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Lit Books Star Wars The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule

Discussion in 'Literature' started by Captain RX, Feb 24, 2020.

Page 6 of 19

Fjall Jedi Master

Registered:

Nov 9, 2014

DarthInternous said: ↑

Jaxxon- said: ↑

is that loden greatstorm at the back?
Click to expand...

Yes
Click to expand...

thank you! I wasn't sure because on the other cover he has a gold saber....

Fjall, Dec 3, 2020

#126
LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 25, 2002

Are those farthiers on the cover or some other kind of horse-like creature? I also like the dog-like animal.

LAJ_FETT , Dec 3, 2020

#127
starfish Chosen One

Registered:

Oct 9, 2003

LAJ_FETT said: ↑

Are those farthiers on the cover or some other kind of horse-like creature? I also like the dog-like animal.
Click to expand...

@DarthInternous

same question?

starfish, Dec 3, 2020

#128
DarthInternous Editor - Del Rey Star Wars VIP

Registered:

Feb 7, 2017

Steelees are the horse-like creature.

Ember (the dog-like creature) is a charhound.

DarthInternous, Dec 3, 2020

#129

Sinrebirth likes this.
ScreamingWoman2019 Jedi Master

Registered:

Aug 11, 2018

Ancient Whills said: ↑

https://www.starwars.com/news/the-makers-of-star-wars-the-high-republic-charles-soule

As we prepare to enter a new era of Star Wars storytelling with Star Wars: The High Republic, StarWars.com sits down with the five authors — Charles Soule, Justina Ireland, Claudia Gray, Daniel José Older, and Cavan Scott — penning the first round of books and comics. “The Makers of Star Wars: The High Republic” will run weekly through the end of the year to celebrate the January 2021 launch of the storytelling epic.

Spoiler warning: The article contains plot details from Light of the Jedi.

“We are all the Republic.” It’s a phrase that echoes through Charles Soule’s new novel, Light of the Jedi, available for pre-order now and hitting bookshelves January 5, 2021. The tale serves as an introduction into the heyday of the Jedi Order, some 200 years before the events in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. Yet it feels as relevant today as it might to someone in a galaxy far, far away.

And beyond this unifying rallying cry is an immersive new era ripe for exploration, when Jedi Knights uphold peace and justice in a galaxy experiencing a kind of tranquility as they pioneer the Outer Rim.

That is, until disaster strikes. Although concept art hints at a gilded age of finery and nobility — when grandeur was no delusion — from the first chapter, Soule’s story is an intense reckoning amid The Great Disaster. New characters are introduced, their lives and hopes laid out for readers, only to be dashed in the next sentence as the system-wide emergency takes shape. And through it all, the Jedi emerge as heroic as the stories of old, courageous individuals rushing into the fray, prepared to do whatever it takes to bring some semblance of calm back to every last corner of their beloved galaxy.

Recently, StarWars.com sat down with Soule to discuss the extraordinary opening sequence to his new novel, how life in 2020 impacted his writing, and what he hopes readers will take away from their first foray into The High Republic.

StarWars.com: There’s a purposeful composition to the storytelling, an ebb and flow, serenity and pure chaos. You’ve got these lovely scenes of bucolic normalcy and then absolute terror, and it just kind of builds as you pull together this picture for the readers of the anomaly and what it means and what it is. Why take this approach to introducing this new era?

Charles Soule: The Great Disaster is the first real introduction the readership and the fandom is going to get to The High Republic. It’s an opportunity for great heroism or for ordinary people to step up. People really expose who they are and systems really expose how well they work in the time of crisis, as we’re seeing now in a time of crisis in the real world. And it’s funny because I wrote this…I finished it largely before these times and I did a substantial revision during the quarantine. But most of the ideas in terms of the big plotting stuff all came before coronavirus. I don’t want to spoil too much about what happens in The Great Disaster sequence, but it’s long. It’s a third of the book. It’s well over 100 pages of material based on this one event and how it affects a group of people in one particular system where it hits with most of its impact, the Hetzel system in the Outer Rim…and even though Hetzel is isolated — it’s important but it’s isolated — when it’s in danger, people from all over the galaxy try to help. And so I thought that was a way to show the interconnectedness of The High Republic era. The fact that systems exist to help when a system is in trouble.

There’s a phrase that echoes throughout the book, which is, “We are all the Republic.” And that is basically the motto of the High Republic in this era. Chancellor Lina Soh runs the Republic and that is her motto that has become kind of omnipresent throughout the galaxy. And it’s something that people take very seriously. The Jedi take it seriously. The Republic takes it seriously. And the individuals on the planets take it seriously. So I just wanted to show what that would mean. Because that really sets the tone for everything. In a galaxy where people really can say that and believe that, that’s united in that way around a principle idea, and when bad stuff starts to happen, the strength of that idea gets tested.

StarWars.com: It’s funny that you mention that you wrote this pre-pandemic, because when I was reading it in the midst of 2020, I was wondering… Do you think some of those elements and the constraints of COVID, in general — all of us being a lot more sedentary, introverted, and sequestered — do you think that had an impact on the changes you made in revisions?

Charles Soule: I think it is impossible to believe that this year has not had a significant impact on every creative person’s work whether they acknowledge it and believe it, or not. For me, there are elements in the book that people will not believe that I had in the book before quarantine! But they were there. And they’re based on the way systems and governments and institutions respond to disasters. So it’s not surprising that those things would happen but I do think they will resonate much more strongly because of the shared experience literally everyone around the world is having. If there’s ever a time to think, “We are all the Republic,” we’re all human beings and we all have the same strengths and weaknesses… The main threat in Light of the Jedi is not a virus, but it is certainly something that can pop up anywhere, at any time and be very dangerous. And so people take actions to try to protect themselves from it and, you know, as they said, I wish this had never happened to the world. But I’m hopeful that when people read Light of the Jedi on January 5 that they will find themes that will be resonant because of the time in which it’s coming out and because of the time in which it was written.

