Timothy Zahn (born September 1, 1951) is a science fiction author which is best known for his work on The Thrawn Trilogy, a series of novels following the events of Return of the Jedi, introducing various characters such as Grand Admiral Thrawn and Mara Jade Skywalker. In addition to numerous short stories, he also wrote other novels focusing on Thrawn's character, such as Outbound Flight and The Hand of Thrawn Duology in the Star Wars Legends continuity and the Thrawn and The Ascendancy Trilogy novel series in the current canon continuity.