Three Questions with Star Wars Author John Jackson Miller
John Jackson Miller was part of a group of Star Wars authors who appeared at C2E2 2016, a comic book and pop culture convention.
After he participated in the show’s Star Wars Books panel, I asked him these 3 questions.
(And when you’re done, check out our Star Wars Book Panel Recap to read more from John.)
If you could have any Star Wars in-universe job, what would you choose to be?
There was once a used-starship dealer in the old Marvel comics (a fellow by the name of Jorman Thoad, which I’m surprised I remember). I can only imagine the variety that such a job would involve. “Here’s an Advanced X1 Sienar Systems TIE fighter with spiffy bent wings. Only one owner, who only used it to fly around the trenches of some space station. There might be a dent or two.”
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer (in our universe)?
I started writing my own comics and stories at age six — and while I never wrote Star Wars fan fiction, I certainly created a lot of my own space universes as a kid that owed plenty to the Galaxy Far Far Away.
As a matter of fact, I remember one of those comics stories I created included the main character visiting a used-spaceship lot — absolutely inspired by the just-mentioned scene from the comics I read as a kid. So Star Wars definitely energized my imagination. Hitting “send” after writing my first official story for the license was a great moment for me.
When it comes to telling stories in the Star Wars galaxy, what’s your favorite part?
The scope of it really is appealing to me — it’s a world that allows for incredibly large stories and extremely personal ones. As such you can take something like the Emperor’s takeover of the Republic and scale it both up and down, showing both how it impacted society in general, and also how it affects the individuals whose actions are going to form the heart of your stories. I’ve yet to look at any part of the Star Wars universe or timeline and not find interesting angles to pursue. That’s part of why it’s such a fun place to work!
John Jackson Miller is the author of several Star Wars books and comics including A New Dawn, Kenobi, and Knight Errant. He’s also written in the worlds of Mass Effect, Star Trek, Iron Man, Indiana Jones, and Halo. Be sure to check out his original novel, Overdraft: The Orion Offensive. You can find out more about John Jackson Miller and his work on his website www.farawaypress.com or by following him on Twitter @jjmfaraway.
Kay is FANgirl's resident geek fashion expert and co-host of the Hyperspace Theories podcast. She reviews books and movies for the site with a heart for storytelling and a mind that likes to analyze. Kay's been a guest on various podcasts sharing her love and knowledge of storytelling, film-making, fashion, and of course, Star Wars.
Most days are filled with her work as a creative services professional - designing websites & branding, photographing, voice acting, editing, and more. Kay spends the little bit of free time she has reading, costuming, and, of course, making pew pew noises. She would pick up more jobs and hobbies if she was a Time Lord.
- Review: Doctor Aphra, An Audiobook Original (Star Wars) - July 26, 2020
- Review: Bonds of Brass by Emily Skrutskie - April 7, 2020
- Review: The Art of The Rise of Skywalker - March 31, 2020