StarWars.com: To get into some of the new characters, as I was reading the first eight chapters, I realized at some point that it sort of made me feel like I was Jedi Avar Kriss. You’re showing us this disaster playing out in moments large and small and it’s very similar to the way you’re describing the way she experiences the Force, and the way she can feel all the other Jedi wherever they are. What can readers expect from Avar and the other new Jedi and Padawans they’ll meet in this story?

Charles Soule: One of the guiding principles behind the entire High Republic initiative, even back when it was still Project Luminous, was to create Star Wars that was quintessentially Star Wars but also that still felt fresh and new. And this is with respect to every element whether it’s creatures, the Republic itself, the space ships, and vehicles, and, of course the Jedi, which have been one of the most important elements of Star Wars since the beginning. This is an era that’s very stable and prosperous. There’s no galactic civil war happening. It’s a time when, thankfully, focus can be placed on development, expansion, cultural pursuits, that sort of thing. So the role of the Jedi in this era is just different. They respond to problems that sometimes are a little bit localized. They negotiate disputes. They have outposts on various planets. But, you know, they’re still the Jedi. They’re going to be very recognizable. But one of the things that we thought we’d be able to do was, in a time when there are many thousands of Jedi in the galaxy — and they are not quite so focused on the encroaching shadow of the Sith or a civil war that’s about to break out or corruption in the senate — we thought that we could spend time thinking about the way that they all look at and think about the Force. And Avar Kriss in particular is one of the first characters we meet doing this and she experiences the Force as basically a song, a huge symphony of voices and instruments, assonance and dissonance and all these different things. Harmony and counter harmony and all of these different things that, really, any time you look around our world you see it. You may not hear it, but life is a symphony. And so that’s how she experiences the Force.

Other characters do different things with it. You have a very cool Padawan and Master team Bell Zettifar and Loden Greatstorm, and they each have their own way of experiencing the Force. And what you come to see is that Yoda’s description of the Force as sort of this luminous web of light that connects and binds all of us, or Obi-Wan’s description, the ways we’ve heard it described are only one way to look at something that is truly a very interesting and complex and diverse thing. Just like many philosophies on Earth and religions experience spirituality in different ways, the same is obviously going to be true of the Force. So we see that explored in the book. They also have cool different lightsabers. We see them using different Force powers we haven’t really seen in a while or that are totally new. I don’t want to spoil anything, but there are some really, really neat Jedi things in Light of the Jedi and across the whole High Republic initiative.

StarWars.com: Speaking of the Force and the way characters experience it, I really enjoyed your description of Bell tapping into the Force, like meditating on a flame. As the author, how did exploring a new era of Star Wars storytelling alter the way you understand the Force or how you convey it to readers?

Charles Soule: I think that one of the things that I believe is true about the Force — to the extent that something can be true about a made-up construct — is that it’s hard. Using the Force is challenging and you have to find your way into it and you have to find a path to connect to it. And that’s why Jedi train literally their entire lives to use it and improve their connection to it. It’s something that you have to calibrate yourself to be able to tap into. It’s out there. You’re not changing the Force by tapping into it. You have to change yourself or find your own resonant frequency within yourself that allows you to tap into what the Force is. And it’s hard. You have to be super focused. You have to become the Force to use it properly. You have to tune yourself to it. And I think that is very much like the experience of writing a novel. Because when you’re writing a book you have to completely envision a new world and then you have to inhabit that world and you have to make new people that live in that world and then you have to let those people do the things that they would do if that world were real. And it’s very, very challenging. It’s an exhausting mental discipline that I love doing, but it’s really hard. And so that’s my version of tapping into the Force, I think, is trying to write a good book.

StarWars.com: You have a very compassionate approach to the struggles that individual Jedi might have as they’re trying to maintain their grasp of the Force. I thought that was a really interesting shift in things because it feels like by the time we get to the era of the Republic and the shadow of the Sith hanging over everything from the prequel trilogy, that the Jedi are a little bit more black and white, regimented, and a little less forgiving maybe of some of those faults and trespasses. And we get a Wookiee Jedi, Burryaga, and a Duros Jedi, Te’Ami! Do you have a favorite character among the new ones?

Charles Soule: It’s really hard because I put a lot into trying to make all of these characters really interesting, unique, and relatable. Even Hedda Casset, who is the sort of older starship pilot who you meet in Chapter 1, I try to make her feel really unique and cool and special. I really like her. In terms of the Jedi, I really, really like Bell and Loden, the Padawan and Master. Of the ones we met, I’ve always loved the teacher/student dynamic that Star Wars has done so well for so long and to be able to create my own teacher/student duo was really gratifying. Avar is super cool. Burryaga is great. Just a super sensitive, huggable Wookiee Jedi is a cool thing.

StarWars.com: What more could we all want, really?

Charles Soule: I know! And he has some scenes that I think people are really going to melt over. There’s another Jedi that may be my favorite one in the whole book that you don’t meet until later named Porter Engle. He is Ikkrukkian, which [are from] a planet I made up in my Poe Dameron series. In my head he looks like an old prospector dude. He’s got lots of hair and a beard — I think I describe him as more beard than being — and he’s basically a cook now. He’s a guy who’s known for his recipes. But as his character is revealed you find out that he had a very different past and he’s sort of a legend within the Jedi Order. And he’s left that past behind definitively. He’s old. He’s been in all the different Jedi roles and now the only Jedi role he really wants it to be a cook. But the Force is not done with him yet and there are some really cool things that he gets to do. So he’s definitely up there. You know what they say. They’re all my children and I love them all.

