Literature Spin-offs

[Andy]

What's your opinion of literature spin-offs (like if someone writes a sequel to Romeo and Juliet or something like that). Do you think they hurt/help the original work? Do you think they're a cheap gimmick?

[mrfusspot]

I'm all for (kinda) doing spin-offs, provided they aren't spin-offs of classics. A Romeo and Juliet spin-off just doesn't seem like it would be good, or even worth reading, mainly because of the facts that its a spin-off of a good old classic.
But if someone does it for some fairly unknown novel or something, that's okay in my mind. I dunno, a spin-off of Eragon wouldn't be so horrible in my eyes.

[Shaun]

In all honesty I think they are generally pretty bad. There are exceptions. While I don't read the Dragonlance books anymore, the series was started and expanded upon by a myriad of authors, some of which I am a fan of (Richard A. Knaak did his own series called DragonRealm which was freaking awesome and not like a lot of the huge Wheel of Time like series). But I think in a lot of respects, series like Dragonlance are somewhat on the lower spectrum of fantasy writing, and we could probably all agree that that is generally so. That's not to say that the Dragonlance books are bad, it's just that they fulfill a different literary need--simple entertainment.
And I think to some extent people like Chris Tolkien or Brian Herbert, both sons of some of the most influential writers in fantasy and science fiction respectively, have gone on to expand upon the work of their fathers. Both have had to take on the job of writing in a world they didn't invent with material unfinished, and both seem to have been majorly successful with it.
As for other types of literature, well, unless there is a good reason to expand upon it, why do it?

[jordanisonfire]

I don't really have a general opinion on spin-offs. I'm not entirely sure I've read any. I know of Chris Tolkien's works and the general opinion I've heard is that they're great. I shall see once I have read LotR.

[Shaun]

Shadow, Chris Tolkien is the son of the man who wrote LOTR. All Christ Tolkien has done is take the material left behind by his father to put out several other books. The latest would be that Children of Hurin book. But he was not the write of LOTR :P

[jordanisonfire]

I know they are. What I meant was I will be reading them after I've read LotR. :rolleyes: I'm not as thick as that, Shaun.

[Shaun]

:P, I was just making sure silly head :D

[jordanisonfire]

Good. For some reason, you sounded like Imelda with the "silly head" comment. :P

[Zuzy]

I didn't even know these existed...


Though, I think it is a bad idea. If the writer didn't continue the book, it shouldn't be continued. It, really, can only be contained within their own writing, and perhaps fanfiction. But this sounds like fanfiction that got published, and for some reason, that really bothers me.