Terran Trade Authority is to be resurrected
- Thread starter mike wightman
- Start date
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
When do you think it'll be published - do you have a firm date set yet?
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
Thanks for the reply.
By the way, I like the Pathfinder and C14 designs.
By the way, I like the Pathfinder and C14 designs.
Morrigan Press would like to make the following announcement concerning the status of the TTA books and related projects (and yes, it is GOOD NEWS, but it started off a little scary…)
It was Eleventh Hour at TTA HQ. The new Spacecraft 2100-2200 AD went to press about two weeks ago. The writing and artistic crews set their sights on finishing up the RPG book while K. Scott Agnew, president of Morrigan, went on a well-deserved family vacation.
On May 9, Scott returned to the office to find a message from Stewart Cowley, original author and compiler of the TTA books, in his inbox.
“Great!” He thought. After all, we at Morrigan had been trying to contact Mr. Cowley for months, hoping to include him or at least get his stamp of approval on the new material.
Then Scott read the message. There was a problem.
When Morrigan originally sought to license the TTA franchise, Scott approached Hamlyn Publishing, which asserted that it owned the rights to the TTA books. A deal was negotiated and advance royalties paid to Hamlyn.
In his message, however, Mr. Cowley asserted that he owned the copyright on the TTA books, and in fact had been the holder of said copyright since 1990.
A flurry of phone calls and e-mails later, it was confirmed that there had indeed been, to put it mildly, a slight oversight. Mr. Cowley did own the rights to the books. Hamlyn had somehow misfiled or otherwise overlooked this fact, and so had licensed a property that they had not owned for sixteen years.
I’ve got a bridge here, by the way. Nice bridge. Real ornate. It’d look good spanning whatever river you choose.
The contract was dead. Hamlyn returned the royalty money. And Scott and myself were busy searching our local areas for nice, high cliffs to drive off of. Was six months of work about to go up in smoke?
Well… it’s a wonderful thing in life when one of your childhood heroes turns out to be a really nice and helpful fellow...
Mr. Cowley immediately made it clear that he had no wish to obstruct the project. He let us know that he was certain that everything we had been doing was in the true spirit of the original books. Once he had made sure that we weren’t some wildcatter organization attempting to rip him off, it was clear that there was the matter of a new deal to be forged… which it was.
The bottom line: Stewart Cowley is officially back in the TTA saddle! He’s aboard ship, back on the command deck, and will be contributing to future TTA releases. Best of all, everything from here on out is going to have the official Cowley blessing and seal of approval.
As I spent the long, lonely hours in front of my computer this past winter, away from my wife and friends, crafting the sights and sounds of the new Spacecraft and the RPG book, I often wondered about Stewart Cowley. I had been introduced to his works as a young lad, and his stories, more than any other… more than Star Wars, Star Trek, or Space 1999… profoundly influenced me, set me on the path to writing, and got me to dream about the future. When I was hired by Morrigan to work on the TTA series, it was a dream come true. But… I was disappointed that Mr. Cowley was not aboard. I had no idea if he was aware of what we were doing or even cared. I hoped that one day I might get word from him, that he would see what we were doing with the universe he so lovingly created, and get a nod of approval. Now… it’s so much better than that. We will be working together, crafting new elements and exploring new facets of the ever-fascinating TTA universe. It’s not every person who can truly say that they get to work with one of their idols… and we at Morrigan Press are very fortunate and thankful to be among them!
More news to come soon. Stay tuned.
--Jeff Lilly—
It was Eleventh Hour at TTA HQ. The new Spacecraft 2100-2200 AD went to press about two weeks ago. The writing and artistic crews set their sights on finishing up the RPG book while K. Scott Agnew, president of Morrigan, went on a well-deserved family vacation.
On May 9, Scott returned to the office to find a message from Stewart Cowley, original author and compiler of the TTA books, in his inbox.
“Great!” He thought. After all, we at Morrigan had been trying to contact Mr. Cowley for months, hoping to include him or at least get his stamp of approval on the new material.
Then Scott read the message. There was a problem.
