Author Analysis: Jude Watson

Analyze and discuss the authorial skill, pros and cons, etc, of Jude Watson, prolific writer of prequel young adult books. No bashing or gushing.

Previous Author Analyses:
Rob Williams
Karen Traviss
Jan Strnad
John Jackson Miller
Ron Marz
Steven Barnes
Chris Cassidy and Tish Pahl
L. Neil Smith
Jeremy Barlow
Dan Wallace
Alan Dean Foster
Paul and Hollace Davids
James Luceno
Daniel Keys Moran
Elaine Cunningham
R. A. Salvatore
Sean Williams and Shane Dix
Greg Bear
Kathy Tyers
Darko Macan
Vonda McIntyre
Walter Jon Williams
Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Roger MacBride Allen
John Ostrander
Steve Perry
Brian Daley
Barbara Hambly
Dave Wolverton
Troy Denning
Ann C. Crispin
K. W. Jeter
Sean Stewart
Haden Blackman
Greg Keyes
Michael Stackpole
Kevin J. Anderson
Matthew Stover
Michael Reaves
Aaron Allston

Go at it!

 

I guess I'm the dreaded first poster for this topic. Okay, so be it...

I actually enjoy most of her works. I have all of Jedi Apprentice, Jedi Quest and just need the new Last of the Jedi book. I think he writing is well done for a young adult book, and the story ideas she uses are very original and creative. Some of her greatest strengths is the ability to create many new wonderful characters, some we are born to hate, some we adore, but all provoking emotional responses (the biggest being Ferus). She also not only creates wonderful new worlds, but takes us to little used worlds that sometimes seem to have fallen off the charts to the adult novels (Korriban, anyone?) She also makes good use of existing characters we haven't heard from in a while (D'harhan being a good example).

To me, I suppose her biggest weakness is one that isn't really her fault. It's that she does children books and it leaves her with little space to truly explore the possibilities of what she comes up with. Even though she does ongoing series and it flows well as one large story, a lot of plot points have to be cleared up by the end of such a short book. While that's great for children I suppose, it leaves the older readers somewhat frustrated when they read something with so much potential in a children's book that it eliminates any chance of a larger book exploring the ideas.

I'd hesitate suggesting she'd be given a shot at a full out adult novel. I don't know how well her writing can make that transition. But because she has such terrific ideas, I'd like to see her at least paired with another author to help (perhaps Stover since with her character interactions and stories, his emotional writing strengths and great writing style in general would do nothing but boost the stories to new heights).

My 2 cents; no refunds.

 

I have read all of Jude Watson's young adult novels (and I am many years away from young adulthood). I loved the Jedi Apprentice books the most. The interaction between Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon is great. It really fleshed out the characters from TPM. In the movie, it didn't seem to me that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were that close. In the books, however, you understand the relationship alot more and their looks and silences make sense now.

The Jedi Quest books were good as far as Obi's part was, but I certainly didn't like Anakin, but then I guess we are not supposed to. She does a good job showing us why Anakin is so rude and snarky in AOTC.

The Last of the Jedi series is the hardest for me to get into. Mainly because only the first two had Obi-Wan in it. I am not a big Ferus Olin fan.

Overall I really think she does a good job on characterizations of Obi, Qui-Gon and Anakin.

 

I will totally second this. Qui-Gon took on life in her series. I really enjoyed him in TPM, but in Jedi Apprentice, it gave meaning to his quiet stares and thoughtful gazes that seemed sometimes out of place in the movie. Watson gave those moments meaning, she gave those single fleeting looks windows into a deep past of emotion and events that could all relate to some aspect of what he was dealing with in TPM.

Maybe I'm reading too much into it, but her use of Qui-Gon period is one of my favorite aspects of the EU, period.

 

I'm afraid all I can see is the wasted potential Main problem is that I strongly disagree with the concept of "children books": at the age of 7 I read the original ROTJ novel and I loved it- althought it's not an easy read, full of descriptions, long lines, half pages of characterization, poetic language, symbols etc... It helped me to love SW more. My little niece is the same. She read the all the HP and LOTF books - before she was ten. A child who loves to read will read the longer, detailed books. Those who like tv better, cannot be helped. My sister - she hates reading - wouldn't waste 10 minutes of her time to read a book- it doesn't matter if it's "simplified" or not.

