Day: May 12, 2015

Question from Kyle

Question from Kyle

I have read a lot of you and your mums books are they on iBooks I am blind and that’s the best way for me to read them . When is a new book coming out. Thanks for all the books you have written.


Dear Kyle,

Pern-wise I’ve got nothing coming out in the foreseeable future.

Mum, in her Will, requested that no one write on Pern except for myself and my sister, Georgeanne.

I’ve got my fingers crossed that Gigi (her nickname) will shortly take up the mantle and produce us a bright, shiny, marvelous new Pern book.

Cheers,

Todd

Question from Connie

Question from Connie

Hello Mr. Todd McCaffrey, I wanted to ask if I did artwork of Pern characters and dragons, but my interpretation, and to be able to sell it as Pern merchandise with copyrights, do I go through Anne McCaffreys’ estate aka you, for permission? Do I go through Warner Bros too? I just want to make sure it is all legal, and accepted, before I do anything…I realize that you/the estate would get some profit, but I have no idea if my dragons are different from Warner Bros, how that would work? Please let me know, and thank you Todd, love the dragon books you did!


Dear Connie,

Firstly, I’m not one of the Executors of Mum’s estate. Anything I say is purely my own conjecture and has no bearing on the Estate.

I suspect, however, that you will not be able to get copyright for your artwork. I imagine that Warner Brothers would prefer wait until they have their own imagery and license that instead.

I haven’t the foggiest notion of how to go about getting in touch with Warner Brothers on this issue. I do suspect that, as they haven’t started actually filming, they’re probably not interested in worrying about merchandizing rights at this time.

Cheers,

Todd

P.S.: I suspect your spell-checker did you a disservice; when I got your original my name was mis-spelled: ‘McCaffery.’ The e & r should be reversed. As I like to say, we’re “free” (‘frey’) not “furry” (‘fery’).

Question from terry

Question from terry

Do you think a book will be written about the dragonriders going back to earth for some type of mission?


Dear Terry,

Anything’s possible!

However, I should point out that a story is more than an idea. It involves characters and conflict. Stories are about transformations, usually involving the characters but always involving the author.

So the question really is: do either I or my sister want to take that particular journey?

Cheers,

Todd

Letter from Morgan

Letter from Morgan

I would just like to say Thank You for the beautiful writing you and your mother did for Pern. As a troubled teen, Pern was what keep me sane. Today for the first time since our DragonLady went between, I read something with the McCaffrey name on it. Thank you for the stories and memories that were shared in Dragonwriter. Maybe, just maybe, I’ll be able to read my treasured Pern books without crying, without missing the DragonLady.

Sincerely,
Morgan


Dear Morgan,

Thank you!

I’m glad you enjoyed Dragonwriter. I was happy to work on it and thrilled at the contributions of so many outstanding authors.

As I’ve said before, Mum left Pern in the care of myself and my sister. I hope someday soon you’ll be able to crack open a brand new Pern book by Georgeanne McCaffrey.

Cheers,

Todd