StarWars.com: Can you tell us a little about the origin of the title of this book, Light of the Jedi, and what it means to you and the story?

Charles Soule: The Jedi have always been deeply associated with that word and that idea, whether it’s the fact that their weapon is made out of light — they use lightsabers to protect peace and justice. The fact that they are considered to be guardians of the light side of the Force as opposed to the dark side, which is what the Sith work with. The fact that they consider, at least from Yoda’s teachings, that beings are luminous, that the Force gives us all an inner light. So the idea of “light of the Jedi” is kind of right there. It’s low hanging fruit. But then within the story itself we really wanted The High Republic to feel like a golden age. When you are in need, the Jedi are there. They don’t always succeed. Sometimes problems can overwhelm them. They’re still people. But they will never stop trying to help. And the idea that there’s a Force like that out there in the galaxy, literally and figuratively, that is there just to help, that’s a reassuring thing. So that’s a theme that runs throughout the book and there’s a very literal expression of it. I’m a big fan of movies that include their title in the dialogue at some point so there’s a moment in the book that directly references those four words that I think is pretty beautiful, and I look forward to people getting to [read it].

StarWars.com: Do you remember how far along you were in the process when you came up with the title?

Charles Soule: It was very, very early! There were title discussions. I could look in my notebook…I will look in my notebook!

StarWars.com: This is the one good thing about 2020. Everyone’s at home. We were talking to Ben Burtt earlier this year and he just pulled down a notebook from the production of The Empire Strikes Back and he found the answer he needed.

Charles Soule: [Paging through a notebook] There’s a page in this where I wrote tons and tons of possible titles. Ask for cover and title notes — that was October 25 [of 2019]! Somewhere around October or November of last year is when I had it. I had the title before I wrote a word of the book. I had a very detailed story outline and so I knew the beat that was going to reference the title ahead of time.

StarWars.com: And the book is out on January 5. What are you hoping readers take away from this story once they get to read it?

Charles Soule: I’m hoping that readers love The High Republic and cannot get enough and cannot wait to read more and cannot wait to see what these characters do, all their trials and tribulations, successes and failures. I’m hoping that it really feels like Star Wars to everyone who reads it and gives people that sense of joy that all good Star Wars gives you. We’re getting it now with The Mandalorian, and I got it when I saw A New Hope for the first time. That thrilling rush of, “Oh wow, how are they going to get out of this one?” And then they do and you can’t believe it! All of the huge sort of messy wonderful stew that is Star Wars.

This is going to sound maybe a little melodramatic or emotional or whatever, but that idea that “We are all the Republic.” Those five words. I think that that’s a really important idea, especially these days. And you know if there was ever a time to hang together and help each other out it’s now. So that’s the thematic thing I hope people take away. That we are all the Republic.

StarWars.com: I love that. And I think that’s a new way of approaching that other essential bit of Star Wars, which is that, I think Star Wars always has to have some element of hope. That’s what holds it all together. No matter how bad it gets and no matter how often you think, “How are they going to get out of this one?” Somebody always has a little bit of hope. And “We are all the Republic” feels like a really eloquent way to say it. And also, we’re all in this together.

Charles Soule: Exactly. And I think a big element of hope is thinking, “I’m not alone. I don’t have to face whatever challenges I have to face all by myself.” In this time of isolation I think Star Wars is something that unifies a lot of us. It’s something we all can share and love together. And I hope that Light of the Jedi and all The High Republic will be received in that way. I really cannot wait for January 5. It feels like it’s been a long time coming.

Click to expand...

We are all the Republic...one man's virus is another man's weapon.

You briefly mention that Tenebrous' Twi'lek Sith Master created ?a rend in the Force,? and that the two of them tried to create a virus that specifically targeted the Jedi. Were those always intended to be incidents mentioned in passing, or did you ever want to expand on those events?

The rend in the Force, that idea that an event occurred two-hundred years before the events of The Phantom Menace?I don't know where I got that. I either created it or I read some passing reference to the fact that the Jedi Order had become very clearly aware of the reemergence of the Dark Side two hundred years earlier. I've always played with that, and I think I mentioned it earlier, maybe in Labyrinth of Evil or in Dark Lord. The timing worked out for it to be Tenebrous' master who opened that rend. I think there's a cool story there. I haven't really given it a lot of thought, and I left a lot of little openings in the Plagueis book for possible stories that could be set in those earlier decades or centuries.
Click to expand...

http://theforce.net/latestnews/story/Interview_Plagueis_Author_James_Luceno_142844.asp

ScreamingWoman2019, Dec 3, 2020

#130

whostheBossk, Chrissonofpear2 and BigAl6ft6 like this.
Dawud786 Chosen One

Registered:

Dec 28, 2006

I really want those socks and the pin. Haha. Not so sure I want to buy a second copy of the book though. Nor do I want to cancel my pre-order just to wait for the special edition.

IG: @jedisufism

Dawud786, Dec 3, 2020

#131
LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 25, 2002

DarthInternous said: ↑

Steelees are the horse-like creature.

Ember (the dog-like creature) is a charhound.
Click to expand...

Thanks, DI!

LAJ_FETT , Dec 4, 2020

#132
PimpBacca Jedi Master

Registered:

Oct 4, 2015

PimpBacca, Dec 14, 2020

#133

ZV-83, brodiew, JediFett10 and 5 others like this.
DLCV Jedi Knight

Registered:

Dec 14, 2020

No spoilers review

DLCV, Dec 14, 2020

#134

ZV-83, brodiew and Ghost like this.
bsmith7174 Jedi Master

Registered:

Apr 17, 2015

I remember seeing an image of the new Del Rey timeline from the beginning of Light of the Jedi. Does anyone have that?

bsmith7174, Dec 15, 2020

#135
Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting Staff Member Manager

Registered:

Oct 16, 2008

There's a free sampler that has it.

