Hello, fellow geeks! My work is pretty niche, but here goes.
Quick Backstory: When I was a teen, I used to do all sorts of creative writing, including poetry and short stories. But then I started college, hit a huge depression, and stopped writing. A few years ago, as I was recovering from some traumatic stuff and getting treatment for my depression, my husband encouraged me to find a hobby because I literally had none anymore. So, I started writing fanfiction as a way to both practice writing creatively (so perhaps someday I can publish something original), as well as to pay homage to my little-girl self who used to play Star Trek on the playground with her friends.
Thus, “Far From Their Bones” was born.
It’s a rewrite of the entire Star Trek: Voyager series, told from the perspective of an original character who serves as ship’s counselor and lives with mental illness. I recently started work on the final entry in the trilogy, so it’s still in progress. Novel-length stories + grad school = slow going. But I’m enjoying using this creative medium to practice creative writing, to play with fictional tropes, to process things I learn (or want to learn), and to bring more representation of mental illness and mental healthcare to the Voyager fanfic community.
I’ve also written several short stories within the Voyager fandom, which you can find here. My absolute favorite is a Voyager-version of the classic TNG episode, “The Inner Light” that I wrote for a competition. It’s called, “The Dying of the Light,” and you can find it here.
Thank you so much for sharing this! I also used to do lots of creative writing (Harry Potter fanfiction in middle school, and some original works in community college) and also have found myself distanced from creative writing because of depression and grad school. It makes me extremely happy that not only have you found this excellent outlet for your creativity, but also that you feel comfortable enough to share it with this community <3 <3 <3
Thanks! I have no doubts as to the safety of this space.
Besides, being familiar with this medium could be a therapeutic asset someday— particularly since I want to work with adolescents. Who knows what could become useful to have in my toolbox, right?
Where did Eelo Talia train to be a counselor?
Did you draw from any real-world schools of thought as to how she practices?
Is your trilogy interwoven throughout the entire Voyager run or during a specific window?
Talia went to Starfleet Academy for undergrad, double-majoring in Psychology and Xenolinguistics, and completing officer training. Then, she got her Master of Science in Mental Health Counseling at Starfleet Medical Academy.
And unlike Ezri on DS9, Talia actually completed all her clinical hours before getting her LPC. Not that that bit in DS9 bothers me or anything.
So, when I started writing, I wasn’t even in school yet for social work. And since I don’t have a bachelor’s in SW or psych, I pretty much only knew what I knew from experience and from my own leisure reading. My therapist practiced talk therapy using a CBT approach, so that’s kinda what I mimicked. Talia is very much a practitioner of cognitive psychology, but when called upon for diplomatic and/or interspecies relations, she leans on behavioral observations that are probably based on some combination of social psychology and/or cultural competency training.
Oh, but I did actually look into some basic mindfulness/DBT stuff for scenes with Lon Suder, so that was interesting.
Trauma is a big part of the story. Grounding and breathing techniques get used. In the second story, she gets therapy from someone they meet in the Delta Quadrant who specializes in war and refugee trauma. I didn’t go into detail, but I think of him as being big on somatic experience and compassion therapy. In part three, he will get used for tele-counseling, so that should be interesting to write, considering that his preferred approach is in-person.
My trilogy is a re-write of the entire Voyager series. It starts a little before Caretaker, somewhat follows major things that happened throughout the run of the show, and will go a little past Endgame. But it ties a lot of things together so that it’s more serial, like DS9 and Discovery, rather than being episodic like Voyager was. That way, it can all connect to an overarching plot.
Love how much effort you’ve put into this, I can’t wait to watch Voyager so I can read this without fear of spoilers.
I’ve always thought of maybe also making my own character and writing fan fiction, a Psychiatrist half-vulcan, half-betazoid, raised vulcan. There’s a lot to explore when you are raised in a culture of controling you emotions, but your telepathic abilities make it so that you can feel the emotions in others.
