Zahn imagined Mara Jade as a strong, complex female character, somebody he thought lacking in the Star Wars universe.

[2] Asked to write another novel, he established two goals: "to end the war between the New Republic and the Empire, and to get Luke Skywalker and Mara together.

Zahn also explained that Lucasfilm Story Group held the authority to prevent him from incorporating Mara back into the canon, so any appearance of the character must be approved by both parties.

Previously, the character of Grand Admiral Thrawn, another Zahn creation, made the jump from Legends to canon, albeit with a slightly-reworked story.

Subsequently, Zahn said he hoped to find a way to bring Mara into the canon, stating "If there was a generic, or organic, spot for her to fit into a story...

Luke and Mara develop a strong bond in Zahn's The Hand of Thrawn duology; he proposes marriage, and the two wed in Michael A. Stackpole's graphic novel Union.

In the Legacy of the Force series, Mara is suspicious of her nephew, Jacen Solo, after he sends Ben on several ethically-dubious missions.

She also appears as a Force ghost to Cade Skywalker in the Legacy comics, set more than a century after the Star Wars films.

In 2008, when franchise creator George Lucas said there would be no sequel trilogy, he explained that plot elements from the Expanded Universe were not part of his story, saying, "Luke doesn't get married".