Wayfarers

Zine
Title:	Wayfarers
Publisher:	Orion Press
Editor(s):
Date(s):	1999 - 2000
Series?:
Medium:	print
Size:
Genre:
Fandom:	Star Trek: Voyager
Language:	English
External Links:	Orion Press
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Wayfarers is a gen Star Trek: Voyager anthology fanzine published by Orion Press that ran for four issues. Brenda Shaffer-Shiring was the editor.

The first issue is full size and the other three are digest-sized.

Issue 1

cover of issue #1, Joey Rodrigues and Anja Gruber

Wayfarers 1 was published in January 1999 and contains 224 pages.

Art credits go to Joey Rodrigues and to Anja Gruber, who supplied a Chakotay and Kathryn drawing for the cover.

• Out of the Ashes by Andra Marie Mueller ("Alternate-universe "Year of Hell" sequel. The Krenim ship has been destroyed, but Voyager isn't much better off. Janeway needs the support of her officers (especially a certain first officer) as she tries to put her ship, and her life, back together.") (24 pages)
• A Friend in Need by Valerie De Vries ("On a barbarian planet, the Doctor teaches a young boy the meaning of friendship. But will the price of his compassion be Tom Paris's life?") (63 pages)
• New Resolutions by Diane Bellomo ("Mark's 'Dear John' letter prompts Janeway to ponder why she found it so difficult to commit to him-and later, to Chakotay.") (13 pages)
• The Gift by Kathleen Speck ("Harry's nettled at the offhanded way Tom's been treating him ever since Tom became involved with B'Elanna. A lovely classmate offers to help him get some of his own back.") (19 pages)
• Shadows by Andra Marie Mueller ("In the wake of his Vori brainwashing, and his involvement in "the Clash," Chakotay finds himself reliving the ghastly events that drove him to join the Maquis. Janeway is stunned at what he reveals.") (7 pages)
• A Man Alone by BEKi ("After a month in stasis (in the episode "One"), Tom's nightmares are claustrophobic, morbid, terrifying. Prodded by a worried B'Elanna, Chakotay reluctantly tries to help, only to learn that some memories are best left undisturbed.") (91 pages)
• One Night in the Captain's Cabin by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("A gentle domestic scenario set in a possible future.") (4 pages)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1

The long-awaited, much-delayed "relationships" fanzine series has finally arrived! I find it interesting that this fanzine exists, in this form, in the first place. ORION PRESS offers other 'second series' fanzines for each television program which publishes darker material. I'm surprised that they chose not to have one for ST:VOY, allowing a separate forum for the "tortured Pilot", "angry Warrior", "depressed Engineer", and "Starfleet vs. Maquis" stories. Especially with the abundance of "tortured Pilot" and "angry Warrior" stories out there. The relationship stories could easily be merged into Delta Quadrant, since that series has already printed such stories on a regular basis....

In "Out of the Ashes", Andra Marie Mueller returned to her beloved Alternate Universe. In this place, Janeway survived the final engagement with the Krenim ship from the episode "A Year in Hell, Part 2" and time did not reset itself. As the crew limps along home, dealing with their losses, Janeway and Chakotay have a new life together. A plus for this story was that it was the first time in the AU that the captain maintained her strength and 'command' - as opposed to becoming all weepy and mushy and 'girly'. The story wasn't gripping and edge-of-your-seat, but it was very nice because of how Janeway was handled.

"New Resolutions" by Diane Bellomo takes place after Janeway received her "Dear John [Jane?]" letter. Our captain remembers and compares moments with Mark on Earth and moments with Chakotay on New Earth and realizes that she's been unfair to herself and her first officer. This was a really nice story, not so much for the ending, in which the reader knew the two would get together (it is J/C, after all! duh!), but for the cutting room floor scenes between J and C on New Earth. They were really well-written, in character for the most part, and were romantic.

"Shadows" by Andra Marie Mueller was a quiet, touching J/C story. Janeway and Chakotay examined their meaning to one another after she found him reflecting on the incidents in "Nemesis".

Fan fiction writer extraordinaire, BEKi usually writes Chakotay stories or Paris stories for ST:VOY and even then, the 'other' character has some important placement in the story. "A Man Alone" by BEKi, a short novella, features both characters, and their respective others. In the episode "One", Seven of Nine spent some of her time returning Paris to his stasis chamber. It was determined that he was claustrophobic. BEKi chose to explore that claustrophobia. The story involved Chakotay acting as a 'counselor' to help Paris come to terms with it, where and why it started, and learning to deal with it. Not only is the author capable of writing believable dialogue, including arguments, but I swear that he/she provides the best Janeway and Chakotay conversations out there. This was a wonderful and wonderfully well-written story in that the impetus 'situation' didn't detract from the scenes with the couples, nor did it seem disconnected. BEKi has a great gift - excellent character development - that makes the reader able to sink into her world and get attached to these "people" who we thought we knew.

