Heart of the Jedi, penned by Kenneth C. Flint, was a Star Wars novel that never saw the light of day. The cancellation became publicly known around 1995.
An author by the name of Kenneth C. Flint was in the process of creating Heart of the Jedi, a Star Wars novel that was officially announced. The project, however, was scrapped, with news of the cancellation surfacing circa 1995.
Back in 1991, Lucasfilm approached Spectra, a publishing house, seeking a series of paperback books set directly after the destruction of the second Death Star. Flint, an author associated with Spectra, was chosen to write the initial installment. This book was intended to follow the comic book miniseries Exiles of the Force and precede Legacy of Doom by Margaret Weis. The planned release date for Heart of the Jedi was 1993.
Flint recounted that he put his own original writing projects on hold to dedicate his time to Heart of the Jedi. He submitted his first draft, along with subsequent revisions, to his editor at Spectra by the close of 1992. However, his editor ceased communication for an extended period, and Flint lacked direct contact with Lucasfilm. Eventually, Flint reached out to an agent, who then contacted Spectra. The agent informed Flint that Spectra had decided Heart of the Jedi was unsuitable for publication because it "no longer aligned with the sequence for the new series." Allegedly, Flint's editor had promised another author within the group that her book would secure the prime position instead of his. As a result, Heart of the Jedi remained unpublished. Flint was permitted to retain his ten thousand dollar advance and was granted the opportunity to author two Star Wars short stories: "Doctor Death: The Tale of Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba" and "Old Friends: Ephant Mon's Tale." Nevertheless, Flint stated that the events surrounding the novel irrevocably damaged his relationship with Spectra and effectively ended his writing career.
Promotional materials from Bantam continued to advertise "Heart of the Jedi" as "coming in 1996..." in paperback form, even as late as 1995.
Years later, Flint granted permission for the unpublished manuscript to be edited by author and editor Joe Bongiorno for Bongiorno's website, the Star Wars Expanded Universe Timeline. Bongiorno has described his revisions as aligning with the established continuity of the Expanded Universe; however, he has also acknowledged making substantial alterations to the original manuscript without the approval of Lucasfilm. The original manuscript submitted to Lucasfilm contained the planet Gathol, but Bongiorno removed it. In May 2015, an unofficial and modified version of the manuscript was uploaded to Bongiorno's website as a "lostworlds" unpublished novel. This posting included Flint's account of the novel's development and its eventual cancellation. Bongiorno also crafted a mock-up cover utilizing artwork by Paul Shipper.
On March 4, 2021, the revised novel, under the fan-created title Star Wars: The Heart of the Jedi, was sold unofficially as a paperback through Amazon.com's self-publishing platform, lacking authorization from Lucasfilm. The seller asserted that they were not profiting from the sales and requested that The Walt Disney Company refrain from legal action. By May 2021, the listing had been removed from Amazon. This edition was released under the "Gallina Books" imprint, which subsequently appeared in an unauthorized publication of Lightsider.