In case you can't get that, here it is-

Todd the Jedi , Dec 15, 2020

#136

whostheBossk, Tython Awakening, AusStig and 1 other person like this.
Rivenblade Jedi Padawan

Registered:

Nov 21, 2020

ScreamingWoman2019 said: ↑

Ancient Whills said: ↑

https://www.starwars.com/news/the-makers-of-star-wars-the-high-republic-charles-soule

As we prepare to enter a new era of Star Wars storytelling with Star Wars: The High Republic, StarWars.com sits down with the five authors — Charles Soule, Justina Ireland, Claudia Gray, Daniel José Older, and Cavan Scott — penning the first round of books and comics. “The Makers of Star Wars: The High Republic” will run weekly through the end of the year to celebrate the January 2021 launch of the storytelling epic.

Spoiler warning: The article contains plot details from Light of the Jedi.

“We are all the Republic.” It’s a phrase that echoes through Charles Soule’s new novel, Light of the Jedi, available for pre-order now and hitting bookshelves January 5, 2021. The tale serves as an introduction into the heyday of the Jedi Order, some 200 years before the events in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. Yet it feels as relevant today as it might to someone in a galaxy far, far away.

And beyond this unifying rallying cry is an immersive new era ripe for exploration, when Jedi Knights uphold peace and justice in a galaxy experiencing a kind of tranquility as they pioneer the Outer Rim.

That is, until disaster strikes. Although concept art hints at a gilded age of finery and nobility — when grandeur was no delusion — from the first chapter, Soule’s story is an intense reckoning amid The Great Disaster. New characters are introduced, their lives and hopes laid out for readers, only to be dashed in the next sentence as the system-wide emergency takes shape. And through it all, the Jedi emerge as heroic as the stories of old, courageous individuals rushing into the fray, prepared to do whatever it takes to bring some semblance of calm back to every last corner of their beloved galaxy.

Recently, StarWars.com sat down with Soule to discuss the extraordinary opening sequence to his new novel, how life in 2020 impacted his writing, and what he hopes readers will take away from their first foray into The High Republic.

StarWars.com: There’s a purposeful composition to the storytelling, an ebb and flow, serenity and pure chaos. You’ve got these lovely scenes of bucolic normalcy and then absolute terror, and it just kind of builds as you pull together this picture for the readers of the anomaly and what it means and what it is. Why take this approach to introducing this new era?

Charles Soule: The Great Disaster is the first real introduction the readership and the fandom is going to get to The High Republic. It’s an opportunity for great heroism or for ordinary people to step up. People really expose who they are and systems really expose how well they work in the time of crisis, as we’re seeing now in a time of crisis in the real world. And it’s funny because I wrote this…I finished it largely before these times and I did a substantial revision during the quarantine. But most of the ideas in terms of the big plotting stuff all came before coronavirus. I don’t want to spoil too much about what happens in The Great Disaster sequence, but it’s long. It’s a third of the book. It’s well over 100 pages of material based on this one event and how it affects a group of people in one particular system where it hits with most of its impact, the Hetzel system in the Outer Rim…and even though Hetzel is isolated — it’s important but it’s isolated — when it’s in danger, people from all over the galaxy try to help. And so I thought that was a way to show the interconnectedness of The High Republic era. The fact that systems exist to help when a system is in trouble.

There’s a phrase that echoes throughout the book, which is, “We are all the Republic.” And that is basically the motto of the High Republic in this era. Chancellor Lina Soh runs the Republic and that is her motto that has become kind of omnipresent throughout the galaxy. And it’s something that people take very seriously. The Jedi take it seriously. The Republic takes it seriously. And the individuals on the planets take it seriously. So I just wanted to show what that would mean. Because that really sets the tone for everything. In a galaxy where people really can say that and believe that, that’s united in that way around a principle idea, and when bad stuff starts to happen, the strength of that idea gets tested.

StarWars.com: It’s funny that you mention that you wrote this pre-pandemic, because when I was reading it in the midst of 2020, I was wondering… Do you think some of those elements and the constraints of COVID, in general — all of us being a lot more sedentary, introverted, and sequestered — do you think that had an impact on the changes you made in revisions?

Charles Soule: I think it is impossible to believe that this year has not had a significant impact on every creative person’s work whether they acknowledge it and believe it, or not. For me, there are elements in the book that people will not believe that I had in the book before quarantine! But they were there. And they’re based on the way systems and governments and institutions respond to disasters. So it’s not surprising that those things would happen but I do think they will resonate much more strongly because of the shared experience literally everyone around the world is having. If there’s ever a time to think, “We are all the Republic,” we’re all human beings and we all have the same strengths and weaknesses… The main threat in Light of the Jedi is not a virus, but it is certainly something that can pop up anywhere, at any time and be very dangerous. And so people take actions to try to protect themselves from it and, you know, as they said, I wish this had never happened to the world. But I’m hopeful that when people read Light of the Jedi on January 5 that they will find themes that will be resonant because of the time in which it’s coming out and because of the time in which it was written.

StarWars.com: To get into some of the new characters, as I was reading the first eight chapters, I realized at some point that it sort of made me feel like I was Jedi Avar Kriss. You’re showing us this disaster playing out in moments large and small and it’s very similar to the way you’re describing the way she experiences the Force, and the way she can feel all the other Jedi wherever they are. What can readers expect from Avar and the other new Jedi and Padawans they’ll meet in this story?

