THE CLONE WARS: STORIES OF LIGHT AND DARK is out today!

Today is the book birthday for THE CLONE WARS: STORIES OF LIGHT AND DARK, and I'm extremely excited to be part of this anthology and a part of Star Wars! I fell in love with Star Wars a long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away), and it's been a major influence on all of my books.

Very thrilled to be in this anthology with Lou Anders, Tom Angleberger, Preeti Chhibber, E. Anne Convery, Zoraida Cordova, Jason Fry, Yoon Ha Lee, Rebecca Roanhorse, Anne Ursu, and Greg Van Eekhout, edited by Jen Heddle!

Each story is a retelling of a Clone Wars episode from a different character's point-of-view.

My story ("Almost a Jedi") centers on Ahsoka Tano, as seen through the eyes of Jedi youngling Katooni. I loved seeing the Star Wars universe through the eyes of a girl who desperately wants her first lightsaber -- because I was once a little girl who wanted a real lightsaber.

I was too young to see the first Star Wars movie in a movie theater, but my parents taped it off TV. Our warped recording alternated between black-and-white and color every few scenes, but I didn't care. I watched that VHS tape over and over until it failed.

Years later, I remember going to the movies with my husband purely to see the trailer to the long-awaited Episode I. Pretty sure I cried from over-excitement when the Lucasfilm logo appeared. I know I cried during Episode VII when that lightsaber landed in Rey's hand.

Star Wars shaped my sense of what Story is -- Story-with-a-capital-S. You can see its influence in all of my books. I'm always trying to capture that same sense of adventure, humor, and hope in my own writing.

So I am enormously thrilled to have had the chance to retell an episode of the very awesome Clone Wars series. Thank you to Jen Heddle, Disney Lucasfilm, and Star Wars for the extraordinarily fun writing experience!

Clone Wars Anthology Cover Reveal!

Cover reveal!!! So excited to be part of this Star Wars anthology!

STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS -- STORIES OF LIGHT AND DARK comes out on August 25th and features eleven stories retelling the best episodes from The Clone Wars, each story told by a different author and each focused on a different character.  My character is the awesome Ahsoka Tano, and I wrote her story from the point-of-view of Jedi youngling Katooni.

Loved writing this so much!  Also loved the excuse to rewatch the series!

http://www.theforce.net/v3-story/frontFirst_Look_At_Star_Wars_The_Clone_Wars_%E2%80%93_Stories_Of_Light_and_Dark_186760.asp

Star Wars Anthology!

So, I've got some news..... As announced yesterday at NY Comic Con, I'm writing a short story for this STAR WARS anthology! So excited!!!

Royal Wedding

I think I need to watch the royal wedding tomorrow. Really, I hadn't paid any attention to the hype and hoopla and hullabaloo surrounding the event until this morning, when my brain made this startling connection:

Kate = Bride = Princess = The Princess Bride!!!

And as everyone knows, The Princess Bride is the best movie ever. (Well, with the obvious exception of Star Wars, which also has a princess. But now that her planet's been blown to bits, can she really still be regarded as a princess? What's she the princess of? It's a gray area, certainly. But I digress...)

And as everyone knows, the wedding scene from The Princess Bride is the best wedding scene ever. So my brain expects that Kate and William's wedding will be pretty much like this...



Which would be AWESOME!!! Though, perhaps unlikely. So congrats to Kate and William! May you have a lovely wedding tomorrow and a long and happy mawage.

And by the way, I totally want this t-shirt:

Jedi Fireworks

Only thing I don't like about Return of the Jedi: the fireworks.

In a galaxy far, far away, why would the fireworks look like 1990s Earth fireworks? Fireworks technology changes. Also, why does everyone have fireworks displays at the ready? It was a surprise attack by the Rebels (or it was supposed to be). Have they been keeping the fireworks prepared for the last few decades? Seems a bit optimistic of them. Like keeping confetti in your pocket for years in case you find yourself in the middle of an unexpected surprise party.

Aside from that... BEST MOVIES EVER.

I hear a single line of dialogue from Star Wars, and I feel instantly comforted, as if I've bitten into a chocolate chip cookie or sunk into a bed with a dozen pillows. The first movie in particular (A New Hope, of course, NOT Phantom Menace) is, for me, the ultimate in storytelling and the obvious answer to "What's your favorite movie?"

I also like The Princess Bride, The Dark Crystal, and Labyrinth. But really, Star Wars tops them all. And for the record, Han MUST shoot first.

The trilogy was on TV last night as I was working on polishing my Top Sekrit Project. I'm at the scrutinize-every-sentence-for-clarity-and-poetry stage, which is one of my favorite stages because I love playing with language. Only thing I don't like about this stage is that I means I'll be done soon.

I used to look forward to finishing a novel, thinking there would be some great sense of accomplishment. Or a parade. Or at least a few elephants in fancy hula outfits. But after writing several novels, I now know that I feel a bit bereft after I finish. I miss my characters. I miss my world. I miss writing the novel that I've been immersed in. So I've stopped looking forward to finishing and have just been enjoying being immersed in the novel.

I think there's some deep life lesson in this: enjoy the ride or it's all about the journey or keep the fireworks ready or whatever.

Star Wars

Best fairy tale of all time is Star Wars.

IMHO, it's also the best movie of all time. (Whenever anyone asks me what my favorite movie is, my response is always, "You mean, besides Star Wars?")

From "How I Met Your Mother":

Ted: (about Star Wars) It's just a movie.
(121 minutes of awesomeness later)
Ted: Okay, if Stella doesn't like this movie I can't marry her.
Marshall: No, you can't.
Ted: Wanna watch it again?
Marshall: Yes, I do.

It has all the trappings of science fiction (space ships, robots, blasters...), but at its heart it's a classic fantasy that taps into Joseph Campbell's monomyth and features standard fairy tale themes and archetypes: Luke as the young "simpleton" hero, Leia as damsel-in-distress, Obi-wan as wise man, Darth Vadar as the evil parent figure... yada yada.

Just type "Star Wars as myth" into Google, and you'll see books, documentaries, and about a zillion homework assignments discussing this.

Anyway, all of this is purely an excuse to share with you guys two awesome Star Wars-related video clips that I found online:





Just had to share. :)