This is partially because the Legendarium was constantly being revised and was never finished, and partially because he wanted it to be self-contradictory, like real mythology.
and in the same vein there’s the premise that all these works are just translations of manuscripts he found as part of his work as a linguist. so in canon everything we know comes from a translation of a copy of a single source with limited information
In much the same way, each variation of Trek can be viewed as an interpretation of events with embellishments and mixed sources of information. The core events occurred, but the details are to be taken with several grains of precious salt.
This is partially because the Legendarium was constantly being revised and was never finished, and partially because he wanted it to be self-contradictory, like real mythology.
and in the same vein there’s the premise that all these works are just translations of manuscripts he found as part of his work as a linguist. so in canon everything we know comes from a translation of a copy of a single source with limited information
In much the same way, each variation of Trek can be viewed as an interpretation of events with embellishments and mixed sources of information. The core events occurred, but the details are to be taken with several grains of precious salt.