Charles Soule: One of the guiding principles behind the entire High Republic initiative, even back when it was still Project Luminous, was to create Star Wars that was quintessentially Star Wars but also that still felt fresh and new. And this is with respect to every element whether it’s creatures, the Republic itself, the space ships, and vehicles, and, of course the Jedi, which have been one of the most important elements of Star Wars since the beginning. This is an era that’s very stable and prosperous. There’s no galactic civil war happening. It’s a time when, thankfully, focus can be placed on development, expansion, cultural pursuits, that sort of thing. So the role of the Jedi in this era is just different. They respond to problems that sometimes are a little bit localized. They negotiate disputes. They have outposts on various planets. But, you know, they’re still the Jedi. They’re going to be very recognizable. But one of the things that we thought we’d be able to do was, in a time when there are many thousands of Jedi in the galaxy — and they are not quite so focused on the encroaching shadow of the Sith or a civil war that’s about to break out or corruption in the senate — we thought that we could spend time thinking about the way that they all look at and think about the Force. And Avar Kriss in particular is one of the first characters we meet doing this and she experiences the Force as basically a song, a huge symphony of voices and instruments, assonance and dissonance and all these different things. Harmony and counter harmony and all of these different things that, really, any time you look around our world you see it. You may not hear it, but life is a symphony. And so that’s how she experiences the Force.

Other characters do different things with it. You have a very cool Padawan and Master team Bell Zettifar and Loden Greatstorm, and they each have their own way of experiencing the Force. And what you come to see is that Yoda’s description of the Force as sort of this luminous web of light that connects and binds all of us, or Obi-Wan’s description, the ways we’ve heard it described are only one way to look at something that is truly a very interesting and complex and diverse thing. Just like many philosophies on Earth and religions experience spirituality in different ways, the same is obviously going to be true of the Force. So we see that explored in the book. They also have cool different lightsabers. We see them using different Force powers we haven’t really seen in a while or that are totally new. I don’t want to spoil anything, but there are some really, really neat Jedi things in Light of the Jedi and across the whole High Republic initiative.

StarWars.com: Speaking of the Force and the way characters experience it, I really enjoyed your description of Bell tapping into the Force, like meditating on a flame. As the author, how did exploring a new era of Star Wars storytelling alter the way you understand the Force or how you convey it to readers?

Charles Soule: I think that one of the things that I believe is true about the Force — to the extent that something can be true about a made-up construct — is that it’s hard. Using the Force is challenging and you have to find your way into it and you have to find a path to connect to it. And that’s why Jedi train literally their entire lives to use it and improve their connection to it. It’s something that you have to calibrate yourself to be able to tap into. It’s out there. You’re not changing the Force by tapping into it. You have to change yourself or find your own resonant frequency within yourself that allows you to tap into what the Force is. And it’s hard. You have to be super focused. You have to become the Force to use it properly. You have to tune yourself to it. And I think that is very much like the experience of writing a novel. Because when you’re writing a book you have to completely envision a new world and then you have to inhabit that world and you have to make new people that live in that world and then you have to let those people do the things that they would do if that world were real. And it’s very, very challenging. It’s an exhausting mental discipline that I love doing, but it’s really hard. And so that’s my version of tapping into the Force, I think, is trying to write a good book.

StarWars.com: You have a very compassionate approach to the struggles that individual Jedi might have as they’re trying to maintain their grasp of the Force. I thought that was a really interesting shift in things because it feels like by the time we get to the era of the Republic and the shadow of the Sith hanging over everything from the prequel trilogy, that the Jedi are a little bit more black and white, regimented, and a little less forgiving maybe of some of those faults and trespasses. And we get a Wookiee Jedi, Burryaga, and a Duros Jedi, Te’Ami! Do you have a favorite character among the new ones?

Charles Soule: It’s really hard because I put a lot into trying to make all of these characters really interesting, unique, and relatable. Even Hedda Casset, who is the sort of older starship pilot who you meet in Chapter 1, I try to make her feel really unique and cool and special. I really like her. In terms of the Jedi, I really, really like Bell and Loden, the Padawan and Master. Of the ones we met, I’ve always loved the teacher/student dynamic that Star Wars has done so well for so long and to be able to create my own teacher/student duo was really gratifying. Avar is super cool. Burryaga is great. Just a super sensitive, huggable Wookiee Jedi is a cool thing.

StarWars.com: What more could we all want, really?

Charles Soule: I know! And he has some scenes that I think people are really going to melt over. There’s another Jedi that may be my favorite one in the whole book that you don’t meet until later named Porter Engle. He is Ikkrukkian, which [are from] a planet I made up in my Poe Dameron series. In my head he looks like an old prospector dude. He’s got lots of hair and a beard — I think I describe him as more beard than being — and he’s basically a cook now. He’s a guy who’s known for his recipes. But as his character is revealed you find out that he had a very different past and he’s sort of a legend within the Jedi Order. And he’s left that past behind definitively. He’s old. He’s been in all the different Jedi roles and now the only Jedi role he really wants it to be a cook. But the Force is not done with him yet and there are some really cool things that he gets to do. So he’s definitely up there. You know what they say. They’re all my children and I love them all.

StarWars.com: Can you tell us a little about the origin of the title of this book, Light of the Jedi, and what it means to you and the story?

Charles Soule: The Jedi have always been deeply associated with that word and that idea, whether it’s the fact that their weapon is made out of light — they use lightsabers to protect peace and justice. The fact that they are considered to be guardians of the light side of the Force as opposed to the dark side, which is what the Sith work with. The fact that they consider, at least from Yoda’s teachings, that beings are luminous, that the Force gives us all an inner light. So the idea of “light of the Jedi” is kind of right there. It’s low hanging fruit. But then within the story itself we really wanted The High Republic to feel like a golden age. When you are in need, the Jedi are there. They don’t always succeed. Sometimes problems can overwhelm them. They’re still people. But they will never stop trying to help. And the idea that there’s a Force like that out there in the galaxy, literally and figuratively, that is there just to help, that’s a reassuring thing. So that’s a theme that runs throughout the book and there’s a very literal expression of it. I’m a big fan of movies that include their title in the dialogue at some point so there’s a moment in the book that directly references those four words that I think is pretty beautiful, and I look forward to people getting to [read it].