When Morrigan originally sought to license the TTA franchise, Scott approached Hamlyn Publishing, which asserted that it owned the rights to the TTA books. A deal was negotiated and advance royalties paid to Hamlyn.
In his message, however, Mr. Cowley asserted that he owned the copyright on the TTA books, and in fact had been the holder of said copyright since 1990.
A flurry of phone calls and e-mails later, it was confirmed that there had indeed been, to put it mildly, a slight oversight. Mr. Cowley did own the rights to the books. Hamlyn had somehow misfiled or otherwise overlooked this fact, and so had licensed a property that they had not owned for sixteen years.
I’ve got a bridge here, by the way. Nice bridge. Real ornate. It’d look good spanning whatever river you choose.
The contract was dead. Hamlyn returned the royalty money. And Scott and myself were busy searching our local areas for nice, high cliffs to drive off of. Was six months of work about to go up in smoke?
Well… it’s a wonderful thing in life when one of your childhood heroes turns out to be a really nice and helpful fellow...
Mr. Cowley immediately made it clear that he had no wish to obstruct the project. He let us know that he was certain that everything we had been doing was in the true spirit of the original books. Once he had made sure that we weren’t some wildcatter organization attempting to rip him off, it was clear that there was the matter of a new deal to be forged… which it was.
The bottom line: Stewart Cowley is officially back in the TTA saddle! He’s aboard ship, back on the command deck, and will be contributing to future TTA releases. Best of all, everything from here on out is going to have the official Cowley blessing and seal of approval.
As I spent the long, lonely hours in front of my computer this past winter, away from my wife and friends, crafting the sights and sounds of the new Spacecraft and the RPG book, I often wondered about Stewart Cowley. I had been introduced to his works as a young lad, and his stories, more than any other… more than Star Wars, Star Trek, or Space 1999… profoundly influenced me, set me on the path to writing, and got me to dream about the future. When I was hired by Morrigan to work on the TTA series, it was a dream come true. But… I was disappointed that Mr. Cowley was not aboard. I had no idea if he was aware of what we were doing or even cared. I hoped that one day I might get word from him, that he would see what we were doing with the universe he so lovingly created, and get a nod of approval. Now… it’s so much better than that. We will be working together, crafting new elements and exploring new facets of the ever-fascinating TTA universe. It’s not every person who can truly say that they get to work with one of their idols… and we at Morrigan Press are very fortunate and thankful to be among them!
More news to come soon. Stay tuned.
--Jeff Lilly—
Second Kurega's list.
Add assorted levels of vacuum gear.
And to be honest, a nice bit about standard shipboard accommodations would be nice. (Albedo and Jovian Chronicles both have good, but very divergent examples, as does the old DGP Starship Operator's Manual.)
Add assorted levels of vacuum gear.
And to be honest, a nice bit about standard shipboard accommodations would be nice. (Albedo and Jovian Chronicles both have good, but very divergent examples, as does the old DGP Starship Operator's Manual.)
jwcarroll60
SOC-12
Damn, that is a sight for sore eyes!! My exwife threw away all my earlier books in that line. Now I can rebuild my collection. Cool.
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
Very nice
Will there be a hardback version?
Will there be a hardback version?
mike wightman
SOC-14 10K
That's why I want the new one in hardback - it'll sit much better next to the four others 
Good question about the other books - SpaceWreck gave me quite a few scenario ideas, and StarLiner was the source for many of the corporation names IMTU.
Good question about the other books - SpaceWreck gave me quite a few scenario ideas, and StarLiner was the source for many of the corporation names IMTU.
Not for right now, unfortunately. If it sells extremely well, I suppose it's possible...Originally posted by Sigg Oddra:
Very nice
Will there be a hardback version?
We're working on an all-new book of original ships (capital ships). I'm hoping we get to do new editions of all the originals as well. A lot will depend on how well these initial offerings do.
Here's a part of the new TTA material, to be released in another book, a bit later... a Proximan atmospheric vehicle, attached to a docking arm... artwork by Francois Cannels.
Proximan "Mollusk"
Proximan "Mollusk"