Authors Daniel José Older and Alyssa Wong have been friends and fans of each other’s work for nearly a decade. After meeting in 2015 at the launch party for Older’s first novel, Half-Resurrection Blues, they quickly formed a mutual appreciation that went beyond the page.

Their shared beliefs in creating chaotic and flawed characters, an affinity for imagining a wide spectrum of individuals whose identities reflect the full array of real Star Wars fans, and a shorthand that includes sharing pictures of birds during brainstorming makes them uniquely suited to co-write Escape from Valo, the newest middle grade book in Star Wars: The High Republic. With a cast of kids that bring the charm of The Goonies crew to the world of Valo, their story imbues a sense of hope and self-discovery to a younger audience during a period of anarchy in which the Nihil remain victorious.

In the latest installment in the StarWars.com series celebrating Phase III in Star Wars: The High Republic, which continues next week with Escape from Valo arriving January 30 and the monthly release of Older’s ongoing Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures comic series tomorrow, listen in as the two writers reflect on their collaboration, their fictional kids, and avian character vibes.

If you’re a fan of Marvel’s Star Wars comics, the names Kieron Gillen and Alyssa Wong should be familiar ones; they’re the comic book writers who, respectively, co-created Doctor Aphra and are currently writing the rogue archaeologist’s ongoing series. After her debut in Star Wars: Darth Vader #3 in 2015, Aphra has quickly risen to prominence as one of the most recognizable characters in Star Wars who doesn’t hail from the films or television shows, drawing fans from all walks of life. She has become particularly notable for 1) somehow surviving multiple encounters with Darth Vader when others might not have and 2) being one of the first and certainly most well-known queer characters in the Star Wars galaxy.

In honor of Pride Month, I spoke with Gillen and Wong to talk about writing Doctor Aphra and our own experiences as queer people, both in the real world and in relation to the galaxy far, far away.

Alyssa Wong, Campbell Award nominee and Nebula Award winner, joins us to talk about impostor syndrome. This is the frame of mind that many successful writers suffer from, in which they worry that they’re not really good enough at writing to be enjoying their success. Worse, this mindset can prevent us from continuing to create.

Many of us suffer from this, and we have some strategies to cope with it.