Here it is…The Interview with Drew Karpyshyn!

The below questions where generated by the membership at JM, and I would like to thank everyone who submitted a question for Drew.  This interview is our second interview with someone connected with Star Wars, and I can assure you all there are a many more exciting interviews on the way. Make sure you stay posted to find out who is coming to Jedi-Masters next!

Lastly, I am sure I speak on behalf of everyone on Jedi-Masters, in thanking Drew for allowing this chance to ask him some questions. Anyway I hope you all enjoy the interview!

1. What are your inspirations?
One of my earliest inspirations is Episode IV - it was released when I was about 7, so it was a very powerful formative influence on me. As I grew up, I also delved into the works of many fantasy, sci-fi and horror authors (Stephen King, Tolkein, Donaldson, Eddings, and later on Guy Gavriel Kay, George R. Martin and Neil Gaiman). And of course, as a geeky teenager growing up in the 1980’s I played a lot of D&D.

2. What are your thoughts on the growing fandom?
I think it’s great that Star Wars is continuing to grow. Twenty years ago, everyone was sure the original trilogy would be the end, but Star Wars never seemed to fade or grow old. That led to the EU materials, including the novels and games I’ve lucky enough to work on. And that, in turn, led to more movies… which brought in a whole new generation of fans. And because Star Wars is such a massive universe, with so much still to explore, I think fans are going to continue to be drawn in for many years to come.

3. Will there be a 3rd Darth Bane book?
I hope so, but there’s nothing official yet. Ultimately it’s up to Del Rey and Lucas, so I’ll just cross my fingers and hope the sales of Rule of Two are good enough to justify another sequel.

4. Whats it like working at Bioware?
It’s a great company, with fantastic perks. Everyone here shares the same interests and hobbies (we’re all geeks and proud of it!), they bring in free breakfast every morning (bagels, cinnamon buns, yogurt, fruit, eggs… it’s pretty impressive), and they’re very generous with their bonuses and benefits. But it’s still a job. We work a full day (with flex hours), and when a deadline approaches we can work some serious overtime. But if I didn’t love it, I wouldn’t do it.

5. You had the job of defining the Rule of Two. Was that a difficult task creating how Darth Bane would discover it and implement it?
I’ll be honest: the Rule of Two has so much importance in the Star Wars universe I was afraid of screwing it up. I spent a lot of time trying to decide the best way for Bane to discover it, but I did have some help along the way. The Jedi vs Sith comic series showed the end result of Bane’s machinations, and I knew if I went in a bad direction my editors at Lucas and Del Rey would guide me back on track. Fortunately, I think everything worked out in a way that satisified most fans.

6. All the Star Wars material you have written has been set within the Old Republic, what other era’s would you like to explore?
I actually like the Old Republic the best… maybe because there’s only a few of us working in that era. Everything set during or after the movies has to build on this immense library of material, and as a newer writer I think it would be easy for me to get lost in the shuffle. But the Old Republic is largely unexplored, and it offers such great opportunities to build on things mentioned in or alluded to in the movies.

7. When can Mass Effect fans expect from their first taste of Ascension?
Mass Effect: Ascension will set up the second game in the same way Revelation set up the first game. It won’t focus on Shepard (that’s *your* story as the player), but it will introduce some new characters and themes that will figure prominently in the second game. I also bring back Kahlee Sanders from the first novel, and I’ll take a closer look at biotics and one of the alien species you got to meet in Mass Effect.

8. Is Mass Effect serving as a tester for KOTOR III? Are Bioware seeing which ideas work and which don’t?
Mass Effect is it’s own original setting, and all the work we’re doing on it is focuse on telling a great story in the universe we created. Obviously we’ll continue to learn and improve our craft, but these improvements will be seen in the sequels to Mass Effect.

9. As an author do you ever see yourself in the characters you create for your novels?
Sometimes I see certain aspects of myself in them, or certain qualities I wish I had. But usually my characters are a chance for me to explore attitudes, values and beliefs that I don’t have in my normal, everyday life.

10. When writing your novels do you like to just concentrate on oneproject at a time or write them simultaneously?
I prefer to work on one project at a time whenever possible - it helps me stay focused on the tone and feel of a specific setting or story. However, there have been times when my schedule has forced me to work on multiple projects at once.

11. Which of the Star Wars films is your favourite and why?
I like Empire the best. It seems darker than the other films, more serious and “substantial”, if that makes sense. The actors have great chemistry in the film, and t has the amazing twist when we learn Vader is Luke’s father. That may be one of the most memorable moments in movie history.

12. How did you get Bane? Was he a personal character you wanted to write about or is there in the Star Wars literary circle a list to choose from?
I actually chose Bane because I was interested in exploring the mysterious, shadowy figure hanging around the fringes of the action in the Dark Horse comics. Obviously my choice had to be approved by Lucas and Del Rey, and it was made easier by the fact he was alreay a mythical figure in the SW universe. But it’s not like they gave me a ballot and had me  check off a box.

Posted: 01|13|08 at 10:01 pm. Filed under: Forum News, Star Wars, The Prequel Trilogy, Website News.
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