Amazing news yesterday. Not only did England break a 55-year streak to finally get through to the final of a major football tournament, Star Wars: The High Republic – The Rising Storm hit the New York Times Bestseller List, debuting at number nine!
At the same time, my buddy Daniel José Older’s Star Wars: The High Republic – Race to Crashpoint Tower hit #3 on the Children’s list meaning he has the trifecta of books on the NYT Adult, YA and Middle Grade lists. Go Daniel!
Thank you to all the fans who have made Star Wars: The High Republic the undeniable success it is. Your enthusiasm and excitement have been an inspiration and we owe you all so much. May the Force be with you… always!
A successful book is always a team effort, none more so than The Rising Storm. First and foremost, there is Michael Siglain, the Creative Director of Lucasfilm Publishing, who kicked off this incredible journey in the first place. Then there are my fellow High Republic creators; Daniel, Justina Ireland, Claudia Gray and Charles Soule.
There’s my wonderful editor at Del Rey, Tom Hoeler, who masterfully guided us through the writing and editing process and Del Rey’s Creative Director, Elizabeth Schaefer who is just the most supportive person in the world.
At Lucasfilm we have James Waugh, who has cheerleaded the project and me personally since the beginning and the entirety of Story Group, including the wonderful Pablo Hidalgo and Matt Martin. Matt was the first person who gave me an idea that the Rising Storm had landed, sending me a little DM to tell me how much he enjoyed it when he read the book. He has no idea what that meant to me as I sat at home nervously waiting for the official verdict from Lucasfilm after I’d submitted the first draft.
Then there’s our amazing publicist Lyssa Hurvitz at Disney Publishing who has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to keep the High Republic machine moving, alongside Lauren Kretzschmar at Del Rey for this book.
Nearer to home, I have to say thank you to my agent, Charlotte Robertson for her support and constantly keeping my spirits up and Sarah Simpson-Weiss, who was my assistant at the time of writing the book (and it’s first reader!)
The final thanks must, of course, go to my beautiful wife Clare who, along with my incredible daughters Chloe and Connie, supported me in every way possible as I hammered out words and turned around edits. The three of you are the reason I do this job and I love you all so much.
Phew! That’s a lot of thanks and if there’s anyone I’ve missed off, I apologise. I must admit, I’m still a little giddy. There’s a rumour that The Rising Storm is due to hit the Sunday Times Bestseller List at home over the weekend, so we’ll have to do it all again then.
For Light and Life, my friends. For Light and Life.
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