StarWars.com: Do you remember how far along you were in the process when you came up with the title?

Charles Soule: It was very, very early! There were title discussions. I could look in my notebook…I will look in my notebook!

StarWars.com: This is the one good thing about 2020. Everyone’s at home. We were talking to Ben Burtt earlier this year and he just pulled down a notebook from the production of The Empire Strikes Back and he found the answer he needed.

Charles Soule: [Paging through a notebook] There’s a page in this where I wrote tons and tons of possible titles. Ask for cover and title notes — that was October 25 [of 2019]! Somewhere around October or November of last year is when I had it. I had the title before I wrote a word of the book. I had a very detailed story outline and so I knew the beat that was going to reference the title ahead of time.

StarWars.com: And the book is out on January 5. What are you hoping readers take away from this story once they get to read it?

Charles Soule: I’m hoping that readers love The High Republic and cannot get enough and cannot wait to read more and cannot wait to see what these characters do, all their trials and tribulations, successes and failures. I’m hoping that it really feels like Star Wars to everyone who reads it and gives people that sense of joy that all good Star Wars gives you. We’re getting it now with The Mandalorian, and I got it when I saw A New Hope for the first time. That thrilling rush of, “Oh wow, how are they going to get out of this one?” And then they do and you can’t believe it! All of the huge sort of messy wonderful stew that is Star Wars.

This is going to sound maybe a little melodramatic or emotional or whatever, but that idea that “We are all the Republic.” Those five words. I think that that’s a really important idea, especially these days. And you know if there was ever a time to hang together and help each other out it’s now. So that’s the thematic thing I hope people take away. That we are all the Republic.

StarWars.com: I love that. And I think that’s a new way of approaching that other essential bit of Star Wars, which is that, I think Star Wars always has to have some element of hope. That’s what holds it all together. No matter how bad it gets and no matter how often you think, “How are they going to get out of this one?” Somebody always has a little bit of hope. And “We are all the Republic” feels like a really eloquent way to say it. And also, we’re all in this together.

Charles Soule: Exactly. And I think a big element of hope is thinking, “I’m not alone. I don’t have to face whatever challenges I have to face all by myself.” In this time of isolation I think Star Wars is something that unifies a lot of us. It’s something we all can share and love together. And I hope that Light of the Jedi and all The High Republic will be received in that way. I really cannot wait for January 5. It feels like it’s been a long time coming.

Click to expand...

We are all the Republic...one man's virus is another man's weapon.

You briefly mention that Tenebrous' Twi'lek Sith Master created ?a rend in the Force,? and that the two of them tried to create a virus that specifically targeted the Jedi. Were those always intended to be incidents mentioned in passing, or did you ever want to expand on those events?

The rend in the Force, that idea that an event occurred two-hundred years before the events of The Phantom Menace?I don't know where I got that. I either created it or I read some passing reference to the fact that the Jedi Order had become very clearly aware of the reemergence of the Dark Side two hundred years earlier. I've always played with that, and I think I mentioned it earlier, maybe in Labyrinth of Evil or in Dark Lord. The timing worked out for it to be Tenebrous' master who opened that rend. I think there's a cool story there. I haven't really given it a lot of thought, and I left a lot of little openings in the Plagueis book for possible stories that could be set in those earlier decades or centuries.
Click to expand...

http://theforce.net/latestnews/story/Interview_Plagueis_Author_James_Luceno_142844.asp
Click to expand...

This was a very informative interview. I love the general idea of "We are all the Republic," and I'm ready to have my Star Wars heart filled with joy, hope, and adventure.

Last edited: Dec 15, 2020

Rivenblade, Dec 15, 2020

#137

brodiew likes this.
Xander Vos Jedi Master

Registered:

Aug 3, 2013

Todd the Jedi said: ↑

There's a free sampler that has it.

In case you can't get that, here it is-

Click to expand...

Hooray! The return of a proper timeline! Still could be better, but getting there.

Last edited: Dec 15, 2020

Xander Vos, Dec 15, 2020

#138

Force Smuggler and QuinlanSolo like this.
Dawud786 Chosen One

Registered:

Dec 28, 2006

That seems so sparse after looking at the one inside Revan. Hahaha

IG: @jedisufism

Dawud786, Dec 16, 2020

#139

Blackhole E Snoke and AusStig like this.
IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master

Registered:

Aug 5, 2008

I didn’t realize I was sent a digital press copy in the mail a few weeks ago so I didn’t have a review on hand, but about halfway through now: it’s awesome. I think you’ll all love it. Very powerful and uplifting in the same way Golden Age/Christopher Reeve Superman Is supposed to inspire others, but in the context of Star Wars.

IG_2000, Dec 17, 2020

#140

brodiew, Jedi Ben, darthcaedus1138 and 3 others like this.
PimpBacca Jedi Master

Registered:

Oct 4, 2015

Not sure if this has been shared yet.

PimpBacca, Dec 22, 2020

#141
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

!? SpeedyHen has just put my copy in the post!

Not sure when it'll get to me, hopefully between Xmas and New Year.

Jedi Ben, Dec 23, 2020

#142
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999
Ok, let's start this thread really running, as I just finished it.

1999 - The New Jedi Order. Hmm, sounds cool, maybe this'll be an epic tale of the New Republic and the Jedi against a new enemy. Nope.

2015 - The Force Awakens. Maybe this time? Nope, the Jedi were killed off. Again.

2020 - The High Republic. Third time's the charm? Yes, yes it is.

