RASSM's Star Wars Novel Reading Group Frequently Asked Questions Contents: 1) What is the NRG? 2) Why read in chronological order? 3) How do I join? 4) New changes to the NRG. 5) What book are we reading next? 6) Which books have already been read? 7) Related discussion and resources of Star Wars fiction. ________________________________________________________________________ 1) What is the NRG? The NRG is a novel reading group for members of the newsgroup rec.arts.sf.starwars.misc, popularly known as RASSM. Its object is to encourage the reading and comment upon of the many Star Wars novels and some comics that have been released in trade paperback form and are important to the continuity, and from that discussion, other related Star Wars topics. If you're looking for on-topic discussion, this is a great place to get it! Every three weeks or so, a member of the group posts a separate summary and critique of one of the novels (in chronological order), at which point RASSM goes wild with replies! These initial summaries and critiques will appear under two separate subject headers. For example, "[NRG][Summary] Heir to the Empire," and "[NRG][Review] Heir to the Empire." All follow-ups are directed towards the [Review] post only. The purpose of this is to contain all commentary in one thread so nobody's opinions get overlooked. Naturally, these threads will contain spoilers for the novels (they summarize much of the plot), so make sure you read the novel before the review if you wish to remain unspoiled. 2) Why read in chronological order? We read the novels in chronological order because Del Rey and Bantam didn't release them chronologically in the first place! With the amount of Star Wars literature available, it can be difficult even for the most devout fan to keep track of where each book fits into the timeline. Most fans read the novels in the order that they are published; to gain a true chronological perspective of the Star Wars universe, the NRG follows the timeline. Thus, when we review and discuss a book, we are not only commenting on the individual merits of the work, but also how it flows with the rest of the timeline (and Star Wars universe in general). We will, of course, read new novels as they are released, as this is where the interest will be. 3) How do I join? The NRG is an open forum that takes place on RASSM; anybody can join by simply posting a comment to the current discussion. We do ask that you read the current novel before posting, the exception being the comics and the children's books, as they may not be as readily available as the novels. Questions and comments are always welcome. Author/book bashing is *not* welcome. Example: OK: "I didn't like the way Zahn characterized Luke...." Unacceptable: "Zahn sux. My dog could write better than him." We have had SW authors contribute to threads in the past and I expect that some will want to participate again. RASSM has also 'chased' away authors with author bashing and rude comments. We don't want a repeat of that. 4) New changes to the NRG (7/00): The interval between novels is now about three weeks. We will give the comic trade paperbacks, children's books and short books 1-2 weeks, as they are shorter, fitting them in the timeline. It was decided that the old format of two weeks between novels was too short a time period for RASSMers with a life outside the Internet and Star Wars. We will work in new novels as they are released. The initial reviewer of each novel will post the summary and critique separately, with all follow-ups directed towards the critique only. It was decided that NRG lurkers who wanted to follow the discussion (and possibly join in later) were being turned-off by the excessively long posts that were caused by the inclusion of the summary and critique in one post (and the subsequent follow-ups that were even longer). Please keep the reviews and comments civil. 5) NRG Schedule: **Discussion staring Fri. 7/28/00: 1) Tales of the Jedi Comic Series (some of the characters are important later on) Golden Age of the Sith The Fall of the Sith Empire Tales of the Jedi The Freedon Nadd Uprising Dark Lords of the Sith The Sith War Redemption Reviewer John Donchig **Thur. 8/10/00: 2) Hero's Trial: SW The New Jedi Order (novel to be released 8/1/00) Reviewer Shada **Fri 9/1/00: 3) The Jedi Apprentice Children's Series (some of the events/facts are important) #1 The Rising Force #2 The Dark Rival #3 The Hidden Past #4 The Mark of the Crown #5 The Defenders of the Dead #6 Uncertain Path #7 Captive Temple #8 Day of Reckoning #9 Fight for Truth (to be released 7/00) Reviewer #1-4 Shada #5-9 Anj ** Fri 9/22/00 4) Prelude to Rebellion Comic Series Reviewed by Jevon **Tues. 10/03/00: 5) Rogue Planet by Greg Bear (novel) Reviewer needed. **Mon. 10/16/00: (new release on 10/3/00) 6) Agents of Chaos: Jedi Eclipse, New Jedi Order by James Luceno Reviewer needed. *(Note: The following 3 trilogies are intermixed in the timeline) **Mon. 11/6/00: 6) The Han Solo Adventure Trilogy by Brian Daley (novels avail. separate or in a compilation) Han Solo At Star's End Han Solo's Revenge Han Solo and the Lost Legacy Reviewer Karrde. **Mon. 11/20/00: (new release 11/7/00) 8) Balance Point: NJO by Kathy Tyers Reviewer needed. **Mon. 12/11/00: 9) The Lando Calrissian Trilogy by L. Neil Smith (novels avail. in a compilation) Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of Thonboka Reviewer Karrde. **Mon. 12/25/00: (as these are a bit longer and more complex, we will give them 2 weeks or so a piece) 8) The Han Solo Trilogy by Ann C. Crispin (novels) The Paradise Snare The Hutt Gambit Rebel Dawn Reviewer Jill Marie Fritsche That takes us through this year and I will make a new schedule in Dec. according to how well we do on this schedule. 6) What books/comics have the NRG read? As the NRG has been on hiatus for a year, we will be starting anew in the SW Timeline. You can search Deja News for prior NRG discussions to see what we thought of novels read in previous years of the NRG. (Go to 'Power Search,' enter 'rec.arts.sf.starwars.misc' for the newsgroup and 'NRG' for the subject.) Additionally, an "NRG Ratings" is posted periodically to RASSM, which contains statistics on how members rated each novel. 7) Other discussion and resources of Star Wars fiction. There are plenty of other resources for Star Wars fiction on the www. Here are a few: *The Official RASSM Homepage is at: www.shavenwookie.com * The NRG Homepage is under construction at http://www.geocities.com/~swnrg/welcome.htm *Nathan Butler's (excellent) SW Timeline can be found at: http://members.xoom.com/nbprod/swtinfo.html * Michael Beidler's "The Star Wars Literature Compendium" contains a comprehensive timeline of all licensed SW fiction, including summaries at: http://www.lightgate.net/StarWars/SWLC/compendium.html * The Force Net contains reviews of the novels, allows the reader to rate the novels, and has the latest news pertaining to SW literature at: www.theforce.net/books/ * Need to buy the books/comics (and at a discount)? Visit The Official RASSM Bookstore (with timeline) at: http://speculator.virtualave.net/sfstarwa.htm ________________________________________________________________________ FAQ Credits: Written by Rick Bors, JamesG, Michael Mierzwa and Jill Marie Fritsche. Questions, comments, and suggestions regarding this FAQ or if you wish to sign up to review a book/comic should be sent to Jill Marie Fritsche at jill-marie1@msn.com. "Star Wars" and all related terms are (c) copyright Lucasfilm Ltd.