And frankly a child's sight is quite good: why do you need bigger fonts? To hide the lack of storyline and ideas? You have to be the best author of the Universe if you can create emotional depth in one sentence -and that's all you can get if the book itself is around 100 pages with big fonts. I'm afraid JW is not the best .

This whole "children book" concept is but a clever marketing scheme to calm the worried parents whose child doesn't like reading that they did what they could, taking away their money... And also it's the last chance of the mediocre authors to write something only the desperate parents- and the desperate die hard fans will buy.

Neither YJK nor JW's series are real good books.

 

I am mostly a fan of Jude Watson, although she seems determind to make Anakin dark before his years and she doesn't give Obi Wan a chance to grow into being a master but makes him question everything about himself and compare himself to Qui Gon. However the Jedi apprentice series was well done, I liked many of the extra characters including Bant, Siri, Tahl and Cerasi, as she goes on I think she gets better. She has fleshed jout Ferus' character much more and he is a much more likable character. I think she could do so much more if she wrote for young adults or even an adult book, her stories lack the depth sometimes but I think overall she is a good writer.

 

Her characterization of Qui-Gon and Obi were good, but her characterization of Anakin was horrible. Like Hanniah said, too dark too early and only as a foil to her own character which I loathe. Even in the Last of the Jedi books the amount of stuff credited to him is just beyond rationalization.

 

I simply can't agree with this.

First, let's not forget that, as far as EU goes, there's Rogue Planet; taking place before the Jedi Quest series, it has Anakin take a step into the dark when he killed the blood carver.
Also, Lucas himself I think has shown Anakin to have a dark edge, even in TPM. Remember the cut scene of him beating the snout off the little rodian because he got accused of cheating? throughout the prequels, Lucas has shown us Anakin is not just prone to anger, but prone to emotional outbursts without any will to control them.

Again, in TPM, Anakin takes immediate offense to Padme for questioning that he was a slave, when her comment wasn't even derogatory, but a shocked and appalled question that there was such a thing.
In AotC, well...I think it's numerous in that movie where he gave into his own passions/desires/emotions there. And RotS...ditto.

All in all, I think the foundation was lade before Watson came along, and all she did was expand on it to a full and, sometimes, rich potential.

 

Lucas also says he's a boy "who knows nothing of greed" in TPM. But my complaint still stands, she has him too antagonistic where at the same time in his life Greg Bear and others like Luceno, Stover, Zahn and Denning were nailing him. And it's simply to play off her character. But for children's books, I can see where the plot and characterization would need to be made simpler. I just don't think it had to go that far. Although, he's better in some books in others. The book where Ferus quits is Anakin doing what's right and just not defending himself when it's not seen. She's not totally bad.

 

Greed isn't the same as anger, so I'm not sure how that applies? I think the original point still stands about anger.

 

Emphasis on cut--Lucas obviously decided that he didn't want to establish that about Anakin's character. (If he did, it should've been restored on the DVD.)

See, that's not how I read her line. Or at least, in addition to that, she was reconsidering her opinion of him in light of that fact--something Anakin rightfully wanted to head off, especially if it lead her down the same path as the Hutts and others, making him into something less than human.

 

The reason I read that line, is not only by the tone in which she says it, but also when taken in context with her later conversation with Shmi about how she's surprised that slavery still exists...

 

IMHO: Jude Watson absoultely makes Anakin out to be some darksider. I can't remember clearly which stories since i read them awhile ago, but I remember not liking that series as well as Jedi Apprentice. I remeber thinking, "Jude is out to prove Anakin was evil from the start." I didn't like the characteriztions as well.

Actually I noticed in some books of both series the teens would make a decision and then get in trouble for it even though it was the best decision possible given the circumstance!!!!! I wonder if that is her take on adult to teen relationships?

I did think she did a fine job giving Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan some backstory. I enjoyed the Apprentice series. She just kinda lost it with Quest.

 

I haven't read the Jedi Quest books, so I can't comment on Anakin or Ferus, but her Jedi Apprentice books were fairly good. They suffered from Children's Book Syndrome, meaning the plots were fairly simple and the characters stock, but she did manage to work in some depth, especially in characterization of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. There was one scene where Qui-Gon sees a vision of Obi-Wan as a hermit on Tatooine that was chillingly good. However, as the series stretched longer and longer, the go-to-a-planet-and-solve-its-problems approach wore thinner and thinner. Some changeups would have been great. However, they did all build up together into a decent ongoing plot, which was good. Xanatos made a nice villain, too. So all-over, not a bad writer, with some strengths in characterization and making something out of what she's given. However, she was handicapped by the medium, which undermined her ability to deliver lengthy, deep stories. Giver her a real novel, and she could probably turn out better product. Maybe she couldn't. Maybe she's only good at writing fairly deep kids' stories, but would be out of her depth with a novel. I don't know.

