Timothy Zahn is desperately needed to do Post-FOTJ novels

Padawan Joined: 10 Nov 2008 Posts: 97 Location: CANADA

I know Tim Zahn is doing Choices of One or maybe he's finshed with it but when FOTJ ends I think Zahn and his writing style is so desperately needed for the current era and possible post-FOTJ era. Zahn told the best SW stories post-Jedi with his Thrawn Trilogy and Hand of Thrawn duology with awesome space batttles,alien worlds and the continuing saga of the Big 3 and co.

But I think that Zahn should write a hardcover trilogy set 5 or 10 years after FOTJ with an adult Ben Skywalker as the lead hero having an adventure in the Unknown Regions leading a fleet and/or a legion of Jedi against a new threat there and teaming up with a clone of a certain Grand Admiral or how about a trilogy or standalone hardcover about Han,Leia and Allana having an advenure in the UR in the Falcon taking on alien fleets. Or even how about Zahn doing a novel about a second Outbound Flight in the Legacy era that sucseeds in colonizing the UR and reaching another galaxy and finding new allies and worlds and new enemies or even the Empire of the Hand returning to face a new UR threat and of course I want Zahn to do that Skywalker family adventure he always wanted to with Luke,Mara and Ben pre-LOTF.

I think Allston and Denning are doing great with the current series and current era but once FOTJ ends and Del Rey is going back to standalones and duologies and trilogies I think a Tim Zahn hardcover novel or hardcover trilogy set post-FOTJ with Ben Skywalker and/or the Big 3 is a BIG must for 2013 and/or when FOTJ ends next spring.

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Master Joined: 29 Feb 2008 Posts: 745 Location: Denver

Man I have a hard time voting on this one, I think Zahn did an excellent job with Heir to the Empire. I loved how he wrote Luke in that series. He helped develop Mara as a character. But his best character developments, in my opinion, was not with Luke but with Mara and Thrawn. I think he could do well with Ben but I am not sure he is the one guy I would goto. Stackpole comes to mind - his work with Corran Horn is some of my favorite.

I would not turn down a Zahn written story centering on Ben, I think its great idea.

I think Zahn could do a good job in the Legacy era.
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Master Joined: 15 Apr 2008 Posts: 4406 Location: Korriban

Zahn makes me nervous because he literally had one trick, and that was Thrawn stories with Mara in the good guy/cool crazy woman role and Talon Karrde in a supporting role. He knows HIS characters, and writes them best. But Mara is dead, Karrde is all but forgotten, and Thrawn shouldn't be brought back as that would seem cheesy. I'd be afraid of him with a different set...
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In my opinion, Zahn on his worst day is better than current stories sound like so I welcome any change in author/direction. This reminds me of the "lost optimism" thread and if it sounds worth my time reading, I'll check it out no matter what era, authors, and characters, but it's got to be one good story for me to jump on. So I'll vote for Zahn to come on and tell a story post-FotJ but some characters currently disappoint me and I don't think I'll be able to be as forgiving as some

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Master Joined: 22 Dec 2010 Posts: 1796 Location: Carcosa

Padawan Joined: 10 Nov 2008 Posts: 97 Location: CANADA

If Zahn does a Post-FOTJ novel with the Big Three and Ben Skywalker,Jaina and Allana Solo and let's not forget Jag Fel. I hope it will it hae a cover like the Bantam SW novels such as Zahn's Thrawn trilogy and Hand of Thrawn dulogy with beautiful artwork of the faces of the Big 3 and the Millennium Falcon and X-Wing and TIE Fighters soaring through a starfield shooting lasers at each other. Recent SW books such as the Legacy of the Force series with the exception of Revealtion haven't had that anymore. I miss that. I hope that if Del Rey will go back to standalone hardcovers,duologies and trilogies they will feature covers with starships flying through space and engaging in dogfights.

I really hope Zahn will do the adventures of an adult Ben Skywalker as a Jedi Master taking on a padawan(Allana perhaps?) and have adventures in the Unknown Regions meeting the Thrawn clone or leading a fleet against a new threat in the Unknown Regions or Wild Space or even the Coporate Sector.

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I was talking with folks on Twitter this evening, and we had an idea for a new, super fun Zahn book that isn't so dang serious. Club Jade has an article on our idea:

http://clubjade.net/?p=25889

Would anyone else go for this?

I presume you lot meant it to be placed when Mara and Lando went looking for Karrde's old pirate boss? In which case, I'm a little aprehensive. There'd not be much story, or conclusion, beyond, 'hey! We found him! Now give me back my capes, Mara!'
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It would be placed when Lando and Mara have a romantic interest. What's the purpose/goal? A fun, one-shot adventure story with no end of the world implications.

Master Joined: 22 Dec 2010 Posts: 1796 Location: Carcosa

I thought Zahn's revisionism established that Lando and Mara never had a romantic interest, and it was their "cover" while they were looking for Car'das? At least, that's what Mara tells Luke when he calls her out on her lack of commitment to Lando when she was lecturing him.

Particularly to retcon scene in Children of the Jedi in which Leia calls Mara on holonet, and Mara is wearing one of Lando's shirts, with an obvious implication.

It would continue to be their cover, sure. Nobody wants this to be a romantic novel anyway.

Padawan Joined: 10 Nov 2008 Posts: 97 Location: CANADA

A Lando and Mara novel where they look for Car'das would be interesting if maybe you added in Han and Chewie and the Falcon in on the search for Car'das. Maybe Han and Chewie could show up perhaps in the middle of the book after the events of Children of the Jedi in the Falcon to team up with Lando and Mara to find Car'das while battling the last remnants of the Empire.

By the way I think another awesome Post-FOTJ novel by Zahn would be to have Han,Leia and Allana in the Falcon have an adventure in the Unknown Regions. It would be awesome to see the Falcon soar through the UR and take on new alien fleets.
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I don't know. I wouldn't mind seeing Zahn go in a different direction.
_________________

Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter east.

Master Joined: 22 Mar 2008 Posts: 599

After the mess of recent series by other authors, Zahn writing a novel set in post-FotJ could hardly hurt, although would he want to do such thing anymore now that Mara has died?

If he would, less of the wrecking ball we have seen lately, more of the glorification of Ben Skywalker (because he is Mara Jade's boy Wink

), but perhaps also more emotional depth and true sense of loss felt by the characters for the deaths we have witnessed, resurfacing of the few surviving supporting characters Zahn created and perhaps Zahn could come up with something useful for Han&Leia to do? Nobody else seems to be able to do so.

I think it would be good for Zahn too. I have zero expectations for Choices of One after the bland, but ok Allegiance. Stromtroopers ain't his thing.