So, yeah, this is the epic SW story I've been wanting for years and it proves that a number of "rules" aren't always so:

Yes, you can have a load of redshirt characters that you end up caring for far more than you expect - before they still get offed.

Yes, you can have a significant challenge to your heroes while they have the greater advantage.

Yes, you can have intelligence heroes and villains.

The first part of the book uses a structure of a ticking down clock and different character narratives and then flips between them, it is a very effective technique. While the second and third parts retain it, it's never more effective than at the start.

This book does seed both the younger and YA books by brief mentions at the end. It's smartly done, if you don't look for it you might not even notice it, which may be the point. If this how it's connected-but-all-optional aspect is going to work, they might pull it off. Another unknown aspect - and it's going to stay that way for a good while - is whether the TV show will see audience crossover.

The Republic and Jedi? Both are pretty damn awesome here. Even Senator Noor is a far, far cry from NJO's cast of bastard, suicidally self-interested politicians. Noor is certainly on edge and frustrated by the situation, but can also see the big picture.

The Nihil? Hmm, I'm really not sure how long these guys are going to last. They do feel more like a cat's paw adversary, with the cat clearly being Manchion Ro. I think there is a deliberate hint woven through this book that there's more to be found out, but that's no bad thing either. I do quite like a disunited, fractious bunch of villains.

The opening section is the book's strongest card - the others are good, but the first is great and operates on another level. Part of that is that Soule knows he has to set out what is different about this era, what is special about it, why we should want to read about it and it does that brilliantly. 2020 has been a bastard of a year, the last few years have also been bastards and Soule knows that the way to sell this new era isn't by the expected route of a dark and terrible tragedy. There is tragedy here, there are sad ends, but there is also a crap ton of inspiration and positivity here too and you may well be surprised by how you respond to that.

Onto aesthetics. I'm certain they've done or used a new font for the High Republic, it looks that little bit different to the eye. The cover works very well with the title design and the interiors follow it. This is a very good looking volume and you will not regret buying a physical copy.

Fine, you want a TL: DR version? The book's #*%£$~! awesome, go read it.
Last edited: Dec 29, 2020

Jedi Ben, Dec 29, 2020

#143

ZV-83, Chrissonofpear2, Supreme Leader Woke and 7 others like this.
IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master

Registered:

Aug 5, 2008

I think the first half is stronger than the second half, and perhaps there were too many characters introduced that we do not spend enough time with. Lots of things happen “off page” or are just dropped and moved on from too quickly.

Those are my complaints. But overall, the book is very entertaining, feels like Star Wars, and is a good set up for this era.

IG_2000, Dec 29, 2020

#144

UnshavenWookie14, Jedi Ben and AusStig like this.
FiveFireRings Jedi Master

Registered:

Nov 26, 2017
Jedi Ben said: ↑

Ok, let's start this thread really running, as I just finished it.

1999 - The New Jedi Order. Hmm, sounds cool, maybe this'll be an epic tale of the New Republic and the Jedi against a new enemy. Nope.

2015 - The Force Awakens. Maybe this time? Nope, the Jedi were killed off. Again.

2020 - The High Republic. Third time's the charm? Yes, yes it is.

So, yeah, this is the epic SW story I've been wanting for years and it proves that a number of "rules" aren't always so:

Yes, you can have a load of redshirt characters that you end up caring for far more than you expect - before they still get offed.

Yes, you can have a significant challenge to your heroes while they have the greater advantage.

Yes, you can have intelligence heroes and villains.

The first part of the book uses a structure of a ticking down clock and different character narratives and then flips between them, it is a very effective technique. While the second and third parts retain it, it's never more effective than at the start.

This book does seed both the younger and YA books by brief mentions at the end. It's smartly done, if you don't look for it you might not even notice it, which may be the point. If this how it's connected-but-all-optional aspect is going to work, they might pull it off. Another unknown aspect - and it's going to stay that way for a good while - is whether the TV show will see audience crossover.

The Republic and Jedi? Both are pretty damn awesome here. Even Senator Noor is a far, far cry from NJO's cast of bastard, suicidally self-interested politicians. Noor is certainly on edge and frustrated by the situation, but can also see the big picture.

The Nihil? Hmm, I'm really not sure how long these guys are going to last. They do feel more like a cat's paw adversary, with the cat clearly being Manchion Ro. I think there is a deliberate hint woven through this book that there's more to be found out, but that's no bad thing either. I do quite like a disunited, fractious bunch of villains.

The opening section is the book's strongest card - the others are good, but the first is great and operates on another level. Part of that is that Soule knows he has to set out what is different about this era, what is special about it, why we should want to read about it and it does that brilliantly. 2020 has been a bastard of a year, the last few years have also been bastards and Soule knows that the way to sell this new era isn't by the expected route of a dark and terrible tragedy. There is tragedy here, there are sad ends, but there is also a crap ton of inspiration and positivity here too and you may well be surprised by how you respond to that.

Onto aesthetics. I'm certain they've done or used a new font for the High Republic, it looks that little bit different to the eye. The cover works very well with the title design and the interiors follow it. This is a very good looking volume and you will not regret buying a physical copy.

Fine, you want a TL: DR version? The book's #*%£$~! awesome, go read it.
Click to expand...

I've been noticing that that thread of an actual positive depiction of the Republic and the Jedi and even an inspirationally united galactic population has gotten a lot of mentions in the more recent press on the series. I don't think I've ever even let myself take on board how that would work (isn't there ALWAYS something sinister lurking in the corners?) and I've started to really resonate with the idea... actual positive and uplifting Star Wars, even where the institutions are concerned? That suddenly has great appeal. So... yeah, I just ordered the first three books and I'm really looking forward to them now.
FiveFireRings, Dec 29, 2020

#145

Chrissonofpear2 and Jedi Ben like this.
IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master

Registered:

Aug 5, 2008
FiveFireRings said: ↑

Jedi Ben said: ↑

Ok, let's start this thread really running, as I just finished it.

