Russians, and even aliens. It’s taken 35 years, but we’re finally showing that in the future, gays and lesbians are a part of that universe of acceptance.