"A Friend in Need" by Valerie De Vries was of the "tortured Pilot" variety starring Paris and the Doctor. The story was very, very good, mainly due to the emotions that the circumstances engendered. However, it's those circumstances that made the story need to stretch a bit to reach the fanzine's relationship theme. Be aware that it had serious subject matter.

"The Gift" by Kathleen Speck was a Kim story. A member of the crew helped Harry beat Tom at pool and in the process they fell for one another. I hate to say it, because it seems so trite, but the story was, well, sweet. I liked it; it was a perfect Kim story. He' s a sweet guy and he rated a sweet story.

The absolute gem of the fanzine was the closing story, "One Night in the Captain's Cabin" by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring. The story was too short to give a synopsis, and giving such would also interfere with why this was such a great[!] story and worked as the fanzine's capper.

Art credits go to Joey Rodrigues and to Anja Gruber, who supplied a Chakotay and Kathryn drawing for the cover.

Issue 2

cover of issue #2, by Marc Johnson

Wayfarers 2 was published in October 1999 and is 132 pages long. The art is by Marc Johnson and Joey.

The submission request:

WAYFARERS 2 will ready in October. We've already received two major submissions for this zine. One of these lengthy stories is from Maddie Mumford: Paris is injured on a primitive planet, and Kes must tend him; in the process, they tentatively explore their feelings for one another. There's also an alternate-universe story from Thea Bradley (whose first ORION PRESS story will run in the next issue of DELTA QUADRANT) in which Seska and Suder--who are, in this universe, innocent victims--hope to use the Krenim technology to gain revenge on their tormentor: a sadistic Chakotay. When one reads the description, one doesn't think that the story would be suitable for WAYFARERS, but on reading the story, one finds that it actually fits in pretty well. Send submissions to: Brenda Shaffer-Shiring [postal address redacted]. Sorry, no email address yet.

• Far From Revulsion by Taylor H. Martin ("Tom Paris has waited a long time for a relationship with B’Elanna Torres. Now that he finally has one, will his eagerness ruin everything?") (18 pages)
• The Gift by Andra Marie Mueller ("Reservations and resentments ruin an idyllic shore leave for Janeway and Chakotay. Who will bridge the widening gap between them?") (11 pages)
• Sustenance by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("It hasn’t been much of a birthday for Captain Janeway, with her ship badly damaged and in hostile territory. But Chakotay will care for her, whether she wants him to or not.") (8 pages)
• Love’s Road Home by Irene Deitel ("In the wake of a terrible accident, misunderstands threaten to drive Tom and B’Elanna apart. It takes the intervention of a friend to help them find their way back to one another.") (8 pages)
• How Do I Love Thee & Let Me Count The Ways by Debra Lynn Brei ("Alternate universe. On their first anniversary, Janeway and Chakotay exchange love letters.") (6 pages)
• Mama’s Boy by Andra Marie Mueller ("Chakotay may be a strong man outwardly, but as he tells Janeway, deep inside he is still very much his mother’s son.") (6 pages)
• Ten Years Of Hell by Thea Bradley ("In a brutal alternate universe, Chakotay cruelly abused an innocent Seska. She and her lover, an equally-blameless Suder, joined forces with the Krenim, and now she plans to use time-altering technology to exact revenge on her tormentor. But what if the Chakotay she seeks is not the Chakotay she finds?") (16 pages)
• Third Person Singular by Cat Lain ("When an illness robs Janeway of her memory, she is no longer “Captain Kathryn Janeway” but “Katie”, a warm outgoing woman with an avid interest in Chakotay. He longs to respond to her advances, but what will happen when her memory returns?") (28 pages)
• There Will Your Heart Be Also by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("Alternate universe. In their 45 years on New Earth, Janeway and Chakotay have grown close to one another, and to their world. Now an unexpected intrusion threatens their tranquility.") (17 pages)
• B’Elanna’s Choice 2: The Bittersweet Smile by Diane Bellomo ("In "B'Elanna's Choice" in Delta Quadrant 9, the chief engineer faced a difficult decision when she found that, as a result of the aliens' machinations in "Scientific Method", she and Tom had started a baby. What was B'Elanna's choice, and what did it mean to her?") (19 pages)

Issue 3

cover of issue #3, Anja Gruber

from issue #3, Anja Gruber

Wayfarers 3 was published in April 2000 and is 146 pages long. The art is by Anja Gruber.

From the editorial:

I still like Voyager.

[...]

I'm saying it because I've read one too many "fan" reviews that blister the paint off the ship's walls. I'm saying because I've read one too many "fan" commentaries that call the current executive producer everything but the product of a legal marriage. I'm saying it because I'm tire of seeing the series ripped to shreds by any - and everyone who feels it failed to live up to their personal goals for it.

