Jude Watson is currently the most prolific author in the prequel-era of the Star Wars timeline having written such books as the Darth Maul journal, the Queen Amidala journal and the Jedi Apprentice series. While her works have been published as young reader fiction, the stories have become remarkably appealing to young and older readers alike. Watson recently spoke with starwars.com about her writing in a galaxy far, far away.
Tell me a bit about your writing career outside of your Star Wars works.
How would you describe the Jedi Apprentice series to someone who hasn't read them?
They take place about ten years before The Phantom Menace and focus on the apprenticeship of thirteen-year-old Obi-Wan Kenobi, who studies under Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn. What the series is really about is how a boy learns wisdom and strength from a mentor. But the books are just as much about the growth of Qui-Gon, as Obi-Wan pushes him in directions he sometimes does not wish to go.
How did you come to be involved with LucasBooks and the Jedi Apprentice series?
I had worked with a wonderful editor named Jane Mason in New York. When she moved to California and began to work for LucasBooks, she tapped me for the Princess Leia journal. That was my start.
The first book was released before the release of The Phantom Menace in theaters. What Episode I resources and references were made available to you to base your writing on?
Basically, all I had was the top-secret script, which sometimes deviated from the completed film. Any continuity problems were addressed by the Lucas editors. I also researched as much as I could on the Web. A Guide to the Star Wars Universe, by Bill Slavicsek, is my bible.
Once the initial setup was decided on, I was given tremendous freedom. I could take Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon to any planet and get them involved in anything I wanted. David Levithan, my way-too-smart editor at Scholastic, came up with the original concept for the series. He is truly a collaborator and incredibly fun to work with. We bounce plot ideas for the books off each other constantly. The Lucas editors [Jane Mason and Sarah Hines Stephens] are also incredibly cool -- not only do they know the Star Wars universe inside and out, they really urge writers to bring their own ideas to the table.
Your Star Wars books have been as popular with "adults" as with "young readers", a rare compliment. Why do you think older readers have responded so positively?
I don't consciously have an age level in mind when I write these books. The fact that Obi-Wan is thirteen years old and is one of its principal narrators gives it a natural framework for a young readers book. But Qui-Gon's perspective is equally important, and I think that's one area where an older reader can become engaged. Qui-Gon's story is about a man who has to learn to take responsibility for another life. His struggles with this concept can be understood on an adult level. You can read subtext into it -- it's about mentoring, but it's also about parenthood, about love, about deep friendship -- any relationship in which you find yourself bound to another person. Your life becomes entwined with theirs, and what they do affects you. You open yourself up to both joy and loss.
We very deliberately set out to give Obi-Wan a major crisis in his life. That crisis is when he leaves the Jedi. It's a formative experience for him, and it affects Qui-Gon deeply. It also deepens their connection. In Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon's relationship, there are misunderstandings, reversals, jokes, betrayals, and above all, forgiveness. It isn't an easy forgiveness, either. It's a mature forgiveness, one that comes with struggle and over time. I know I drove some readers crazy because Qui-Gon took so long to take Obi-Wan back. I didn't do it to be manipulative, but because it seemed true for the character. Qui-Gon is a very measured guy.
