Stefani Majer - The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide

INTRODUCTION

Dear Reader, Working on this guide has given me a chance to reflect on how much this story has changed my life. One of the best ways things have changed is the opportunity Ive had to get to know so many of my readers. Im always impressed by the funny, caring, interesting people you are. I truly feel that with your enthusiasm and dedication youve brought as much to this series as I have. Little, Brown and I have been working hard to make this guide something special for you, and I hope that weve succeeded. I would never presume to expect that all the questions have been answered, but (fingers crossed) I think we got the big ones, plus many that no ones ever asked me before. Enjoy!

Much love, Steph

A Note From the Publisher

Since the initial publication of Twilight in 2005, readers have asked thousands of questions about the Twilight Saga universe everything from Where do Stephenie Meyers ideas come from? to How does vampire venom work?

This guide expands upon the world of the Twilight Saga, adding histories for its characters and providing other details that might not have made it into the books themselves but are a key part of the people and stories that make up the Saga. Youll find outtakes from the books such as the story of how Emmett was mauled by a bear as well as never-before-seen background notes on main plots and subplots. We hope that these added details shed light on such favorite characters as the Cullens and Quileutes; on such new characters as Nahuel and Garrett; and even on the human residents of Forks, most of whom are unaware of the supernatural creatures all around them.

Also included in this guide are artistic interpretations of the series: everything from new art created just for this book to a gallery of art conceived by talented fans to the many covers that have appeared on different editions of the books around the world.

Because music is such an instrumental part of Stephenies writing process, this guide also includes the official playlist for each book in the Twilight Saga, alongside quotes from the books that reveal what each song represents. Also featured is an extended conversation between Stephenie and Shannon Hale, award-winning author of The Books of Bayern and the Newbery Honor winner Princess Academy, during which they discuss how the Twilight Saga began and some of the challenges and surprises Stephenie encountered along the way.

Thank you for being a part of the world of the Twilight Saga it wouldnt be the same without you.

When Megan, my publisher, came to me with the idea of doing an interview for the guide, I started to come up with a list of reasons why I couldnt in my head. Interviews always make me uncomfortable, and really, what question havent I answered at this point? But then she went on, presenting her inspiration of having the interview conducted by another author, and I was intrigued in spite of myself. I love hanging out with authors, and I dont get a chance to do it very often. So I oh-so-casually suggested my baffy (Best-Author-Friends-Forever), Shannon Hale. And the upshot was, I got to hang out with Shannon for a whole weekend and it was awesome. We did find time to do our interview, which was without a doubt the easiest and most entertaining interview Ive ever done. This interview took place August 29, 2008, which affects some of the directions that our conversation went, but I was surprised when reading through it again at how relevant it still is.

SH: So, lets look at the four different books first. Twilightit started with a dream.

SM: Right. Should I tell the story and get it on record?

SH: Do you want to?

SM: Id like to. This story always sounds really fake to me. And when my publicist told me I needed to tell it because it was a good story for publicity reasons I felt like a lot of people were going to say: You know, thats ridiculous. Shes making up this silly thing to try and get attention. But its nothing but the cold hard facts of how I got started as a writer.

Usually, I wake up around four oclock in the morning. I think its a baby thing left over from knowing that somebody needs you and then I go back to sleep. Thats when I would have the most vivid dreams those morning hours. And those are the ones you remember when you wake up.

So the dream was me looking down on this scene: It was in this meadow, and there was so much light. The dream was very, very colorful. I dont know if that always comes through in the writing that this prism effect was just so brilliant.

I was so intrigued when I woke up. I just sat there and thought: So how does that end?

SH: The sunlight on Edwards skin?

SM: Yeah. There was this beautiful image, this boy, just glittering with light and talking to this normal girl. And the dream really was about him. She was also listening, as I was, and he was the one telling the story. It was mostly about how much he wanted to kill her and, yet, how much he loved her.

In the dream I think Id gotten most of the way through whats chapter 13 now. The part where he recounts how he felt in each specific previous scene was obviously put in later, because I hadnt written those earlier scenes yet. But everything else in that scene was mostly what they were actually talking about in the dream. Even the analogy about food was something that I got in my dream.

I was so intrigued when I woke up. I just sat there and thought: So how does that end?

Does he kill her? Because it was really close. You know how, in dreams, its not just what you hear, but you also kind of feel whats going on, and you see everything that the person in your head sees. So I knew how close it was. I mean, there was just a thin, thin line between what he was going to choose. And so I just wondered: How would they have made that work? What would be the next step for a couple like this?

I had recently started realizing that my memory was going, and that I could no longer remember whom I had said something to yesterday. My youngest was just passing one, and the next one was two, and I had an almost-five-year-old. So my brains were like oatmeal there was nothing left. And so I knew I was going to forget this story! That realization was something that really hurt me.

You know, when I was a kid, I always told myself stories, but I didnt write them down. I didnt have to my memory was great then. So I could always go back and revisit the one about this, the one about that, and go over and refine it. But this one was going to get lost if I didnt do something about it. So after I got the kids breakfast done, I only had two hours before swim lessons. And, even though I should have been doing other things, I started writing it out.