Which is not to say I like everything TPTB have done lately. There have been times this season (for the mater of that, times in every season except perhaps Season One) where Voyager has made me so mad that the only thing that's kept me from putting a brick through the TV is the replacement cost of the TV. To cite the most obvious example: this hard-fore "relationshipper" doesn't accept that it's somehow "better" for a starship captain to have a relationship with a fictional character than with another person.

[...]

Do I think everyone who watches Voyager should sing its praises? Not at all. I could do with a little more balance in my commentary, that's all. Because, on balance, I have to say it again: I still like Voyager.

• Signposts, editorial (3)
• Practice Makes Perfect by Irene Deitel ("Embarrassed by a remark about their noisy amours, Tom and B'Elanna try to practice "silent running." The results are a little disappointing.") (4)
• Encounter by BEKi ("It's Kathryn's dream date: sun, surf, and an attractive (and attentive) XO. But something's not quite right"). (12)
• Machine People by Miranda Greene ("When Voyager finds a transporter duplicate of Locutus of Borg, Seven of Nine experiences some unexpected, and to her unprecedented, feelings. Will he--can he--reciprocate?") (14)
• Twice Blessed by Andra Marie Mueller ("Voyager is back on Earth, and Janeway and Chakotay are ready to settle into their new life together.") (45)
• Nothing Logical About It by Kathleen Speck ("As pon farr approaches, Tuvok determines that his only choice is suicide, but fate has other plans.") (54)
• The Wish by Thea Bradley. Returning to Earth, Annika Hansen (formerly Seven of Nine) meets her only surviving relative, an old woman who cannot accept the former Borg as her granddaughter.") (78)
• Casualties Of War by Andra Marie Mueller ("Janeway has defeated the Equinox renegades. Will the price of victory be her friendship with Chakotay?") (83)
• Where Weariness Might Take Its Rest by Diane Bellomo ("After the death of One, Seven receives comfort from an unexpected source.") (89)
• You Found Her by Diane Bellomo ("Tom has finally popped the question, and B'Elanna has no idea what to say.") (95)
• Sometimes, When We Touch by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("Chakotay has shared Kathryn's bed for years. Will he ever be able to tell her he loves her?") (105)
• Daddy’s Little Girl by Charles H. Shiring ("When Seven of Nine escaped the Unimatrix (in "Dark Frontier"), she left someone behind. In this alternate universe tale, she decides to go back for him.") (124)
• Kitty and The Paris-Mutuel by Laura Taylor ("The unthinkable has happened--Janeway's lost a bet with Paris! Can she bring herself to pay his forfeit?") (140)

Issue 4

cover of issue #4 by Joey Rodrigues

Wayfarers 4 was published in October 2000 and is 112 pages long. Cover by Joey Rodrigues.

• Tenacious Tendrils by Debbie Barrand ("An unlikely matchmaker brings Janeway and Chakotay together.") (2 pages)
• All The Mornings Still To Come by Diane Bellomo ("When B’Elanna finally ventures into the Fair Haven simulation, she doesn’t know what she hopes to find there. However, a certain bartender forms a pretty good guess.") (10 pages)
• The Talk by D.G. Littleford ("After Icheb’s adolescent hormones get him into trouble, Janeway drafts a reluctant Chakotay to give the young Borg some paternal advice. But with Chakotay’s track record, he really shouldn’t have tried to have to have “the talk” during a shuttle mission.") (30 pages)
• Coffee Talk by Andra Marie Mueller ("During a late-night talk, Chakotay forces Kathryn to face the truth about his feelings, and her own.") (8 pages)
• A Song At Twilight by Marilyn Mastin ("Decades after Voyager’s return, Harry Kim is a lonely widower with a grown daughter. Is it too late for him to find love again.") (10 pages)
• A Evening On The Lake by Charles H. Shiring ("While on the holodeck with Kathryn, Chakotay ponders the frustrating state of their relationship.") (2 pages)
• The Smallest Casualties by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("Tom and B’Elanna Paris look forward to starting their family, but an unexpected obstacle throws a wrench into their plans.") (11 pages)
• The Top Ten Romantic Moments In Trek by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("From the original series to Voyager, these are the moments that keep relationship fans tuning in to Trek.") (2 pages)
• The Perfect Conversation by Andra Marie Mueller ("Voyager is home, and all is forgiven for her Maquis crewmembers—except for their former captain. Cashiered from the service, Chakotay prepares to leave Earth and his shipmates. Before he goes, there’s something he wants from Janeway.") (9 pages)
• Visitor From Home by Diane Klepper ("Starfleet uses a convenient wormhole to send Voyager a buoy containing information on how to improve the ship’s speed. They also send a holographic instructor, in the form of a certain admiral very familiar—and unwelcome—to Tom: his father, Owen Paris.") (22 pages)
• Life In A Small Town by Brenda Shaffer-Shiring ("Some months after succumbing to her attraction to Chakotay, Kathryn decides it’s time to tell the crew about their romantic involvement. Neither of them is prepared for their shipmates’ reactions.") (10 pages)