DUNE Engineers

By: Chris Wyatt
Date: Sunday, September 29, 2002

Brian Herbert, son of legendary DUNE author Frank Herbert, had been contacted many times over the years by science fiction authors asking permission to write the concluding volume in the DUNE series.

"My father had a final book of DUNE planned in his head, when his illness took him into the hospital," Brian Herbert explains. "Everyone was waiting for and expecting the final book. It was a great disappointment when my father passed on without even starting on it. Without even leaving any notes, we thought."

Hence all the offers Brian fielded. For an established science fiction writer, perhaps someone who was inspired to enter the field because of Frank Herbert's work, writing the master's unfinished final book would have been a way to honor him. And for an upstart young SF author, having the boldness to take on one of the most important series in science fiction history would be a great way to make a name himself.

Some of the authors wanted to collaborate with Brain, others just wanted to acquire the rights to do it themselves...either way the response was always the same. Brian, who followed in his father's footsteps by becoming a science fiction author himself, fielded the semi-regular offers with grace, yet also with a firm negative.


"You'd be surprised by the names that contacted me," remarks the younger Herbert. "There were some big names, some people to whom it was hard to say no."

But if it was so hard, why did he keep turning them down?

"Because the time just wasn't right. It never felt right. I hold my father's work in great regard. I'm not just his son, I'm a fan."

But that all changed when best-selling author Kevin J Anderson got in touch with Brian.

"I know that Brian had turned people away before," says Anderson, who, like all the other hopefuls, started by writing Brian a letter. "Something about us just clicked. I wrote the letter and he called me back. On the phone we talked for hours. We had a real energy together. We shared this passion for DUNE and it showed. So I flew out to see him. We spent days just brainstorming, working on ideas. By the end of the weekend we had poured so much energy into it that we were just exhausted."

The authors soon realized that they didn't want to start by writing the final book that Frank Herbert never finished. Instead they wanted to start with some backstory and write a whole series of novels set in the DUNE universe.

"Many fans were upset when they heard that someone other than Frank Herbet, even if it was his son, was going to attempt to carry on with DUNE," says Brian. "I mean, some people were really upset. They flamed Kevin and I on the net. But, you know what? I can understand that. I love this world to. And I know that I would be very hesitant about any author who wanted to come along and just make up new DUNE stories. But we got ready. We did it right. And after the book came out, the fans responded favorably. I've actually gotten letters of apology from people who, before our DUNE books came out, had spoken badly of them. They've since had a chance to read the books, and they've apologized for prejudging them. They appreciate the work we've done."

Check back next week for the second installment of our interview with Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson about their DUNE novels, specifically the new release DUNE: THE BUTLERIAN JIHAD. For additional information on the authors, look for an article about them in the December print issue of CINESCAPE Magazine.

Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think at feedback@cinescape.com.