Lois McMaster Bujold - No Vorkosigan for at Least a While

[TheAuldGrump]

Hmmm, over on Dendarii.com Lois McMaster Bujold has this to say about the Vorkosigan series:
I do not know when or if I will write another Vorkosigan story. I do not rule it out, but I don't have a new novel in mind at this time. Nor a short story notion either. I won't decide on the next project till I'm done with the new fantasy, probably toward the end of this summer or early fall, depending.

It sounds like she is not all that interested in the series right now. It is one of my favorite space opera series, and well worth checking out.

The Auld Grump

 

[GSHamster]

It is kind of at a finishing point. Almost all the main characters (Miles, Cordelia, Gregor, Mark, etc.) have really..."finished their character development" may be the best way to put it.

Pretty much all the conflict that drove the series is gone. Barrayar has grown, no longer quite so backwards. Miles has grown up and is comfortable in his skin. Even Cetaganda's arc is pretty much solidified. I can see how she's not interested in writing a new novel, unless a brilliant idea strikes her.

But maybe a novel about Ivan would be good.

 

[Volaran]

Yeah, I wouldn't mind an Ivan novel. He's been forced to show he's competent. Now he needs to pay.

I'd rather have her writing what she likes, than forcing out another Vorkosigan book right now. I've been enjoying the fantasy series well enough. Inspiration shouldn't be forced.

 

[drothgery]

That, and probably the next 'big event' after Diplomatic Immunity probably has to be Aral's death (LMB has said this, and I tend to agree), which doesn't make a fun backdrop for a novel.

 

[James Heard]

I'd love for her to just open up the universe at large some more. There are scores of interesting characters just lying all over the place, I wouldn't even mind a "when Miles' grandfather was in the war" sort of novel. Maybe an Ensign X in the Dendari series of short stories, or something that just used the Vorkosigan universe as a mostly irrelevant aside - "something else that happens to someone else"

Who am I kidding, as long as she's chained to a keyboard somewhere....

 

[TheAuldGrump]

Yeah, I realize that she has reached a good wrap-up point, but I am feeling sorry for myself!
I liked the fact that the characters grew and changed as the series progressed. Though the death of Aral Count Vorkosigan... LMcMB once said that he was the most important person in the series, not Miles - he was the one who had made it possible for Miles to survive and thrive. Even Cordelia and the Emperor are lesser characters.

Ivan would pure hate having a novel dedicated to him! But yes, he has shown that he is lazy, not incompetent. I will hope for that if nothing else, I agree, even if Barrayar, Cetaganda, and Beta Colony have all had their stories told there is more that can be done with the setting.

I ran a game set in the Vorkosigan universe once, using the Storyteller system. It went well. Escobar was the setting.

The Auld Grump