1999 - The New Jedi Order. Hmm, sounds cool, maybe this'll be an epic tale of the New Republic and the Jedi against a new enemy. Nope.

2015 - The Force Awakens. Maybe this time? Nope, the Jedi were killed off. Again.

2020 - The High Republic. Third time's the charm? Yes, yes it is.

So, yeah, this is the epic SW story I've been wanting for years and it proves that a number of "rules" aren't always so:

Yes, you can have a load of redshirt characters that you end up caring for far more than you expect - before they still get offed.

Yes, you can have a significant challenge to your heroes while they have the greater advantage.

Yes, you can have intelligence heroes and villains.

The first part of the book uses a structure of a ticking down clock and different character narratives and then flips between them, it is a very effective technique. While the second and third parts retain it, it's never more effective than at the start.

This book does seed both the younger and YA books by brief mentions at the end. It's smartly done, if you don't look for it you might not even notice it, which may be the point. If this how it's connected-but-all-optional aspect is going to work, they might pull it off. Another unknown aspect - and it's going to stay that way for a good while - is whether the TV show will see audience crossover.

The Republic and Jedi? Both are pretty damn awesome here. Even Senator Noor is a far, far cry from NJO's cast of bastard, suicidally self-interested politicians. Noor is certainly on edge and frustrated by the situation, but can also see the big picture.

The Nihil? Hmm, I'm really not sure how long these guys are going to last. They do feel more like a cat's paw adversary, with the cat clearly being Manchion Ro. I think there is a deliberate hint woven through this book that there's more to be found out, but that's no bad thing either. I do quite like a disunited, fractious bunch of villains.

The opening section is the book's strongest card - the others are good, but the first is great and operates on another level. Part of that is that Soule knows he has to set out what is different about this era, what is special about it, why we should want to read about it and it does that brilliantly. 2020 has been a bastard of a year, the last few years have also been bastards and Soule knows that the way to sell this new era isn't by the expected route of a dark and terrible tragedy. There is tragedy here, there are sad ends, but there is also a crap ton of inspiration and positivity here too and you may well be surprised by how you respond to that.

Onto aesthetics. I'm certain they've done or used a new font for the High Republic, it looks that little bit different to the eye. The cover works very well with the title design and the interiors follow it. This is a very good looking volume and you will not regret buying a physical copy.

Fine, you want a TL: DR version? The book's #*%£$~! awesome, go read it.
Click to expand...

I've been noticing that that thread of an actual positive depiction of the Republic and the Jedi and even an inspirationally united galactic population has gotten a lot of mentions in the more recent press on the series. I don't think I've ever even let myself take on board how that would work (isn't there ALWAYS something sinister lurking in the corners?) and I've started to really resonate with the idea... actual positive and uplifting Star Wars, even where the institutions are concerned? That suddenly has great appeal. So... yeah, I just ordered the first three books and I'm really looking forward to them now.
Click to expand...

who said there isn’t?
IG_2000, Dec 29, 2020

#146

Daneira and Jedi Ben like this.
Bly Jedi Grand Master

Registered:

Mar 28, 2005
Jedi Ben said: ↑

1999 - The New Jedi Order. Hmm, sounds cool, maybe this'll be an epic tale of the New Republic and the Jedi against a new enemy. Nope.

Click to expand...

Wasn't this literally what the NJO turned out to be?

Jedi Ben said: ↑

So, yeah, this is the epic SW story I've been wanting for years and it proves that a number of "rules" aren't always so:

Yes, you can have a load of redshirt characters that you end up caring for far more than you expect - before they still get offed.

Yes, you can have a significant challenge to your heroes while they have the greater advantage.

Yes, you can have intelligence heroes and villains.

Click to expand...

...and didn't we already learn this by way of Allston's X-Wing novels?
Bly, Dec 29, 2020

#147

Blackhole E Snoke, Chrissonofpear2 and Ghost like this.
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

NJO, for me, was a shadow of what it could have been, politicians with narrow self interest to the point of suicide, indulged villains, paralysed Jedi - vast, vast potential that it tapped 10-20% of and then mostly abandoned. What the Legacy comics did with concepts proved it, the Vong coming to understand the idea of atonement, gaining Jedi backing for their offer, with the Sith taking advantage of it and a vengeful galaxy - that worked well.

Allston's X-Wing books are over 20 years old, plus there's no rule that says just because someone did X at A, that someone else can't do a riff on X at E.

Jedi Ben, Dec 30, 2020

#148

Resistance_Man likes this.
Jid123Sheeve Guest

Just purchased a audible to get High Republic

Jedi Ben said: ↑

NJO, for me, was a shadow of what it could have been, politicians with narrow self interest to the point of suicide, indulged villains, paralysed Jedi - vast, vast potential that it tapped 10-20% of and then mostly abandoned. What the Legacy comics did with concepts proved it, the Vong coming to understand the idea of atonement, gaining Jedi backing for their offer, with the Sith taking advantage of it and a vengeful galaxy - that worked well.

Allston's X-Wing books are over 20 years old, plus there's no rule that says just because someone did X at A, that someone else can't do a riff on X at E.
Click to expand...

Honestly once the Bantam Era ended the Post Endor era just goes downhill for me...and even then I only like one thing of Bantam Era books at that's the Thrawn Trilogy.

Jid123Sheeve, Jan 4, 2021

#149
Huncrweo Jedi Knight

Registered:

Oct 3, 2020

Do we know how long it's going to be before Light of the Jedi drops? I've got it pre-ordered on Audible so I'm just waiting now.

Huncrweo, Jan 4, 2021

#150

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