 

I like her work and it is pretty good and part of the EU. Whether you love it or hate it, its part of the overall star wars universe. Luckily her work has been very good.

 

With only one Watson book under my belt, I can't quip a comment. The Desperate Rescue was a kid's book I bought on a whim cheap, and it did it's job. I'm curious what the first Jedi Apprentice was like, Wolverton's The Rising Force. His Courtship won my heart.

 

Agreed. Her children's books are appropriately written. Even though they're simple they explore the master/apprentice relationship well, especially Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon's. Her books added depth and ddimension to those characters.

She wrote Anakin way off though. He didn't start going dark until his mother died- I mean wasn't that one of the major points of ATOC? And I hated Ferus Olin. What an obnoxious character. While I read every book of the JA series, I stopped reading JQ early on partly due to his character. He was portrayed as a the ideal apprentice while Anakin was written as nothing more than a dark, difficult, and troubled kid. It's almost as if she was saying: Can you see how bad Anakin is? He was Sith-in-training from the start!

 

I love Jude books. In many ways they are more enjoyable than the Adult(cough) books because they get to the point. I can only stand so many descriptions of coruscant.

 

I only started reading her stuff with the ROTS jr novel, and was impressed how she handled some of the material - like spousal abuse and mass murder - appropriately for the targeted age level, while also getting adult ideas right. Her take on Anakin pledging loyalty to Sidious was particularly well done. I don't read her portrayal of Anakin as too dark, but giving enough clues and shadings of his character to make his fall in ROTS less abrupt.

The Last of the Jedi series is interesting for being some of the first "inter-trilogy" stuff since ROTS besides Dark Lord (IIRC); I enjoy getting a first look at that era. I just hope that for once a character will find out DV's past identity and not get killed off immediately afterwards. Ferus slooowly figuring this out is almost as drawn-out a process as Jacen's slo-mo slouch towards Sithdom.

 

I think that she is very good author. I love her villains, like Xanatos or Granta Omega and I, unlike some other fans, loved her portrayal of Anakin and felt really bad, because the Jedi seemed quite rude to him.

 

there is, to me, a very big difference, seemingly abrupt, between the sweet little Annie of EP I and the rude teenager of Ep II, and I think it is more than hormones. I think she read Anakin right, and he was always more or less the Ep II Anakin; he kisses up to people he respects who give him praise (Shmi, Padme, QGJ). From the beginning OB1 disses him ("another pathetic lifeform"). Anakin didn't actually hear it, but I'm sure he was aware of OB1's attitude and probably realized OB1 saw him as a rival after the whole "Already a Padawan do you have" bit. Anakin didn't take well to enemies (Greedo, cut, yes, but also Watto and Sebulba, not cut), didn't like being regarded as "Sleemo" slave-scum, which is more or less OB1's approach to him in Ep I. OB1 takes him on not bc he trusts or wants him--he says he thinks Anakin is dangerous. Their relationship is founded on a reluctant master taking on an apprentice by obligation he doesn't want, doesn't trust, doesn't respect, and thinks is dangerous. OB1 EXPECTS to fail. He expects Anakin to be a handful. Anakin acts goody-goody for people who expect that from him and praise him for it, but OB1 pressures him and expects disaster, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. The roots are there in TPM and I think Watson rightly picked up Anakin+QGJ=little angel, Anakin+OB1=disgruntled resentment, and that OB1's negative vibes (not very well hidden) direct Anakin to prove OB1 wrong, to show he is perfect, and turn his natural competitive streak into something dark and dangerous.

 

Senator_Cilghal ...well said. Very well said!

 

I loved the Jedi Apprentice series. Did not care for Jedi Quest. It's a real shame they are out of print now, I see kids everyday that are SW fans that I wish I could handsell the books to!

 

the first eu novel i ever read was lotj:death on naboo, so of course i like Jude Watson! Ive read some other jw books and i think she keeps the spirit of the ot movies