Ask Terry Brooks, author of the adaptation of "Star Wars: Episode One -- The Phantom Menace," why he believes he was chosen over other writers to do the movie's novelization and he doesn't answer right away.
"Good question," Brooks said in a telephone interview from his Seattle home. "I've seen the movies about a dozen times or so, but I don't work in the 'Star Wars' field."But I'm closer to the material than an awful lot of writers, because George and I are both adventure writers at heart. Nobody does that better than we do today."
Brooks is in town to speak at CONduit 9: Deep Space CONduit. The science-fiction convention kicks off his six-city book-signing, which includes Salt Lake City on Monday and Provo on Tuesday.
The author of 17 novels -- so far -- Brooks is probably best known for his "Shannara" series. His first book, "The Sword of Shannara," was published in 1977 and became the first fantasy trade paperback to break into the New York Times best-seller list.
Brooks was approached by the president of Ballantine Books in November 1977 about doing an adaptation for "The Phantom Menace." So, he flew to Skywalker Ranch in central California to meet George Lucas and his staff, to look at the script and to talk with Lucas about the book.
Brooks quickly discovered that this would not be an average movie novelization. Lucas and Brooks agreed the book should be a companion piece that complements the movie rather than simply retelling the story.
"George immediately indicated that he wanted the book to be a wider experience than the movie," said Brooks. "He wanted the book to have things that the movie didn't, which translated into being seven or eight chapters of my own material.
"I said, 'Do you have script pages on this for me?' and he said, 'Nah, go write your own.' So that was flattering."
One thing Lucas wanted to do in "Menace" was create more of a focus on Anakin, but he couldn't figure out how to do it. Brooks said he would focus on Anakin in the book and ended up making it completely his story. He starts and ends his book with Anakin, who is essentially the character who generates the highest intrigue. "Readers needed to see why this kid is special."
Brooks didn't see the movie version of "Menace" until just two weeks ago. Prior to writing the book, he saw only some movie stills and about 20 unedited minutes.
So how did he like the finished product? "I spent the whole time dissecting it," Brooks said. "I couldn't help it.
Had he not written the book, would Brooks have camped out with the rest of the fans to try and get tickets to the opening?
Not likely.
"This movie has just caught the public consciousness in a way no other art has," Brooks said. "People are absolutely fanatical about it, and there really is no reason for it. As a writer, I'm very removed from all of this. I don't get crazed about anything. But it is fun to watch."
Brooks currently has no plans to write further "Star Wars" books.
Brooks' booksignings include:
-- Deseret Book, ZCMI Mall, Monday, noon.
-- Media Play, Family Center on Redwood Road, Monday, 6 p.m.
-- BYU Bookstore, BYU, Tuesday, noon.
-- Wal-Mart, Orem, Tuesday, 6 p.m.