UPDATE 10/6/2020:
The full list of 40 POV characters, story titles, and their respective authors have been revealed by Del Rey for The Empire Strikes Back: From a Certain Point of View. The list is as follows:
1 – “Eyes of the Empire” (Maela, an Imperial Probe Droid technician) by Kiersten White
2 – “Hunger” (Wampa) by Mark Oshiro
3 – “Ion Control” (Toryn Farr) by Emily Skrutskie
4 – “A Good Kiss (Chase, a rebel who witnesses Han and Leia’s hallway argument on Hoth) by C.B. Lee
5 – “She Will Keep Them Warm” (Murra, a Tauntaun) by Delilah S. Dawson
6 – “Heroes of the Rebellion” (Corwi Selgrothe, a rebel recruitment officer) by Amy Ratcliffe
7 – “Rogue Two” (Zev Senesca) by Gary Whitta
8 – “Kendal” (Admiral Ozzel) by Charles Yu
9 – “Against All Odds” (Dak Ralter) by R.F. Kuang
10 – “Beyond Hope” (Emon Kref, a rebel soldier fighting in the Battle of Hoth) by Michael Moreci
11 – “The Truest Duty” (Maximillian Veers) by Christie Golden
12 – “A Naturalist on Hoth” (unnamed naturalist) by Hank Green
13 – “The Dragonsnake Saves R2-D2” (a comic strip starring R2) by Katie Cook
14 – “For the Last Time” (Admiral Piett) by Beth Revis
15 – “Rendezvous Point” (Wedge Antilles) by Jason Fry
16 – “The Final Order” (an unnamed Star Destroyer captain) by Seth Dickinson
17 – “Amara Kel’s Rules for TIE Pilot Survival (Probably)” (Amara Kel, a TIE Fighter pilot) by Django Wexler
18 – “The First Lesson” (Yoda) by Jim Zub
19 – “Disturbance” (Emperor Palpatine) by Mike Chen
20 – “This is No Cave” (Exogorth AKA Space Slug) by Catherynne M. Valente
21 – “Lord Vader Will See You Now” (Rae Sloane) by John Jackson Miller
22 – “Vergence” (Dagobah’s Dark Side Cave) by Tracy Deonn
23 – “Tooth and Claw” (Bossk) by Michael Kogge
24 – “STET!” (Parazeen Parapa, a cartel journalist profiling Zuckuss and 4-LOM) by Daniel José Older
25 – “Wait for It” (Boba Fett) by Zoraida Córdova
26 – “Standard Imperial Procedure” (unnamed Imperial officer) by Sarwat Chadda
27 – “There is Always Another” (Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Force ghost) by Mackenzi Lee
28 – “Fake It Till You Make It” (Jaxxon) by Cavan Scott
29 – “But What Does He Eat?” (unnamed Cloud City chef) by S.A. Chakraborty
30 – “Beyond the Clouds” (unnamed wannabe bounty hunter) by Lilliam Rivera
31 – “No Time for Poetry” (IG-88 and Dengar) by Austin Walker
32 – “Bespin Escape” (Ugnaughts) by Martha Wells
33 – “Faith in an Old Friend” (L3-37, as part of the Millennium Falcon’s computer) by Brittany N. Williams
34 – “Due on Batuu” (Willrow Hood) by Rob Hart
35 – “Into the Clouds” (Jailyn, a Cloud City socialite) by Karen Strong
36 – “The Witness” (Deena Lorn AKA TK-342, a stormtrooper) by Adam Christopher
37 – “The Man Who Built Cloud City” (unnamed King of Cloud City) by Alexander Freed
38 – “The Backup Backup Plan” (Tal, a citizen of Bespin) by Anne Toole
39 – “Right-Hand Man” (2-1B) by Lydia Kang
40 – “The Whills Strike Back” (unnamed Journal of the Whills chronicler) by Tom Angleberger
UPDATE 6/15/2020:
Lucasfilm Publishing has revealed the full author list for The Empire Strikes Back: From a Certain Point of View. The 40 participating writers include Tom Angleberger (Origami Yoda), S. A. Chakraborty (The Daevabad Trilogy), Mike Chen (A Beginning at the End), Adam Christopher (Seven Wonders), Zoraida Córdova (Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – A Crash of Fate), Delilah S. Dawson (Star Wars: Phasma), Tracy Deonn (Legendborn), Seth Dickinson (The Traitor Baru Cormorant), Alexander Freed (Star Wars: Alphabet Squadron), Jason Fry (Star Wars: The Last Jedi – Expanded Edition), Christie Golden (Star Wars: Dark Disciple), Hank Green (An Absolutely Remarkable Thing), Rob Hart (The Warehouse), E.K. Johnston (Star Wars: Ahsoka), Lydia Kang (Opium and Absinthe), Michael Kogge (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker – A Junior Novel), R.F. Kuang (The Poppy War), C.B. Lee (Sidekick Squad), Mackenzi Lee (This Monstrous Thing), John Jackson Miller (Star Wars: A New Dawn), Michael Moreci (Roche Limit), Daniel José Older (Star Wars: Last Shot), Mark Oshiro (Each of Us a Desert), Amy Ratcliffe (Star Wars: Women of the Galaxy), Beth Revis (Across the Universe), Lilliam Rivera (Dealing in Dreams), Cavan Scott (Star Wars: Dooku – Jedi Lost), Emily Skrutskie (The Abyss Surrounds Us), Karen Strong (Just South of Home), Anne Toole (Crystal Cadets), Catherynne M. Valente (Space Opera), Austin Walker (Friends at the Table), Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries), Django Wexler (The Shadow Campaigns), Kiersten White (Paranormalcy), Gary Whitta (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), Brittany N. Williams (Black Nerd Problems), Charles Yu (How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe), and Jim Zub (Wayward).
ORIGINAL POST FROM 6/11:
“What I told you was true… from a certain point of view.” The Force ghost of Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi spoke those immortal words to Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, and several years ago they were used as the title for a short-story collection called Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, which retold events from the very first Star Wars film from the perspective of 40 of its background characters.
Now Lucasfilm Publishing has announced a follow-up anthology book entitled The Empire Strikes Back: From a Certain Point of View, which will carry that concept forward to the events and characters seen in 1980’s Episode V, which celebrated its 40th anniversary just last month.
What’s happening:
- Lucasfilm Publishing has announced the new anthology book entitled The Empire Strikes Back: From a Certain Point of View, a follow-up to 2017’s Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View.
- The book will contain 40 stories by 40 different authors in celebration of The Empire Strikes Back’s 40th anniversary, “reimagining the classic sequel through the eyes of background characters — heroes, villains, droids and creatures.”
- Authors include Mike Chen, Emily Skrutskie, Karen Strong, Catherynne Valente, Mark Oshiro, Django Wexler, Kiersten White, Lilliam Rivera, Rob Hart, Jim Zub, and our friend Amy Ratcliffe. The full list of authors will be announced this coming Monday, June 16 at StarWars.com.
What they’re saying:
- StarWars.com: “All participating authors have generously forgone any compensation for their stories. Instead, their proceeds will be donated to First Book — a leading nonprofit that provides new books, learning materials, and other essentials to educators and organizations serving children in need. To further celebrate the launch of this book and both companies’ longstanding relationships with First Book, Penguin Random House will donate $100,000 to First Book, and Disney/Lucasfilm will donate 100,000 children’s books — valued at $1,000,000 — to support First Book and their mission of providing equal access to quality education.”
The Empire Strikes Back: From a Certain Point of View will be released on Tuesday, November 10.