Steve Perry

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Steve Perry

Steve Perry is an author best known for writing theShadows of the Empire novel. He has also co-written several works withMichael Reaves.

Biography[]

Steve Perry was introduced to science fiction when he was around twelve years old. In his childhood he had his first computer that was suitcase-sized and could do simple calculations; in retrospect, considering that such devices became much smaller in the later years made him feel like "living here in the future."^[2]

In his late twenties, Perry was based inLouisiana and worked as a physician's assistant, although he was "stricken with the writing bug." He decisively moved to the Northwest and began a writing career, focusing on space and fantasy tales.^[2]

While watchingStar Wars and seeing thelightsabers, he felt it was a "samurai movie" with fantasy and adventure elements.^[2]

Perry had written several novelizations of movies including one of the1994 movieThe Mask. As it was a hurried work with little money and no royalties, he did it as a favor toBantam Spectra senior editorTom Dupree. To return the favor, Dupree offered him to take a crack at aStar Wars book.^[2]

"I never thought about doing aStar Wars novel before, because I thought they'd be real hard to get and you'd have to know a whole bunch about the universe to write one," he says. "But Tom said, 'here's the deal, it's going to take place betweenEmpire andReturn of the Jedi, and no one else has gotten to play in there.' I thought that was terrific, because I like the characters. It would be fun to do. I wouldn't have to know all the stuff that happened afterJedi. At this point,Darth and theEmperor are still alive. And I've got the usual gang, everyone exceptHan."

The job would be formidable, because the Shadows of the Empire project would cross over with manyLucasfilm licensees. Perry was told this right away. "Before I started working on the novel, I went toSkywalker Ranch," he says. "It was delightful, it's an amazing place. Someone said to me it looks like a giant Methodist Youth Camp, and it does. It's like a bunch of Victorian buildings in the middle of nowhere." This November 1994 meeting laid the groundwork for the entire Lucasfilm Shadows publishing plan. "It was a lot of fun," Perry recalls. "I didn't meetGeorge Lucas, but I did meet with the people who head up Lucasfilm Publishing.Howard Roffman,Lucy Wilson,Allan Kausch, andSue Rostoni. Several of the artists were there. About 12 or 15 of us sat around a big conference table and talked about what we wanted to see in this book. They had come up with a one-page springboard. Just a general idea, some character names, and a feel for what they wanted to do."

Preparing for the project, Perry marveled when he was e-mailed a 112-page compendium of theStar Wars planets.^[2]

Works[]

Bibliography[]

Sources[]

• "From the President of the Star Wars Fan Club: The Force Is Back!" —Star Wars Insider 24
• "Around the Galaxy" —Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 2
• "Into the Shadows: A Profile of Author Steve Perry" —Star Wars Insider 29
• "Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire" —Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 7
• The Secrets of Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire
• Shadows of the Empire Planets Guide
• Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire Limited Collector's Edition
• "Jawa's Corner" —Star Wars Insider 96
• "Launchpad" —Star Wars Insider 231

Notes and references[]

External links[]

• Official website (backup link)
• Steve Perry onWikipedia
• Steve Perry at theInternet Movie Database
• Steve Perry (author) byDennis Pellegrom onStar Wars Interviews (March,2010)(original page now obsolete)