Timothy Zahn

Timothy Zahn was born in Chicago, Illinois. He attended Michigan State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1973. He then moved to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and achieved an M.S. degree in physics in 1975. While he was pursuing a doctorate in physics, his thesis adviser quite suddenly died, leaving Zahn with three years of thesis work down the drain. Zahn never completed the doctorate. In 1975 he had begun writing science fiction as a hobby, and later he became a professional writer. He and his wife Anna live in Bandon, Oregon. They have a son, Corwin Zahn.

He is best known for the Thrawn Trilogy (consisting of Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, and The Last Command) which picks up where Return of the Jedi left off. These books spawned a slew of other Star Wars novels and story collections by authors such as Kevin J. Anderson and Michael A. Stackpole. Zahn also wrote two additional Star Wars novels, collectively called The Hand of Thrawn Duology (consisting of Specter of the Past, and Vision of the Future). Recently he wrote the stand-alone novels Survivor's Quest, Outbound Flight, and Allegiance. He has also contributed to the script of several comics and short stories over the years, including Mara Jade: By the Emperor's Hand.

In April 2009, it was confirmed that Zahn had been signed to write a new Star Wars novel set shortly after Allegiance, which will feature Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, Mara Jade, Thrawn and the Hand of Judgment, to be released in the fall of 2011, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of Heir to the Empire.