Hello and welcome back! April has already been WILD, and there’s more to come. Let’s recap what's been going on since I last saw you.
I flew across the pond for Star Wars Celebration Europe and I don’t even know how to describe the feeling. First of all, it’s always just a great time — seeing all the cosplays and exhibits and the thrill of each reveal, the cool toys, the joyful gathering of so many people excited about one big amazing galaxy far far away. Truly my favorite con. Beyond that, we were there to present about what’s ahead for The High Republic as we close out Phase II and gear up for Phase III. Inside myself, I really try to go into big events like this ready for it to be whatever it is. Expectations are, as Britt and I talk about in one of the interviews down below, one of the hardest things to manage as a writer. You end up having to codify You Never Know into your whole approach because you really never know, and the range of outcomes is so damn vast.
Our panel was in one of the main halls, capacity 3,500 and even empty, it was a sight to behold. I peeked out as people were filing in and even a few dozen folks were tiny against the hugeness of that place.
Then the guy warming up the crowd wound down his routine and they lined us up backstage, and we stood in the darkness, thrilled to even be there, excited about all the good reveals we had to drop, wondering wondering and then our names were blasting out over the speakers and it’s that wild dozen steps between curtain and stage where you’re just praying not to trip and eat floor in front of everyone, and then up onto the riser and boom — I held up one hand and gazed out past the bright lights into the darkness and it was full, full, as far as the eye could see, smiling faces stretching all the way to the back. Man! What a feeling! I turned to Cav, whispered we did it again! and then just sat back and enjoyed the panel.
So that went amazing, and the enthusiasm, the outpouring of joy and love and appreciation from the crowd really was what made this experience what it was. I remember being a baby Star Wars writer and thinking how absolutely extraordinary it was that fans would make stuff of their favorite characters — someone gifted Charles Soule a hand crafted Mask of Momin (not to be confused, like I just did, with Mask of Moomin, which brings very different results) — and I was like cooooooool maybe one day… Did not expect that day to arrive so soon! I said this last year, I say it a lot, but seeing the work, love, dedication, time, and creativity people put into cosplays is one of the most moving things I’ve experienced as a writer. This Celebration there were even more High Republic cosplayers, the meet up was incredible, and people showered us with gifts, art, a lightsaber hilt, more art, zines…it all just took my breath away in the best way. As my High Republic teammate Cav perfectly put it: “they aren’t our characters anymore. They belong to all of us; the writers, the artists, the actors, and the fans. We are all the Republic.”
Here’s my chaotic Jedi/pirate daughter Sav Malagan cosplayed by @tey_sirrek on Twitter!
One of my favorite parts of Celebration was announcing the project I’m working on with my good friend Alyssa Wong. The standing ovation, the cheering, the tears from the audience—I couldn’t be more proud of them for the work they’ve done for Luminous (and of course I’m a huge fan of their writing on Aphra and Deadpool, and so much more!). Our Middle Grade novel, Escape From Valo, will be part of the kick off for the next wave of THR sometime next year and it’s an incredibly wizard book.
And of course we revealed that our own Vernestra Rwoh will be appearing in Leslye Headland’s upcoming Star Wars show The Acolyte. I cannot stop thinking about that Acolyte trailer! The show is something very new for Star Wars, and to have a character that I’ve had the pleasure to write about in the past appear in it—there’s no words. Talking to Leslye was so inspiring. She really is such a talented writer who has an unconditional love for Star Wars. She’s also a High Republic stan (wild).
A Few Non-Celebration Announcements!
Brittany and I teamed up for two different interviews this month to promote our upcoming YA novels! We had so much fun chatting about writing that we went a little overboard with our Publisher’s Weekly interview and it had to be cut down quite a bit! So stay tuned and check your inboxes for the extended cut of our interview! Head over to The Gambit to check out our other interview where we talk about writing the books we didn’t get to see as kids (featuring a very young picture of me).
Brittany’s book That Self-Same Metal comes out THIS WEEK so this is your last chance to get your pre-order in! You don’t want to miss this one. I can’t say enough how phenomenal this book is. Besides being a rip-roaring swashbuckling adventure, it’s Shakespearean, it’s Black, it’s queer, it’s bonkers, it’s fully alive in all the best ways and absolutely unapologetic the way a great book should be. Get it. I can’t stop thinking about it (and not just because I get to hear first hand about the incredible sequel as it’s being written hahaha)
Last Canto of the Dead will be out May 16th, so if you haven’t read the first book in the Outlaw Saints duology, you still have time!
The High Republic Adventures (2022) Issue #4 will be out May 3rd so make sure to pick it up at your local comic shop and then stick around to see what happens to Lula Talisola on Starlight Beacon because Free Comic Book Day is May 6th!
Where can you find me?
I will be at YallWest Book Festival in Santa Monica on April 29th, signing books and speaking at panels along with Brittany and some other epic Star Wars authors.
On May 16th I’ll be back in New Orleans for Last Canto’s launch event at Octavia Books.
Then the next day I’ll be in NYC to join Margaret Owen for a joint launch event for our YA novels!
For more info and updates — we have a few more events coming up to announce, including one in Baltimore — head over to my website.
That’s all for now. I'll see you next month!
—D